The draft Dundrum Local Area Plan was approved by the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Councillors at a special council meeting on October 10th last and came into effect on 21st of November.
The Local Area Plan can be viewed on the Council’s website at https://www.dlrcoco.ie/dundrumlap
Imagine Dundrum has made a detailed 30-page submission on the draft Dundrum Local Area Plan (LAP). It focuses strongly on the framework set out in the draft LAP for the Old Shopping Centre, as this Framework will be of utmost significance for any new planning application for that site, should the current Hammerson-Allianz planning application be turned down by An Bord Pleanála. The submission sets out Imagine Dundrum’s disagreement with the Building Heights Strategy proposed in the draft LAP, while welcoming a number of aspects of the Framework, including the objective for a 2,000 square meter park on the site, and the decision to provide Dundrum with a Civic Centre. Read the full submission here.
A short summary of Imagine Dundrum’s formal submission can be read here.
The Draft DUNDRUM LOCAL AREA PLAN (LAP) recently published by Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, sets out a framework for important aspects of the future of Dundrum, including:
Read the Draft LAP at: https://www.dlrcoco.ie/dundrumlap You can also find maps and read background research papers conducted in preparation for drafting the LAP.
Watch the Council’s information webinar about the draft LAP at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkonOHT6xY8
Imagine Dundrum is currently preparing its own detailed submission, which can be read on the website, along with all other submissions.
What happens after July 21st?
* The Chief Executive’s Report
All submissions are examined by Dún Laoghaire Rathdown planners. A report, titled the Chief Executive’s Report, is published 6 weeks after the close of submissions on July 21st. This report, due on Monday September 4th, responds to all the matters raised in submissions, and indicates whether proposals made in submissions, and suggested amendments to the draft LAP, are recommended by the planners.
During this 6-week period, Imagine Dundrum plans to hold ‘drop-in’ events for local people, to assist in finding out about the Chief Executive’s response to their submission. Details later.
* Councillors consider the Chief Executive’s Report
Following publication of the Chief Executive’s Report, elected members have 6 weeks to consider it before voting to accept the Report, or to put forward amendments (deadline Friday October 13th).
* Material amendments
If Councillors vote to make changes that are considered to be significant changes to the original draft LAP, another process of public consultation, Chief Executive’s Report and Councillor voting takes place. After this vote, the Dundrum Local Area Plan will be formally adopted.
Celebrating the Slang River
In our last newsletter we reported on our project celebrating the biodiversity of the Slang River, which we undertook as part of the Burran Beo “Heritage Keepers” programme. The rich biodiversity of the Slang riverbanks – birds, trees, flowers, and insects – now features on a colourful poster designed for local schools and residents.We were delighted to present copies of the poster to a number of local primary schools. Our thanks to the Principals, teachers and pupils for the warm welcome and keen interest in the Slang and its riches! We plan to continue to link with other local school’s next term. We will also continue to find good ways of celebrating our local Slang River with the local community.Pupils of Holy Cross School enjoying the Imagine Dundrum poster presentation
Thank you for reading this update. Do please send your questions and comments to: [email protected] and check our website and Facebook page for new announcements: www.imaginedundrum.ie and www.facebook.com/ImagineDundrum.
Best wishes from all the team,
Anne Colgan, Chair
On June 8th 2023, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council published the Draft Local Area Plan (LAP) for Dundrum, launching a six-week public consultation period.
The LAP contains the framework of policies and guidelines which will shape future development in Dundrum. Submissions and observations from individuals and groups can be made until the closing date of Friday July 21st.
Hard copies of the Plan and associated documents will be on display in County Hall Dún Laoghaire, the Dundrum Council Offices and in DLR Libraries.
The Council’s website offers access to a “virtual room”, maps and much more:
https://www.dlrcoco.ie/dundrumlap
The Council is running an information webinar about the Local Area Plan on Tuesday June 20th, 7-8 pm. You can register here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cwlFmfJSRDijyVw9KmEH6A#/registration
Also, there will be two “Drop In Days” in the Dundrum Council offices, where Council staff are available to talk about the Plan and answer questions. These are Tuesday June 27th, 10.30 am- 12.30 pm and 2 pm – 4 pm, and Thursday July 6th, 4 pm – 8 pm.
More information and commentary from Imagine Dundrum VERY SOON!
60 people attended Imagine Dundrum’s third online webinar on December 6th 2022, all keen to hear where things stand with the Hammerson-Allianz planning application for the Old Shopping Centre, and looking to add to our understanding of both heritage and sustainability in the context of Dundrum.
The webinar was opened by Nick Armstrong of Imagine Dundrum, who confirmed that no decision had been issued by An Bord Pleanála, and no decision date had been set. In the interim, Imagine Dundrum’s commitment to its vision for the Village remained strong, and it was determined to make best use of the Ame by exploring important aspects of Dundrum’s future redevelopment, such as those chosen for this webinar.
Chair for the evening was Dr Paula Russell of UCD’s School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy, who has a special research interest in the role of community in planning. She spoke positively about Imagine Dundrum’s vision and its initiatives for influencing the Village’s future. She emphasised the importance of place-making and the need for ‘fine grain plans’ to provide context to communities and developers as urban areas like Dundrum change.
Deirdre Black, Heritage Officer with DLR County Council, brought the audience speedily through 10,000 years of Dundrum’s history up to the present, via a series of engaging maps, drawings and photographs. Her presentation concluded by identifying some outcomes likely to arise for Dundrum if certain options are adopted. Food for thought, indeed.
