THE LOO in Lahinch with the €400,000 sea view is set to be demolished after An Bord Pleanála yesterday gave the go-ahead to make way for a mixed-use development.
In giving the go-ahead to John and Breeda Galvin to demolish the toilets on Lahinch’s prom and replace them with two retail units and two apartments, the board said the proposed development would not seriously injure the amenities of the area nor of property in the vicinity.
The board ruled the plan would be in accordance with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.
At a public auction in Ennis in June 2008 Mr Galvin paid Clare County Council €400,000 for the property “with unrivalled and unparalleled sea views”. Asked at the auction was he happy with the price, Mr Galvin said: “I would be happy if I got it for cheaper, but that’s the way it goes.”
In giving the plan the go-ahead, the appeals board dismissed appeals lodged by Lahinch Community Council and John Logan against the county council’s decision to give the project the go- ahead.
The inspector in the case concluded the public promenade would be generally improved by the proposed development.
In the community council’s appeal, chairman Donogh O’Loghlin said granting planning permission, “especially in the current economic climate, promotes and further adds to the ‘ghost town’ winter image of Lahinch”.
