Dublin Corporation's decision to grant planning permission for the proposed National Conference Centre at Spencer Dock caps the overall development of this 51-acre site at 4.6 million square feet - almost 25 per cent less than the developers sought.
In its decision, issued yesterday, the corporation said this significant reduction in the scale of the £1 billion scheme was required to mitigate its "excessive" density and adverse impacts both on the city skyline and on residential communities in the vicinity.
The corporation was also concerned about the lack of evident urban design character of sufficient quality in the layout and spaces, as well as the repetitive and undifferentiated language of architectural expression by the US architects, Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo Associates.
"The scale of development proposed, together with excessive provision of on-site car parking (5,800 spaces), would generate an unsustainable level of traffic on the surrounding road network, and public transport needs to be given a greater role in serving the development."
The corporation also believed that development of the central portion of the site should not be allowed to proceed pending a decision by the competent State authorities on the alignment of a cross-river rail link from Spencer Dock to Barrow Street, in the Grand Canal Docks.
It said the layout of the proposed residential development - amounting to 3,000 apartments - "requires significant modifications in order to promote a more sustainable community", which would include all the amenities to make the area attractive for families to live in.
For these reasons, the corporation decided to grant full planning permission, subject to 31 conditions, for the first phase of the development, including the National Conference Centre, and outline permission, subject to 23 conditions, for the remainder of the site.
Subsequent applications for approval for later phases of the scheme, based on the planning framework laid down in the outline permission, would afford the general public and statutory bodies a further opportunity to comment on the details over a 10-year period.
Under the permission granted yesterday, the developers must submit further detailed drawings for the conference centre, including materials and finishes, for the written agreement of the corporation's planners before development begins.
Apart from the conference centre, the corporation has granted full permission for one office block to the rear, and this is to be reduced in height to ensure that the centre retains its landmark quality and that the block relates more satisfactorily with Spencer Dock.
A proposed apartment block is excluded from the permission pending the submission of a revised design which would set its maximum height at 30 metres, incorporate a courtyard and provide retail, leisure or community facilities at ground level.
No more than 385 car-parking spaces, located underground, are to be allowed in the first phase, in line with the Dublin Transportation Office's policy of parking restraint and to reduce the traffic impact of the development on the congested road network.
The decision also specifies that adequate provision is to be made for a future double-line Luas light rail track through the site along Mayor Street. This represents a victory for the Luas light rail project team, which had objected to the original plan for a single track. The developers will also be required to submit detailed and costed proposals to provide bus services to the Spencer Dock site, including a regular shuttle service linking it with Tara Street and Connolly stations as well as the planned DART station at Barrow Street.
For the first time, the corporation is insisting on a "mobility management strategy" for the overall development, which would include the appointment of a mobility co-ordinator with responsibility for the implementation of "sustainable commuter plans".
Before starting excavating below the water table at Spencer Dock, the developers are required to drill at least four monitoring boreholes to avoid pollution of groundwater and to remove any contaminated soils. The developers must pay a number of financial contributions to the corporation, including u£259,500 towards the cost of improving the local road network, u£708,000 for new water mains and 50 per cent of the cost - estimated at up to u£6 million - of a new sewage pumping station.
They are also required to contribute u£2,086,000 towards the cost of constructing the proposed Macken Street bridge - being designed by the Spanish architect-engineer, Dr Santiago Calatrava - to cater for the additional traffic expected to be generated by the scheme.
The full restoration of the canal basin south of Sheriff Street is to be completed in tandem with the first phase. Each of the three remaining phases - the bulk of the proposed development, in fact - are to be the subject of further applications and environmental impact studies.
The maximum total floor area permissible in the entire scheme "shall not exceed 427,500 square metres (4.6 million sq ft)", according to the corporation, with maximum heights of four to seven storeys on the northern portion of the site and some taller buildings elsewhere.
The building form and layout proposed by the developers, including all details of buildings, structures, open spaces, paved areas, circulation areas and access points, are "specifically excluded" from the outline permission. In his report, the chief planning officer, Mr Pat McDonnell, recommended that no building on the site should exceed 54 metres (178 ft), but the city architect, Mr Jim Barrett, felt there were opportunities to increase building heights in the middle of the site.
A central paved and landscaped space is to be developed to act as a major civic focal point, accessed predominantly by public transport and providing "a sunny, sheltered environment which duly acknowledges its river and waterside location".
The full text of the planning decision on Spencer Dock is available at Dublin Corporation's website at www.dublincorp.ie