Madam, – The recent decisions of An Bord Pleanála to refuse planning permission for the largescale developments at the Donaghcumper Estate, Celbridge, Co Kildare are of great significance for the protection of the open and natural quality of the Liffey Valley and for the protection of the setting of Castletown, the greatest and one of the earliest of the Irish country houses of the 18th century.
The decision of the planning board has also significance for our tourist industry. The protection of the lands at Donaghcumper and the adjoining estates along the Liffey Valley is not merely a matter of significance for the local community, it is of national importance and a significant element in what we can offer to the world of travel and of cultural development.
Given these factors, it is alarming that the administration in Co Kildare led by the county manager now wants the members of the county council itself to remove the provisions of the new draft Development Plan which should help to protect the landscape at Donaghcumper and the setting of Castletown, and so go back on an earlier decision of the council in December 2010 to retain these protections. It would seem that the interests of property development are being given pride of place rather than the long-term cultural and social concerns. It would appear that the tourist interests of the region and the country are again being jeopardised.
Permission had been sought for a large-scale housing development on the open lands across the Liffey from Castletown House and also to develop the infrastructure to create a new town centre for Celbridge all on the lands at Donaghcumper. Both propositions were rejected by An Bord Pleanála for stated reasons.
The planning applications had been opposed by hundreds of local people, by conservationists and wildlife groups, by the Castletown Foundation and by the Office of Public Works. The OPW now administers Castletown for the nation. It would be a sad situation if KCC were to go against the well-established grounds on which these developments were rejected, reasons that were fully examined by the board in its decisions. It is our duty to protect great natural beauty and built heritage for our own people and for visitors from abroad.
In 1994 the Castletown Foundation gave the great house and the small portion of the landholding in its ownership to the Irish State as represented by the OPW. The State subsequently took steps to acquire more of the lands at Castletown, especially those facing the river Liffey. The greater part of the historic Castletown estate is, however, still in the hands of developers. There is the risk that attempts will be made to secure planning permission on what is the remaining parkland of Castletown. Already in the part owned by the OPW considerable advances have been made in restoring drives and pathways for the public benefit.
It is essential that for the future, the open and rural quality of the Castletown estate be preserved in the public interest. The battle at Castletown is not merely about keeping the lands at Donaghcumper open and free of development. It also involves protecting and maintaining the open lands, which are the natural setting of Castletown House. – Yours, etc,