A NEW application for planning retention for a number of masts on the roof of Metro Hotel in Ballymun is expected to be lodged within a matter of days.
The owners of the masts are understood to be in discussion with council officials with a view to making them compliant with planning regulations. Some of the masts are subject to an enforcement order after previous applications for retention was refused.
In February, 2016, the council refused retention to Airfibre Limited for nine two metre, high ballast mounted antenna support poles and seven transmission dishes on the roof of the hotel.
In its decision, planners said that given the structures on the roof of the 50 metre tall hotel could be clearly seen from around Ballymun Town Centre and the surrounding area, they constituted ‘visual clutter’.
Last June, retention permission was also refused for ballast poles carrying antenna, dishes, and all other ancillary equipment. The equipment was described as an integral part of applicants Airspeed Telecom and Host Ireland’s integrated fibre and wireless broadband telecommunications networks.
The hotel had supported the retention application saying it provided it with high speed connectivity for corporate clients and for residents in apartments in the building.
The council’s refusal to grant retention was mainly based on visual reasons, but Cllr Andrew Keegan (PBP) said locals felt there was a potential safety issue.
“Residents were concerned that the structures put at risk the general public in the advent of failure of these structures in a serious storm,” he said.
“It has come to the attention of the local population of Ballymun and anyone who passes through the Santry Cross junction that there is a proliferation of telecommunications masts on top of the building.
“It has got to the stage that people are starting to call the hotel the ‘Hedgehog’ as it looks spiky when viewed from a distance.”
Last week, a spokesperson for Metro Hotel confirmed the equipment is being moved and modified and a new application for retention is being prepared.
“We feel we’ve done everything the council has requested and we’re hopeful the application will succeed,” the spokesperson said. “Some of the equipment is servicing businesses, schools and hospitals around the area because they can’t get service anywhere else. There’s a very good reason for having the equipment up there.”
