Athlone businessman Noel O'Gara has been told by a judge to stop selling tiles from Dartmouth Square Park in Ranelagh and to remove a caravan he had parked there.
Judge Jacqueline Linnane in the Circuit Civil Court yesterday granted injunctions to Dublin City Council restraining Mr O'Gara from conducting any business from the park or making any unauthorised use of it. She also directed him to remove a caravan and generator.
Carol O'Farrell told the court Mr O'Gara had been using a sandwich board on the footpath outside the park to advertise a "showroom" and "unbeatable" prices of granite and marble tiles.
Michael O'Connor, a planning enforcement officer with the local authority, said tiles had been laid out in the park near a table and chair where orders were being taken. He had informed Mr O'Gara that this constituted a change of use which would require planning permission.
Mr O'Gara had told him he intended displaying and selling tiles in the park for "the whole season, weather permitting". Ms O'Farrell told Judge Linnane that Mr O'Gara and his company, Marble and Granite Tiles Ltd, had already been restrained by the High Court from using the park as a car park and that he was well aware planning permission was required for any change of use from public amenity status.
Mr O'Gara said the High Court injunction restraining use of the park for business purposes was already under appeal to the Supreme Court. He repeated earlier claims of being denied his constitutional right to use his own land as he wished. He said he had simply opened the gates to his two-acre park and had invited potential customers in to view his products.
Judge Linnane said Mr O'Gara and his company had to comply with the planning laws and if they wished to make any material change of use of the park, they had to apply for planning permission.
If Mr O'Gara wished, he could challenge the planning laws in the High Court.
Judge Linnane awarded costs against Mr O'Gara and Marble and Granite Tiles Ltd. Legal costs of the Circuit and High Court actions by Dublin City Council against Mr O'Gara have already cost him more than four times the €10,000 he paid to purchase the park.
Mr O'Gara said he would be appealing Judge Linnane's orders to the High Court.