A Tralee man who yesterday said he objects "all the time" to one-off houses and developments in scenic and conservation areas in Co Kerry has himself been turned down for a single rural house in an amenity area.
Michael J Horgan, Upper Cloonbeg, Tralee, Co Kerry, had appealed to An Bord Pleanála against Kerry County Council's decision to refuse him permission for a bungalow and septic tank at his site at Gortdromakiery, Muckross, Killarney. The area is designated a secondary special amenity rural landscape in the county development plan, is near a river and is just outside the Special Area of Conservation (SAC) of Lough Guitane, the primary water source for Co Kerry.
Mr Horgan said he wanted to build the house because he now spends four days each week in Killarney, walks in the national park and has a boat at Ross Castle.
He had been granted planning permission previously for a two-storey house on the site, which he has owned since the late 1990s. The council said the house would interfere with an essentially unspoilt area.
The planning application to the county council last March was met with many letters objecting to Mr Horgan's proposal.
The dozen or so objectors cited concerns relating to traffic, pollution, zoning regulations, the proposed house's proximity to a river and a lake, ribbon development and archaeological considerations.
One objector wrote that Mr Horgan regularly objected to such housing for others. The letter said he had "a long-established history of objections to one-off housing applications in rural areas".
Mr Horgan said in his appeal that many of those objecting to him were persons or friends of persons whose developments he objected to previously, both in a personal capacity and as chairman of Rivers and Lakes of Killarney Conservation Association.
He also said he had been involved in many planning applications and appeals - most of his appeals were upheld by An Bord Pleanála - but objected to being branded a serial objector by county councillors who last year wanted to establish a register of such objectors.
Yesterday Mr Horgan said he had "never stopped" objecting to developments and would continue to do so, because of his interest in preserving the environment and scenery of Co Kerry.