Re: Re: Carlton Cinema Development

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0814/1224252551593.html

AN TAISCE has called on Minister for the Environment John Gormley to reprimand Dublin City Council for granting permission for the high-rise Carlton development in contravention of statutory plans.

This follows a decision by An Bord Pleanála earlier this week to reject a large number of elements of Chartered Land’s scheme for the 5.5-acre site centred on the old Carlton cinema on O’Connell Street.

The development was approved by the council last December but was appealed to An Bord Pleanála. The board has yet to make its final decision on the project but wrote to Chartered Land last Monday advising that a number of elements were unacceptable.

Chief among these was a 13-storey building topped by a “park in the sky” which the board has told the developers to “omit”. It has also advised them to reduce demolition, reduce heights and use more traditional materials.

It was mentioned on the previous page that these plans would have done a lot of damage to the historic architecture on street level, and that’s obviously unacceptable, but it’s sad to see the “park in the sky” idea get so much flak and be basically written off.

The glass and boarding of the two buildings on OCS look pretty meh, but the park looks fun, the view would be great and it’s a novel idea at least.