An oral inquiry was told yesterday that An Bord Pleanala must consider the interests of the wider community and not just local residents in an appeal against a proposed £25 million development in Bray, Co Wicklow.
Summing up at the close of the three-day oral hearing, Mr Bernard McHugh SC, on behalf of the applicant, Newlyn Developments, said the board faced a difficult task in weighing up the sincerely-held objections of local residents.
"Ultimately, the common good required the board to consider more than local interests," he said.
Mr McHugh noted that while Bray was the largest town in the county, many of its local authority services were based in Wicklow town. He said nobody could argue that Bray did not deserve a civic centre. The development would consolidate the town centre and give it "confidence and heart"
After yesterday's hearing, the developer awaits a decision by the board on the plan for a 5 1/4-acre site, which envisages a 44-bedroom hotel, bar, six residential apartment blocks, a new town hall and a new Eastern Health Board headquarters.
The site, which adjoins the Main Street, is owned by Bray UDC, the VEC and Bray Emmets GAA club.