DEVELOPER DAVID Arnold has got planning permission to turn Gortanore on Brighton Road, Foxrock, D18 into an apartment scheme, despite local opposition.
Arnold paid €31 million for the four-bed detached property on 2.8 acres in 2006, making it the top selling house of the year.
Despite 52 objections to the scheme, Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council granted permission to demolish the house and outbuildings and build 37 apartments in three blocks with a gym and conference room, shops and commercial space at street level, and 90 car-parking spaces, 84 of which are at basement level. The apartments, on the edge of Foxrock village, will be 167-297sq m (1,800-3,000sq ft) in size and have a full-time concierge.
Two brick and granite-fronted buildings will flank the entrance to the development on Brighton Road, with the majority of the apartments in a curved building at the back of the site surrounded by over two acres of grounds. Mature trees on the site are to be kept.
The design, by O'Mahony Pike Architects, has attracted criticism from some Foxrock residents who say it is out of keeping with the Edwardian style of house that dominates the neighbourhood.
Foxrock Area Development Ltd (FADL) objected to the scheme, citing traffic congestion in the village and over development of the site as concerns. It said the scheme ignores the Architectural Conservation Area (ACA) status of the area and that the demolition of an existing habitable house is not in accordance with ACA objectives.
