Agenda and minutes

The report was circulated to the Housing and Planning and Property Development SPC members, and all other Councillors prior to the meeting.  Hard copies were also made available at the meeting as there had been some last minute changes to the originally circulated report.

John O’Hara, A/City Planner, set out the background to this plan.  St Teresa’s Gardens was one of 18 Strategic Regeneration Sites (SDRA’s) designated in the current Development Plan, and SDRA12 was the subject of much discussion during the Development Plan process.  This development is a good urban design response to these discussions giving a housing potential of 1,050 units (approximately) and the existing recreational area being augmented to give just under 30% public open space, well in excess of the statutory 20%.

Dervla Cotter, Senior Executive Architect, advised that the previous Part 8 approval provides for 34 houses and 16 apartments.  The plan is to develop other blocks on the private lands, have perimeter buildings on wide streets, indicate where public sites will go, have potential higher rise development away from the perimeter and integrate the school into the development.  The indicative heights will be a mixture of 2-5 storeys; 7-8 storeys; and a higher range of storeys in the centre.  The natural entrances to the site will be primary routes from Donore Avenue and South Circular Road, secondary routes and pedestrian routes, all encouraging movement through the new neighbourhood.

The 28-29% public open space will accommodate the GAA sized pitch (135x85m including run off zones), for multisport use, two parks with playgrounds and other facilities; the second park has the potential for a mix of complementary ground floor uses onto the park - tea shops etc.; the Coombe lands are not included in the framework in any detail as future plans for these lands are unknown at present.

Questions ensued regarding the placement of the football pitch on the consolidated block and could it not be placed within the development site instead as otherwise it would not be put in place until Phase 3 begins in three years time and to avoid this could it not be put on the private lands?  Other questions concerned whether 100% of the DCC lands would be allocated to social housing; what is the ratio of public and private housing being provided; and how much of the development will have non-residential use.  Tenure mix and funding queries were also raised.

Tony Flynn, Executive Manager Housing, advised that the private lands space is not big enough for the GAA sized pitch but it will fit at the Donore Avenue end of the site.  The report that Housing have done on this can be made available to the members.  Also the private lands are in receivership and we have no way of controlling what the Receiver will decide to do with them.

Our first priority is to get funding from the Department for the South West Inner City regeneration.  The Minister has committed to the scheme subject to our final submission.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.