Inspector’s Report

evelopment : The construction of a public park and ride car park and associated works on a 0.54 hectare site, with access off previously approved distributor road, providing a surface car park with 197 parking spaces, 20 cycle parking spaces, 4 parking meters, lighting, signage, 1.8m high perimeter chain link fence and all associated site and development works at lands bounded by existing Building H, distributor road and Brides Glen Stop at Cherrywood Science and Technology Park, Cherrywood, , Co. .

Application

Planning authority: Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council

Planning application reg. no. D10A/0701

Applicant: Cherrywood Science and Technology Park

Type of application: Permission

Planning authority decision: Grant, subject to 19 conditions

Appeal

Appellant: Cherrywood Science and Technology Park

Type of appeal: Section 48

Observers: None

Date of site inspection: n/a

Inspector : Hugh D. Morrison

______PL An Bord Pleanála Page of Planning authority’s decision

Permission was granted subject to 19 conditions, the following three of which have been appealed:

• Condition 14 requires that €43,875 be paid to the planning authority as a contribution towards expenditure that was/or is proposed to be incurred by it in respect of the provision of water and drainage public infrastructure and facilities benefiting development in its area,

• Condition 15 requires that €87,750 be paid to the planning authority as a contribution towards expenditure that was/or is proposed to be incurred by it in respect of the provision of roads public infrastructure and facilities benefiting development in its area, and

• Condition 16 requires that €43,875 be paid to the planning authority as a contribution towards expenditure that was/or is proposed to be incurred by it in respect of the provision of community and parks public infrastructure, facilities and amenities benefiting development in its area.

Grounds of appeal

Generally:

• Due to the absence of a park and ride facility for the LUAS B1 line extension, both the RPA and the local authority approached the applicant to see if such a facility could be provided on their landholding at Cherrywood,

• It is not appropriate to levy the current proposal, which is for a temporary park and ride facility, i.e. effectively public infrastructure, and

• The levies would undermine the commercial rationale for the proposal.

Specifically:

• In relation to condition 14, the proposal would be neither connected to the public water mains nor the foul drainage network. Furthermore, condition 9 requires the provision of a storm water SuDS compliant drainage system,

• In relation to condition 15, the applicant has already contributed c.€8m to the Lehaunstown/M50 interchange upgrade and c.€1.5m towards the construction of local distributor roads. Consequently, this levy would be wholly inappropriate, and

• In relation to condition 16, the applicant questions whether there is any linkage between the proposal and the provision of public parks and he/she

______PL An Bord Pleanála Page of draws attention to fact that they ceded extensive lands for a linear park in their Cherrywood development.

Response

The planning authority has responded to the above grounds by drawing attention to the fact that the levies in question reflect a County Council motion, which was passed on 14 th March 2011 following the presentation of a report by the County Manager. The report recommended that, where temporary park and ride facilities are supported by the RPA, the normal levies under the DCS be waved in their entirety. The Council set aside this recommendation in favour of a motion that authorises the calculation of levies at a rate of 25% of that cited in the DCS.

Planning history

The case planner’s report cites the following two applications, which were granted temporary permission subject to conditions that included ones for each of the three classes of levy cited under the planning authority’s draft permission on the current application:

• D10A/0164 for a 350 space park and ride facility at Priorsland, Carrickmines, (adjacent to the ), and

• D10A/0318 for a 387 space park and ride facility at Clay Farm, Ballyogan Road, Dublin 18 (directly opposite the Leopardstown Valley Luas Stop).

evelopment Plan

The operative development plan is the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Development Plan 2010 – 2016 (CDP). Under policy T7 of this Plan, the Council undertakes to facilitate the provision of park and ride facilities and, under policy T24, it undertakes to utilise the provisions of sections 48 and 49 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 – 2010, where appropriate.

evelopment Contribution Scheme

The operative DCS is the Dun Laoghaire – Rathdown County Council Development Contribution Scheme 2010 – 2017. This Scheme disaggregates the total levy required for various types of development under three classes. Thus, for industrial/commercial development, the classes of levy per sqm are as follows:

• Class 1: community and parks facilities and amenities €32.50

• Class 2: roads infrastructure and facilities €65.00

• Class 3: water and drainage infrastructure and facilities €32.50

______PL An Bord Pleanála Page of An accompanying note states that “In the case of ancillary non-residential surface car parking the gross floor area will be determined from the gross area of the car park.”

