Re: Re: Should the Clarence Hotel redevelopment get permission?

No worries, pr. I wondered if I was just missing your drift. I agree about the ‘exceptional circumstances’ bit- it needed clarification, but this is a worrying precedent.

Re. PS deification- I had a similar conversation today regarding the wholesale transfer of the old List 1s and 2s onto the RPS. It started me wondering whether a smaller RPS and significantly beefed up ACA provisions mightn’t be a way to go.

Until recently, I may have had a bit too much of the greenhorn faith in ABP, but those days would appear to be at an end.

*wipes tear*

Also, I discovered what policy was being referred to- it’s H6A, passed as Variation No.2 of the Development Plan in 2005 (and thus not in the online version of the DP- it’s p.9 of the Inspector’s Report). You might know it as the Bewley’s Variation:

Policy H6A: It is the policy of Dublin City Council to encourage the protection of the existing or last use of premises listed on the Record of Protected Structures where that use is considered to be an intrinsic aspect of the special, social, cultural and/or artistic interest of those premises.

It will be the policy of Dublin City Council in considering applications for planning permission in respect of a change of use of any such premises to take into account as material consideration the contribution of the existing or last use of that structure to special, social, cultural and/ or artistic interest of those premises and/ or whether the new use would be inimical to the special interest identified.

Talk about unforeseen consequences.

Rumours that the next U2 album is provisionally titled Hoist by your own petard – sort of a sequel to …Atomic Bomb, I think – couldn’t be confirmed at the time of writing.