Developers of a new student accommodation block in the Docklands will have to go back to the drawing board.
The block near the Three Arena and Point Village was to have 970 rooms for students going to various colleges across Dublin.
However, Dublin City Council voiced a number of concerns including the use of studio apartments which aren’t allowed under city guidelines and a lack of sound proofing.
They also weren’t happy that parts of the outdoor common areas were actually publically owned street space.
Kevin Donoghue is president of the Union of Students in Ireland, he says while we badly need student accommodation, it’s important to get it right.
“We need to make sure that we’re providing people with accommodation which is suitable to live. It’s good to see that Dublin City Council are applying stringent rules”.
However, he was concerned about the rules for studio apartments, that they weren’t allowed in this development but are if it was part of a college campus.
“There might be questions needed to be asked there. That position is quite close to a couple of college campus’ and indeed it’s closer that some of the on-campus accommodation for a couple of the institutions. So I think that needs to be examined as well.
The developers have six months to redesign the block and send the plans back into Dublin City Council.
