Plans for Dalkey retirement complex withdrawn following opposition

A developer behind a five-storey retirement complex outside Dalkey village in Co Dublin has withdrawn its application for planning permission after some 60 objections were lodged against the plan.

PegasusLife had sought permission to build six blocks of 57 apartments at Dalkey Manor on Barnhill Road on an almost one hectare site a few minutes' walk from the centre of the village.

The Department of Arts and Heritage raised concerns with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council about the impact on a nearby protected structure, the mid-18th century Dalkey Lodge.

The elevated site of the apartment blocks meant they were likely to be more imposing than if they were on flatter land, it said. It advised the council to seek an assessment of the visual impact of the development on the protected structure.

An Taisce also raised concerns about the impact on Dalkey Lodge. In addition, the heritage body said the development was of an “unacceptably high density” and represented overdevelopment of the site.

Dalkey Community Council said there would be safety issues with "large numbers of elderly people attempting to access Dalkey".

The British-based company said it had decided to withdraw its application following the concerns raised, but would be submitting a new application in the future.