The firm behind the Tyrrelstown controversy has lost in a bid to knock Dalkey Manor
Twinlite wanted to build dozens of luxury houses at the prime site.
THE DEVELOPER THAT found itself at the centre of the Tyrrelstown eviction controversy has failed in an attempt to demolish Dalkey Manor.
Melmousa Devco, a subsidiary of Dublin property company Twinlite, wanted to build just over two dozen homes on the site at Barnhill Road in Dalkey.
Twinlite became a household name last year when debts secured against one of its developments in Tyrrelstown were acquired by Goldman Sachs.
Dozens of residents who were renting houses in the estate were then told by Twinlite that they would either have to leave or buy their premises.
The new Dalkey development Twinlite’s subsidiary was trying to progress would have involved the construction of 29 homes on a two-acre site incorporating the two-storey Dalkey Manor and lands around the property.
The site is a large part of the original grounds of Dalkey Lodge, a protected structure located nearby.
Dalkey Lodge is estimated to have been built in the 17th century, and is one of the oldest surviving properties in the prestigious south Dublin suburb.
Overbearing
The proposed development included the Twinlite company demolishing Dalkey Manor and building 19 three-storey houses as well as a mix of one- and two-storey homes.
The plan was already rejected by Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, which said that the project would fail to provide “an appropriate mix of house types to cater for a variety of households in the area”.
The local authority also said that the proposed three-storey houses, due to their proximity to Dalkey Lodge, would have an “overbearing impact” on the protected structure.
Melmousa Devco then appealed this decision to An Bord Pleanála. Several residents made submissions to the planning board objecting to the proposed project, saying that the proposed housing mix would not “result in affordable properties”.
Twinlite was involved in controversey over Tyrellstown
They also said that the three-storey houses would cause “overshadowing, visual impacts, (and) a devaluation of property”.
An Bord Pleanála sided with the residents on this point. In refusing permission for the project, it said that it would “seriously injure the residential amenities of the area by reason of visual obtrusion and overshadowing”.
Dalkey Lodge
The national planning authority said that the low density of the development, which would have consisted of family homes in a suburban area made up of similar properties, would have contravened a policy that aims to get a mix of different types of houses.
It also said that, due to the site’s closeness to Dalkey Lodge, “the proposed development would materially and adversely affect the character and setting of the protected structure”.
In October 2016 Twinlite acquired Dalkey Manor, which is near another of its developments in the area, an 18-house project in Enderly.
The company is looking at several other projects nearby and is planning to build 50 luxury apartments at a Dalkey site that previously formed part of Castle Park School.
