Dunne criticises 'serial objectors' and councillors

Developer Seán Dunne has rounded on what he calls the "serial objectors to every major development in this country".

Mr Dunne, who yesterday put his plans for the redevelopment of the Jurys Ballsbridge/Berkeley Court hotels site on public display, also criticised city councillors who voted against a local area plan in May which would have allowed for the type of high-rise development that he is proposing.

"The councillors because of the general election, or perhaps for mischievous reasons and for their own benefit, decided to vote down the local area plan before they even had the manager's report," he told RTÉ Radio One's Morning Ireland programme. "That's the first time in the history of planning in Dublin that such a thing has happened."

Mr Dunne said 85 per cent of what he was applying for was already in the current development plan for Dublin city and was in keeping with the mixed use of residential, retail and office development as proposed in the local area plan.

"In total we are providing nine acres of public, accessible space to the residents and the community of Ballsbridge on a site that measures seven acres," he explained.

He said the development would only lead to a 3 per cent increase in the volume of traffic in the area and the retail and cultural aspects of it would lead to a 15 per cent increase in house values in the area. "It allows people to do all their shopping within walking distance and to have all the amenities that people acquire of a city centre district."

He confirmed his intention to keep the Berkeley Court Hotel open, although he has not entered into discussion with any hotelier yet.

He denied that his motivation in reopening the hotel was to defray the €379 million he spent acquiring the seven acre site two years ago. "The viability of the hotels is well-known. That's the reason they were sold. I don't think it is going to meet the building costs of this project."

Mr Dunne said he was confident the scheme would be a success despite the current turmoil in the housing market.

"I have had to leave Ireland on two occasions because of recession in the country. Thankfully, I don't see that happening again because Ireland has turned a corner since 1987. Successive governments have handled the economy well. It's a great country. It's a great place to live and it's a great place to do business."

Mr Dunne said he has lost no sleep over the price he paid for the sites which was the biggest property deal in the country at the time.

"We have a five-month-old boy at the moment and thankfully he's sleeping through the night. I have to say I'm one of those people who don't worry. I have a positive outlook on life, I have a positive outlook about Ireland, the economy and Ballsbridge. I have no fears about the success and viability of this site whatsoever."

He said his reasons for taking on such a massive scheme were not motivated by the potential profit he could make from it.

"Money is only a requirement to carrying on business. In the greater scheme of things, money to me is not a necessity. I like putting people together, I like putting projects together and seeing the fruits of my work. I'm proud to go back to any development we have ever built."