22156
permission for the construction of the following: 1. 3 no. buildings comprising of the following: (a) Building no. 1 which has ground floor retail, a community digital hub office accommodation on the first, second and third floors and a yoga, pilates and wellness centre with a juice bar and healthy snacks facility on the fourth floor. (b) Building no. 2 which has ground floor retail, a community digital hub office accommodation on the first, second and third floors and a spa treatment and wellness centre on the fourth floor. (c) Building no. 3 which has ground floor retail, a community digital hub office accommodation on the first, second and third floors and a gymnasium and fitness centre on the fourth floor. 2. A landscaped public realm with hard landscaping, seating areas, semi mature planting etc. to the west of the site along the public road and also between buildings 1 and 2, centrally in the site. 3. Provision of new semi mature, deciduous planting to the western and north western boundaries. 4. Provision of on-site carparking and bicycle parking. 5. Provision of a new foul sewer connection to the adjoining public foul sewer network. 6. Provision of storm water drainage including the installation of a storm water attenuation tank and connection to adjoining public storm water network. 7. Provision for a new water connection to the buildings from the adjoining public water main. 8. Provision of public lighting throughout the site. 9. Provision of on-site bin storage. 10. Provision to connect into existing adjoining road network and to connect new footpaths to service the proposed development. 11. Removal off-site of the existing prefabricated buildings to the front (south west) of the site. 12. All associated site development works
Core Refusal Reason
The proposed development is of an excessive scale for its 'Neighbourhood Centre' zoning and fails to provide an appropriate architectural response or urban form for the site.
Decision Maker's Conclusion
- The scale of the proposed mixed-use development is considered excessive and inconsistent with the B2 'Neighbourhood Centre' zoning, potentially undermining the vitality of Dundalk Town Centre and encouraging car-dependent development.
- The architectural design, height, and configuration fail to create a suitable urban form or sense of place, lacking adequate passive surveillance and pedestrian/cycle connectivity to adjoining lands.
- The proposal materially contravenes several Louth County Development Plan policy objectives regarding retail strategy, town centre vitality, and sustainable development, setting an undesirable precedent for the area.