Dublin City Council has refused planning permission for one of the largest buildings ever proposed for Dublin city centre, a 28-storey apartment block in Dolphin's Barn.
However, in its decision, the council said it was not opposed in principle to a building of such scale on the site, and that its main concerns were a series of adjacent buildings.
The tower was one of 15 buildings in a major complex proposed for a site adjacent to the Coombe hospital. The site includes the old Player Wills factory premises, which would have comprised 120,000 square metres of retail, office and residential space.
The proposal was put together by the National Association of Building Co-operatives (NABCO), and was to have included 20 per cent social housing and comprised 879 apartments and penthouses.
The centre-piece of the plan was to be an 86-metre high apartment block, which would have dwarfed Liberty Hall, the tallest building in the city; and the Spire on O'Connell St, the tallest structure in Dublin.
In its decision to refuse permission, the city council said that while a skyscraper could be "a positive contribution" to the area, the current proposals were "premature" for the site, pending an action area plan for the Dolphin's Barn area.
However, the planners' main concern related to the smaller buildings of up to 14 storeys on the site. They had "serious reservations about the visual impact of a number of the lower residential blocks elsewhere in the development.
"The planning authority is of the opinion that these blocks together constitute a congested form of development, whose appearance and height provide an unacceptable, relentless, 'wall-like' appearance of development that is too dense in scale, having regard to its relationship to adjoining development."
The refusal comes less than a month after the council approved the tallest building to date for the city, close to Heuston Station, as part of a major redevelopment of the area.
The 32-storey building, which will be 117 metres in height, will be Ireland's tallest building.
The planning authority, giving its decision, described the plans as "a model example and expression of outstanding 21st-century architecture".
The tower, designed by Paul Keogh Architects, will have a public observation deck on top, finished in translucent glass panels to illuminate the sky at night. Access would be through a dedicated lift from the ground-floor lobby.
Both proposals were subject to a number of objections from various organisations, including An Taisce, which was concerned about the height of both proposed buildings, given their locations.