Hammerson-Allianz Plans: Imagine Dundrum’s Initial Statement of Concerns

• Lack of community engagement. Despite promises, and statements of a community-focused corporate ethos and commitment to place-making, the developer has failed to consult with the community in advance of lodging their plans.
• Timing. The 5-week public consultation period from April 5th includes 2 weeks of the Easter break for schools and colleges, when many local people will be away.
  In addition, the plans were lodged only a very short time before the coming into force of the new Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Development Plan 2022-28 and in the absence of the long-awaited Local Area Plan for Dundrum, both of which contain strong protections for Dundrum Village itself.
• An Bord Pleanála’s formal Opinion requires the developer’s initial proposals to be given “further consideration and amendment” if they are “to constitute a reasonable basis for an application for strategic housing development”. Have the plans lodged on April 5th significantly changed from the developer’s initial proposals?
• Apparent over-riding of County Development Plans. The plans appear to ignore both Dundrum’s Major Town Centre zoning and the Special Local Objectives (SLOs) for the protection of Dundrum Village set down in the County Development Plans.
• The height and design of new buildings on Main Street are of concern. How do these decisions and the choice of mainly 5-storey buildings respond to the County Development Plan’s requirement to respect the character and scale of the historic Village streetscape?
• Destruction of Main Street heritage. How can the demolition of many of the existing buildings on Main Street (West) conform with their Architectural Conservation Area status granted in the County Development Plans?
• Reduction in retail provision on Main Street. How can this contribute to revitalising the Street as a lively public space conducive to sociability and connection?
• An almost entirely residential development. How can this provide the level of retail and non-residential provision appropriate to the long-standing Major Town Centre zoning of the Village, and the “civic, cultural and community “ facilities, spaces and services called for in the County Development Plan?
• Overall height and density. Dundrum Village and its surroundings form a human- scale environment, and at first sight the heights and density planned for this small site are shocking. How can they be in accordance with the context of the immediate and medium-distance built environment and the need to provide sustainable housing for future generations?

In short, the developer’s vision of Main Street as a community and a built environment is radically different from the vision Imagine Dundrum has developed over the last five years in consultation with local people. Help us campaign for a future Dundrum which is recognisable and authentic, which is thriving and inclusive, and which is a place we all want to belong to. Watch this website, sign up to our mailing list, come to the public meeting on Wednesday April 27th, and make your submission TO An Bord Pleanála in good time!