A proposed riverside redevelopment of the old iron foundry site in Waterford City has been given an amber light by An Bord Pleanála.
WD Bolster & Son Ltd received planning permission in late 2008 for ‘Water Haven’ – a mixed-use scheme including 395 apartments and a hotel on the 13-acre ‘Stanley’ site at Bilberry.
However, appeals were lodged by the Bowefield Residents Association, Gracedieu Residents Group and Brendan McCann.
Earmarked for the Suir’s south bank west of Rice Bridge, the scheme as envisaged would have seen the demolition of the disused factory buildings and the construction of 11 new blocks in varying heights: the tallest of these an ‘iconic’ 33-storey ‘Njord Tower’.
A 15-storey, 156-bedroom hotel complete with leisure centre, pool and 500-seater conference venue would be augmented outdoors by three marinas with berthing for 80 boats plus a boardwalk and a link to the Waterford & Suir Valley Railway.
In a split decision on the appeals, An Bórd Pleanála went against its own inspector’s initial recommendation that permission be refused on account of an “excessive scale of development”.
The board considered, having regard to its “key opportunity site” zoning and brownfield nature, that, apart from three “overbearing” blocks, the property could accommodate the remainder of the scheme.
The omission of blocks 1 (comprising 23 floors of apartments and 10 floors of offices), 2 (hotel tower) and 3 (auditorium building) would, it said, adequately address the inspector’s concerns with regard to visual impact and micro-climate.
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McCann objects…. quell surprise. Can’t he see that Waterford needs development?
This project appears to me to fit area its plan for….Waterford waterfront area would benefit also. Looks really good, I like it!
I think the plan as proposed is excessive and would have blocked the view of the river for large parts of waterford. Also Half the apartments in Waterford are empty we dont need more. i think a less obtrusive plan would be fine.
james the plan is not excessive the area is completely overlooked by all the supposed objectors anyone building anything in waterford should be welcomed with opened arms at the moment!
The area is a complete mess a the moment as it stands
I agree with John Murphy on this , Waterford needs a rapid prosperity injection, we are on our kneews here in this town, with unemployment the highest in Ireland. It’s time to get back in the ring, so to speak. We cannot suffer the wrath of the worst Government in the history of the state any longer. If the shower of idiots that are running the country presently will not do anything to help the situation in Waterford, we need to stop sitting on our hands and help ourselves, by welcoming any employment or prosperity oppurtunity with open arms.
Objectors and lets just say difficult people putting their opinions into practicewill only delay the city of Waterford regain conciousness and jump back into the fight. Come on people lets show some support for our city, it’s future and the future of our childern.