Galway Bay fm newsroom – A plan for a major urban regeneration project on lands adjacent to Ceannt Station has encountered a setback.
The Augustine Hill scheme has been appealed to An Bord Pleanála by The Galway Association of An Taisce and another third party.
The development to be known as "Augustine Hill" is led by Galway developer Gerry Barrett and is being financed by Summix Capital.
It involves a €320 million mixed use development with substantial residential, retail and leisure components.
It had set out to deliver 378 residential units, a new city-centre pedestrian shopping precinct, four new public squares, 11 new streets and a number of public performance spaces.
The plan also provides for a six screen multiplex cinema and parking for 620 cars.
The plans were lodged with City Hall in February by applicant Seagullpoint Limited together with an Environmental Impact Assessment report and a Natura Impact Statement.
City planners backed the majority of the application last month subject to an extensive list of 53 conditions.
Permission was refused for a number of residential towers at Block 9 due to excessive height, scale and massing.
The permitted portion of Block 9 was to be amended in layout and scale by the relocation of the southern building line.
Now, The Galway Association of An Taisce and another third party has raised an appeal against the proposal.
An Taisce states that while it welcomes some of the planners modifications aimed at lowering building height, it argues an inappropriately positioned ‘landmark’ 22 storey tower still remains.
A separate third party raises concerns on 20 different grounds.
These include an assertion that there is no local area plan to guide this significant development, that the development mix is inappropriate and that there is an over-emphasis on a ‘landmark’ building.
The applicant has also submitted a first party appeal against the council's decision to refuse permission for part of the project involving pins 4 and 5 arguing that it would be of a high standard and would not result in any unacceptable environmental impacts on Forthill cemetery or Galway city more generally.
An Bord Pleanála is due to issue its decision in October.
