The residents of Pearse Square, off Pearse Street, in Dublin 2, have shown that they are a tenacious lot and their patience with the planners has eventually paid off. Nine of them have just got planning permission to build two-storey mews houses in their back gardens. At one time, only large period houses with long gardens would have qualified for mews development, while the far shorter back yards of the Pearse Square houses would have been considered just too small to accommodate separate houses. However, with higher density a buzz word in planning circles, the residents could be one of the first groups to cash in on a more lenient planning regime.

Meanwhile, four house owners in Breffni Terrace, in Sandycove, are also hoping to capitalise on the value of back gardens by seeking simultaneous planning permission for two-storey mews houses. It will be interesting to see whether the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown planners will be as accommodating.