Residents in Lucan, west Dublin, have called on the Affordable Housing Partnership (AHP) to withdraw plans for residential development on special amenity area lands in the Liffey Valley.
The AHP, along with developers Ballymore Properties, are proposing to provide 1,000 affordable homes at St Edmundsbury and Woodville, along with 100 sheltered homes for the elderly and 500 homes to be sold at market value. Ballymore owns 283 acres between the River Liffey, Lucan Road, Hermitage Golf Club and Lucan village. They propose to develop 99 acres of affordable and private housing.
Provision has also been made on a three-acre site for a new school, a neighbourhood centre with creche and community facilities and a local centre. Ballymore is also donating 184 acres for recreational and amenity purposes.
The lands are subject to a Special Amenity Area Order, designed to preserve and enhance the character of the area, put in place in 1990 and confirmed in 1995.
Justin Byrne, spokesman for the Save The Liffey Valley Campaign, said they have asked the AHP to withdraw the proposal.
"We defeated an attempt by Ballymore Properties to have this land rezoned in 1997 - this is just a new attempt to profit from the land." Mr Byrne said they were worried Ballymore Properties might be able to write off their obligations to provide 20 per cent social and affordable housing on other sites against the 70 per cent they would be providing in the Liffey Valley. "We have found nothing in the legislation to prevent them from doing this. This would result in no net gain of affordable homes for the county."
However, a spokeswoman for the AHP said the affordable homes would be in addition to those provided in the county under Part V of the Planning and Development Acts.
