The full membership of Bray Urban District Council will today take the unusual step of appealing to An Bord Pleanala against a planning permission granted by its own local authority.
The planning permission for 55 houses on the lower slopes of Bray Head was granted on June 16th to McInerney Construction following council debates at which all members expressed their opposition to the plan.
An appeal will be lodged by 11 of the 12 councillors with the remaining councillor, Mr Pat Vance of Fianna Fail, lending his name to another appeal on behalf of the Bray Head and Putland Road Residents Association. A third appeal is being lodged by the recently formed SOHO (Save Our Head Organisation), and is being led by local Democratic Left TD Ms Liz McManus, with the support of singer Mary Coughlan, who lives locally.
SOHO also intends to campaign for a special amenity area order to be placed on Bray Head "to preserve the integrity of the head itself and to make it absolute that the line on building on the slopes is held", according to Ms McManus.