Residents in Terenure in Dublin are opposing plans for a seven-storey, 364-unit build-to-rent apartment scheme on former playing pitches at Terenure College.
The Carmelite Order – which runs Terenure College and owns a substantial landbank at the school – said the development will help to secure the future viability of the college.
The plan by Lioncor – which also includes 21 houses – for the build-to-rent and build-to-sell scheme for Fortfield Road, Terenure, comprises four apartment blocks rising to seven storeys. They comprise 15 studios, 166 one-bed apartments, 174 two-bed apartments and nine three-bed units.
However, to date local residents have lodged more than 30 objections against the scheme.
In one objection Dr Paul Redbond told Dublin City Council that the scheme “would seem to be excessive in terms of density and height”.
Kenneth Ward has contended that the seven-storey height of the development “will result in a complete loss of privacy for the existing properties which will now be overlooked”, and that the build-to-rent model “would introduce a very large transient population that would not in any way be rooted in the community”.
Local couple Mark Carroll and Fionnuala Crennan said: “We welcome a proposed new development on this site as it is badly needed but it must be done in a proper manner. We all know that there is a housing crisis but building thousands of build-to-rent schemes in the city charging extortionate rents, the majority of which people can’t afford, is not the way to solve it”.
They said that “the idea of build-to-rent in this area is completely unsustainable and unsuitable in a settled neighbourhood like ours”.
In his objection Colin McKeon told the council that the build-to-rent aspect is not in line with the area “which is a mature residential suburb of Dublin”. He said “the transient nature of occupants of a build-to-rent development will bring no lasting value to there, and does not lead to a sustainable and mature development”.
He added: “I strongly object to the nature of build-to-rent and the effect it will have on the whole area.”
A planning report lodged with the large-scale residential development application states that the proposed development “will deliver high quality urban design, and will contribute positively and integrate well into the surrounding environment”.
The closing date for objections is July 18th.