Dr Philip Crowe of UCD is a specialist in climate-responsive design and co-leads an EU project in Green Buildings and Neighbourhoods. Focusing on Dundrum, he explained the concept of “urban resilience”, why it is needed, and what it might mean in practice. His informative presentation added considerably to our understanding of the issues arising from current building practices, set against the background of our changing climate. This enhanced awareness can only increase the Dundrum community’s capacity to engage meaningfully in shaping future developments.
Dr Russell then ably managed a lively Q and A session, with all panelists contributing further valuable insights.
Finally, Anne Colgan, Chair of Imagine Dundrum, closed the evening by thanking the Chair and presenters for their generosity in providing their time and considerable expertise to the Dundrum community, sampling our further thinking on how best Dundrum Village should be developed. She felt sure that these insights would inform and strengthen Imagine Dundrum’s and the local community’s engagement with DLR County Council on the draft Local Area Plan for Dundrum, which is due early in 2023.
A video recording of the main presentations is available here.
You can read more about the event here and see the full programme here.
Building Dundrum’s Best Future: how new thinking on heritage and environmental sustainability can help create the Dundrum of tomorrow
Dr Paula Russell lectures at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in: History and Theory of Planning, the Role of Community in Planning and Local Plan Making. She researches the role of civil society in the planning process, looking at issues of engagement and influence. She has a broad interest in urban policy issues, is a member of the board of the European Urban Research Association (EURA) and an Associate Editor of the journal Urban Research and Practice.
Deirdre Black, Heritage Officer with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, previously advised public agencies on heritage, active travel, sustainable tourism and landscape strategy and worked across Ireland in community-led placemaking. A professional Landscape Architect, she has been a Design Fellow at the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy in UCD and a Visiting Lecturer at the Centre for Planning Education and Research in UCC.
Dr Philip Crowe lectures in Climate Responsive Design in the UCD Schools of Architecture and Engineering, and is co-Director of UCD’s Centre for Irish Towns. He is a co-leader of the EU funded project Green Buildings and Neighbourhoods, and the Creative Ireland Ripple project on citizen engagement with climate change. His research includes work on urban resilience, vacancy and adaptive reuse, and revitalisation of towns. He was formerly Director of Sustainable Design with M.CO design and project management consultancy for 9 years.
View the programme here.
Members of Imagine Dundrum and a representative of the Capital Credit Union following receipt of a cheque for 1,000 euro.
All money raised by Imagine Dundrum will be used in our campaign to further our aims for a better future for the village of Dundrum. Donations can be made here
This recommendation comes in the 100+ page response from the Chief Executive of the County Council to the Hammerson-Allianz plans as lodged with An Bord Pleanála.
You can see the report by clicking on this link. The grounds for recommending refusal are on pages 79 – to 81.
Notably the final paragraph of the report states “The planning authority considers it would not be appropriate in the circumstances to specify planning conditions given that some of the recommended reasons for refusal relate to fundamental development principles and cannot be addressed via Condition”
An RTE report of 14th June gave a useful summary: https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2022/0614/1304872-council-recommends-refusal-of-881-unit-dundrum-block/
Update: An Bord Pleanála was due to give its decision on the Hammerson-Allianz planning application on July 25th , but announced a few days earlier that it would be delayed. No reason was given, and no new date has been set
As announced in the national news today, An Bord Pleanála has received over 700 objections, including 8 from residents’ associations and 1 from a primary school, to the Hammerson-Allianz plans for an apartment scheme of over 880 units in Dundrum Village. The plans for this Strategic Housing Development envisage a series of 11 blocks with heights rising from 5 storeys on MainStreet to 16 storeys at the north end of the site.
Welcoming this news, Anne Colgan, Chair of local community group Imagine Dundrum, said, “this outstanding outcome demonstrates the strength of feeling among local people about the future of their home place, as did the huge turnout at the public meeting we hosted at the end of April. It is a tribute to the hard work of Imagine Dundrum members and many other local individuals and groups whose vision of the future Dundrum is radically different from that offered by the developers. We are grateful to everyone who made the effort to engage with the long and complex planning application and took the time to submit a personal observation.”
So the deadline for submissions to An Bord Pleanala (ABP) passed last Monday at 5.30 pm.
The options open to ABP are threefold: APPROVE planning permission, REFUSE planning permission, or Approve subject to conditions.
ABP is required to publish its DECISION by Monday July 25th, at the latest, but it may do so before that date.
Over the course of the weeks since the plans were published, Imagine Dundrum has been encouraged by the support we have received from our friends and neighbours in Dundrum and its environs. If the attendance at our public meeting and our drop-in clinics and the number of queries and supportive messages is anything to go by, ABP will have a considerable volume of quality submissions to consider before making its decision. Our own submission will be posted on our website www.imaginedundrum.ie shortly. Our core message is to recommend refusal to these plans.
We take this opportunity to thank everybody who has made a submission and all who have supported Imagine Dundrum in our efforts since 2016 to influence a positive outcome for Dundrum Village. We look forward to linking up with you again as the decision date approaches.
Our Vision for Dundrum will be a place that respects and reflects its unique history and heritage, and will be a thriving, attractive and welcoming place for everyone in the local community, those who work here, and its many visitors.
Imagine Dundrum needs your support. If you share our vision for the future of Dundrum, please sign here.
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