Appeal lodged against Booterstown Marsh leisure centre decision

An appeal has been lodged against the decision to refuse planning permission for a leisure centre in Booterstown Marsh.

The development had been proposed by Soundvale, a firm owned by businessman Paddy McKillen Jnr, and involved building a luxurious spa and gym facility with both indoor and outdoor swimming pools on the 2.9 acre site on the Merrion Road/Rock Road.

Dublin City Council rejected the plans for the five-storey “recreational and interpretative centre” next to An Taisce’s nature reserve at Booterstown Marsh over concerns that it could cause water pollution in Dublin Bay.

Soundvale had sought approval for an 18.5m metre high building (cgi above) consisting of an interpretive centre, crèche, café, restaurant, health studios, gym, spa, swimming pool, jacuzzi and hydro pool.

The developer said the interpretive centre was not to be commercially driven and an entrance fee would only be charged to ensure it “was sustainable and generated income.”

The biodiversity proposals for the site included a new coastal meadow, tree belt, shrub garden and bird hide.

Dublin City Council said it could not be satisfied that the proposed development would not have a significant impact on wetlands in Dublin Bay.

The council said the project would run contrary to its policy to conserve and manage protected habitats by ensuring that any adverse environmental effects were avoided, remedied or mitigated where sustainable coastal recreational facilities were proposed.

A separate but related application about the project was lodged with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council as the 1.9 hectare site straddles land in the administrative area of the two local authorities.

DLRCC also refused to give the green light to Soundvale’s plans.

Now an appeal has been lodged with An Bord Pleanála against DLRCC’s decision to refuse planning.

Soundvale’s plans have also been opposed by An Taisce, who claimed they would set an “undesirable precedent for development of a large scale commercial nature on green and open spaces in the city.”

An Taisce said the commercial leisure facilities would be much more appropriately located in the new hotel being built on the site of the former Tara Towers hotel.

The development has also been opposed by the Friends of Booterstown Coast group who claim the site is in the buffer zone for the UNESCO Dublin Bay Biosphere as well as being prone to flooding.

In its original application, Soundvale said its objective was “to deliver a world class recreational facility and interpretative centre in a coastal meadow and biodiversity-rich setting” that would benefit the local and wider community.