|
WICKLOW town council has given the go ahead for a mixed use development on the site of the disused Bayview Hotel, despite the fact that An Bord Pleanala previously rejected proposals for a similar scheme at the same location. The construction of the commercial and residential development will necessitate the demolition of structures at the rear of the hotel along with a number of residential dwellings on High Street. The facade of the hotel and that of an adjoining pub will be retained.
Objections from An Taisce, the Department of the Environment and the Irish Georgian Society resulted in previous proposals for a commercial development on the same site being rejected by the planning board. Developer, Tony O'Reilly, says the latest project is more modest in scale and blends in with the local streetscape. "This application was toned down a lot, " he says. "The front of the hotel will remain exactly the same but it will be refurbished."
"This is something that's been badly needed in Wicklow for a long time now, " says local Fianna Fail county councillor, Pat Casey. "You couldn't find a better location in the town for something like this. If that whole area could be turned into a recreational and amenity area it would serve the people of the town tremendously well."
|
YOU ARE HERE: 11 November 2007 / tribune.ie / 2007 / 05 / 27
Terms & Conditions 
