The Duke of Westminster and his Irish partner, property developer Mr Owen O'Callaghan, are taking legal action against An Bord Pleanála, challenging its right to determine an appeal that could affect the future of the Liffey Valley shopping centre in Dublin.
The duke's property company, Grosvenor Holdings, and O'Callaghan Properties have already obtained a High Court injunction restraining the board from considering an appeal by Treasury Holdings in relation to its rival site at Balgaddy.
Barkhill Ltd, the consortium that owns Liffey Valley, was also granted leave to seek a judicial review of An Bord Pleanála's decision last September to invite Treasury to submit a modified scheme for a major shopping centre on the Balgaddy site.
A spokesman for Treasury said the Grosvenor-O'Callaghan consortium was "clearly desperate to prevent any development that would interfere with their own plans for a massive extension to [the Liffey Valley shopping centre at] Quarryvale."
What surprised Treasury, he said, was not the legal action, but the fact that South Dublin County Council was now seeking to "bypass" An Bord Pleanála by reaffirming its support for such an extension in its latest draft county development plan.
In its preliminary ruling on Treasury's appeal, An Bord Pleanála said it considered that the Balgaddy site - designated since 1972 as the future town centre for Lucan-Clondalkin - was "generally suitable for development of the type proposed".
However, the board had major reservations about the "monolithic" design, saying it would result in overdevelopment of the Balgaddy site in a form that would not be conducive to integrating it with future development on adjoining lands.
The board went on to list 12 significant issues that needed to be addressed, including the street layout, building heights, a reduction in the number of residential units and volume of office space and the inclusion of more community facilities.
The ruling was seen at the time as a major victory for Treasury Holdings in its struggle with Barkhill. If it is upheld by the High Court and An Bord Pleanála subsequently granted permission, it could undermine Barkill's plans to extend Liffey Valley.
Treasury was given a deadline of February 20th to submit the requested modifications, prior to a final determination of the appeal, which is against South Dublin County Council's decision to refuse planning permission for the Balgaddy scheme.
The Grosvenor-O'Callaghan consortium claims An Bord Pleanála exceeded its powers by inviting revisions which go far beyond the modifications which it would be entitled to request under the 2001 Planning and Development Regulations.
"The board is, in effect, requesting a new proposal which should be the subject of a fresh planning application and is thus precluding South Dublin County Council from considering such an application", said Grosvenor's Mr John Irvine.
He also complained that An Bord Pleanála was taking an inordinate length of time to determine the case.
Barkhill's legal action is expected to be heard in the High Court early in 2004 and, pending its outcome, the appeals board is precluded from dealing with the case.
Though not a party to the proceedings, Treasury will have a watching brief.
Mr Irvine said the Grosvenor-O'Callaghan consortium, which also owns land at Balgaddy, would prefer to join other landowners in the area, including Treasury, to agree on an overall masterplan with South Dublin County Council.
