A plan to turn the derelict Clontarf Baths into a restaurant and bar complex has been appealed to An Bord Pleanála by three parties, writes Edel Morgan.
Dublin City Council approved a plan by Abbeybeg Ltd for a two-storey over basement complex with restaurants, tea rooms, a café bar, gourmet foods store, outdoor terraces and a sculpture exhibition centre - despite local objection.
Peter Parkin and others, the Clontarf Residents Association and Joe Nolan of Dublin Bay Watch Ltd have appealed the decision. Among the grounds of appeal were that it would be an eyesore that would disturb an area of natural beauty, that a commercial development would alter the neighbourhood environment, the essential character of the baths , and that it has inadequate car-parking provision.
Abbeybeg Ltd, headed by former Olympic swimmer Stephen Cullen (brother of hotelier and publican David Cullen), bought the 5.5-acre coastal site in 1997 with the intention of retaining the baths as part of an indoor leisure amenity but this plan was dashed by the opening of the 50-metre pool at Westwood gym in Clontarf.
Situated on the city side of the wooden bridge to Bull Island, what was once an open air bathing facility is now derelict. Three years ago, An Bord Pleanála refused Abbeybeg planning permission for a similar scheme on the grounds that the site is adjacent to Bull Island - a candidate Special Area of Conservation (SPA) - and would be visually intrusive along a prominent stretch of coastline promenade.
Although the site is derelict, the promenade between it and the Clontarf Road is a popular recreation area because of its views over the bay and out to the Irish Sea.