Under the heading of exemptions and reductions, the Scheme states that car parking in residential developments is exempt from development contributions and “For clarification purposes, the following developments will not be exempt from the requirement to pay development contributions…car parking provision in non- residential developments. A reduced rate of 50% will apply to ancillary non- residential surface car parking.”

Assessment

1. I have reviewed the proposal and I consider that it is appropriate to assess this appeal under section 139 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 – 2010. Accordingly, the sole question for consideration is whether, under section 48(10)(b) of this Act, the terms of the DCS have been properly applied in respect of the conditions laid down by the planning authority.

2. The proposed park and ride facility would be a non-residential surface car park and, as such, a commercial type of development. No buildings are proposed and so no floorspace would be provided. The DCS sets out the development contribution required for commercial development on a per square metre basis. An accompanying note states that “In the case of ancillary non-residential surface car parking the gross floor area will be determined from the gross area of the car park.” Furthermore, under the heading of exemptions and reductions, the Scheme states that “For clarification purposes, the following developments will not be exempt from the requirement to pay development contributions…car parking provision in non-residential developments. A reduced rate of 50% will apply to ancillary non-residential surface car parking.”

3. The appeal site is located adjacent to the Brides Glen Luas Stop and so the proposal would serve users of the Luas line. As a non-residential surface car park, this proposal would have an ancillary relationship to the Luas. However, as a development it would be a stand-alone project, i.e. the car parking spaces in the park and ride facility would not be ancillary to any other element within this development.

4. The aforementioned DCS note envisages a situation where a single development would comprise, amongst other things, ancillary non-residential surface car parking. The development contribution for such car parking is to be calculated on the basis of the gross area of the car park and a reduced rate of 50% is applicable.

5. As indicated above, I do not consider that the proposal is an ancillary non- residential car park for the purposes of the DCS. This Scheme does not advise on how development contributions are to be calculated in situations where no

______PL An Bord Pleanála Page of floorspace would be provided and the commercial car parking spaces would not be ancillary to any other element in the development, i.e. as in the current case a stand-alone park and ride facility.

6. The planning authority’s approach is to base the development contribution calculation on the gross area of the proposed car park, i.e. to treat this car park as an ancillary one. The contributions that would normally be required under each of the three classes are expressed at a lower rate of 25% of the norm, in accordance with a Council motion passed in this respect.

7. The applicant draws attention to the lack of connection between the development contributions required under each of the classes set out in the DCS and the servicing needs of the proposal. He/she also argues that the park and ride facility would be effectively public infrastructure and that the required development contributions would undermine its commercial rationale.

8. By way of response, I note that each of the appealed conditions refers to the cited development contributions as “benefiting development in the area of the Authority”. In doing so they reflect the DCS, which does not require that a demonstrable link be established between such contributions and the actual development in question. As to the proposal itself, it would be open to the public and it would operate on a commercial basis. Thus, for the purpose of the DCS, I consider that it can fairly be described as a commercial type of development.

9. In conclusion, I consider that the DCS does not set out a basis for calculating development contributions for stand-alone commercial car parks and so it is not possible to apply this Scheme to the current proposal. In these circumstances, conditions 14, 15 and 16 of the draft permission granted to application reg. no. D10A/0701, which attempt to do so, are invalid and so should be omitted.

Recommendation

In view of my assessment, I recommend that the planning authority be instructed to omit conditions 14, 15 and 16 from the draft permission granted to application reg. no. D10A/0701.

______PL An Bord Pleanála Page of Reasons and considerations

It is considered that the proposal would constitute a stand-alone non-residential car park and thus not an ancillary one. The Dun Laoghaire – Rathdown County Council Development Contribution Scheme 2010 – 2017 does not advise on how development contributions for such car parks can be calculated and so in the absence of such advice it is not possible to properly apply this Scheme in the drafting of conditions to secure such contributions. Conditions 14, 15 and 16 imposed on the draft permission granted to application reg. no. D10A/0701 attempt such an application. Accordingly, they are invalid and so should be omitted from this permission.

Hugh D. Morrison

Inspector

25 th August 2011

______PL An Bord Pleanála Page of