2342340

Permission for Alterations to existing mixed-use building namely; change of use of part of ground floor and entire first, second, and third floors from office space to residential consisting of 3no. studio apartments along with an alteration to the rear elevation including new rear window and all associated site development works

Refused

Core Refusal Reason

The proposed studio apartments fail to meet the mandatory minimum floor area and storage standards set out in the 2023 Apartment Guidelines and the Cork City Development Plan, resulting in a substandard form of residential development.

Decision Maker's Conclusion

  • The proposed units exhibit significant floor area deficits ranging from 9.4% to 16.9% below the required 37 sqm minimum for studio apartments.
  • Internal storage provision is inadequate, falling well below the 3 sqm standard, and the irregular floor plan configuration further restricts the useability of the living space.
  • While the conservation of the historic building and the principle of 'Living Over the Shop' are supported, the extent of the quantitative shortfalls would result in a poor-quality living environment for future occupants.

Cited Policies (CDP)

Z5 - City Centre ZoningParagraph ZO 5.2Strategic Objective 2Objective 3.1Objective 3.4Section 11.90 (Apartment Design)Section 11.91 (Quantitative Standards)Section 11.82 (Qualitative Considerations in the Design of Apartment Schemes)Section 11.144 (Living Over the Shop)

Decision Document Summary

The proposal seeks to convert the upper floors of a vacant, four-storey, NIAH-listed commercial building at 64 St. Patrick's Street, Cork, into three studio apartments. The site occupies a prominent corner at the intersection with Grand Parade and is located within the Oliver Plunkett Street Architectural Conservation Area. While the Inspector acknowledged the policy support for bringing vacant city-centre buildings into residential use and praised the sensitive architectural approach to the his...
SOURCE PDFOpen Original
Note: If code appears below, the council site is blocking the preview. Please open the original file.