Funding has now been withdrawn from a proposed primary care centre in Finglas after An Bórd Pleanála refused permission for its development, according to a local TD. In the wake of the planning authority’s announcement, Dublin North West TD John Lyons said there “is no plan B” for the 43-room facility, which received approval from Dublin City Council last September.
“The whole of Finglas will now lose out as a result and I’m informed funding is now lost for a primary healthcare centre in the community,” Mr Lyons said. “There is no plan B and a state-of-the-art facility that would have made a huge difference to health services in the Finglas area will not be provided in the near future. Quite simply, it is devastating for the people of Finglas,” he told The Irish Times.
The near-3,000 metre development was set to incorporate two GP clinics, dedicated primary care and community health teams as well as 43 specialised treatment rooms. It was designed to accommodate between 48 and 67 staff overall, however, the decision of An Bórd Pleanála has ended any prospect of completion on that particular site.
The facility was to have been built on a grassed area just off the Mellowes Road, which residents said was used for recreational purposes. In their appeal, Paul and Deirdre Keegan argued that the construction of the centre would result in lost views from their house which adjoins the site, and would add to traffic congestion in the area.
In his report, planning inspector Stephen Kay concluded that complaints lodged were not of sufficient gravity to warrant a refusal of the application. He also made a number of recommendations concerning landscaping, the planting of trees and shrubbery to improve the aesthetics of the development, and restrictions on when site works could be carried out, but the board instead opted for outright refusal.
While maintaining that not all hope was lost, Róisín Shortall TD (Independent) said the decision was a huge blow to the Finglas community. “I would hope that we can regroup in terms of the HSE and city council to try and identify an alternative site, but it’s back to square one on the basis of this decision now and there’s nowhere else to go with it,” said Ms Shortall. She resigned her position as primary care minister in 2012 following a public controversy over the geographical allocation of centres.
“The decision by the board to reverse the original ruling is quite flimsy, and I think it raises the whole question about the role of An Bórd Pleanála and the need for the board to provide fuller explanations for their decisions to overturn recommendations of their own inspectors,” she added.
A HSE representative for Dublin North East said the organisation was “very disappointed” over the decision, which would “significantly delay” the provision of a primary care centre in the area.