O’Connell Street planning controls face review

Dublin City Council is undertaking a review of the special planning controls on O’Connell Street in Dublin and surrounding areas ahead of a decision on whether to continue with the scheme. The planning controls are due for review in June and a full assessment will take place before that date, a spokeswoman for the council confirmed. “A recommendation will be made to the elected members in June 2009 as to whether the scheme should be amended in any way, arising from the assessment of its operation over the last six years,” she said. The special planning controls were supposed to help improve the appearance of the street by limiting certain retail uses and creating a sense of vibrancy on the street. However many of the provisions were ignored or loopholes were found to prevent them being implemented. The most high profile reason behind the introduction of the controls was to prevent more fast food outlets opening on O’Connell Street and Westmoreland Street. However, operators simply began calling themselves family restaurants in order to circumvent the ban.

The Sunday Tribune