An Bord Pleanála has again refused permission for a major redevelopment of the Stillorgan Shopping Centre in south Co Dublin, on density and traffic grounds.
Myrmidon Ltd, a subsidiary of Treasury Holdings, had sought approval for revised plans to redevelop the State's oldest purpose-built shopping centre to provide a gross retail area of 230,000 sq ft (21,375 sq metres) and 1,075 parking spaces.
But the appeals board, in its third successive refusal of plans for the site, said the proposed development would be inconsistent with the designation of the area as a district centre and with the Government's Retail Planning Guidelines.
Ruling on appeals by the Beaufield Residents' Association and others against Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council's decision to approve the scheme, the board said it would be "contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area".
Another reason cited was that the scale of the proposed shopping centre, its associated car-parking and access arrangements would create serious traffic congestion because of the limited capacity of the road network in the area.
The board also objected to the design of the shopping centre, saying its blank walls at the upper levels and lack of articulation "would not reflect its pivotal position at this prominent corner location in the centre of Stillorgan and would seriously injure the visual amenities of the area".
A spokesman for Treasury Holdings said they were now in a quandary about what to do. "Each time we've addressed what they [the appeals board] said, and each time they come up with new reasons for refusal. We just don't understand it and haven't a clue what to do."
The spokesman pointed out that plans to redevelop the existing shopping centre, which dates from 1965, had all been approved by the county council. "In the latest scheme, we adopted a totally different approach arising out of what the board had said previously," he said.
Design revisions by Duffy Mitchell O'Donoghue, architects for the latest proposal, included reducing parapet heights and replacing powder-coated metal cladding with more natural materials such as weathered copper sheeting and timber-clad louvres. Larger shopfronts and remodelled entrances had also been included in the revised scheme.
