An Bord Pleanála is due to decide upon housing charity Respond’s proposed conversion of Saint John’s College into apartments for the elderly by June 6th.
And as that deadline approaches, the Waterford-based charity is hopeful that the concerns raised by those who appealed the original planning application will have been sated by An Bord.
“Providing accommodation for older people in this city is a matter of urgency and it’s a need we’re attempting to meet,” said Respond’s Aoife Walsh.
“What we hope to achieve at Saint John’s College will go a long way towards easing the burden of daily life experienced by many older people in Waterford currently.”
Respond wishes to refurbish, convert and iternally alter the College building (a protected structure) into 21 one-bed apartment dwellings for the elderly.
It also wishes to construct an additional 39 apartments in new three-storey high blocks, while converting existing outbuildings for a range of ancillary uses, including consultation.
Permission was initially granted by Waterford City Council in January subject to 12 conditions, such as the omission of a proposed new boundary wall from the scheme.
But subsequent third party appeals to An Bord Pleanála have led to a delay in the proposed refurbishment of one of the city’s great landmark buildings.
Local resident Mary Fitzgerald who appealed the proposal, stressed that she was “fully supportive” of the proposed accommodation to be provided within the existing college building.
See The Munster Express newspaper for full story.