Marist housing would breach council's development plan rules
Westmeath County Council is considering breaching rules set out in its own development plan for Athlone in order to facilitate a social housing development of 55 apartments for older people on the site of the former hermitage building at the Marist College.
The Dublin-based Tuath Housing agency is behind a planning application to develop 28 apartments at the former Our Lady's Hermitage building on the grounds of the Marist College, coupled with a new three-storey block containing 27 apartments.
Some 38 of the new apartments would have two bedrooms, while the remaining 17 would be one-bed units. Tuath Housing said this development "will accommodate persons on the social housing waiting list" but would be restricted to those who are over 55 years of age.
After receiving requested further information on the project in July, Westmeath County Council wrote to Tuath Housing in August to say it was considering "materially contravening" an objective of its Athlone Town Development Plan, for 2014 to 2020, in connection with the development.
The developer was instructed to publish a newspaper notice specifically stating that a grant of planning permission for the development would contravene council policy objective O-LZ9.
This is a policy objective which says the council must "provide for, protect and improve educational and institutional facilities," including schools, and that it should also "preserve the open character of institutional lands and the setting of heritage buildings contained within institutional lands".
The planning bid for the 55 apartments on the Marist College grounds was originally lodged with the council last October, and further information was requested by the local authority just before last Christmas.
Documentation submitted on behalf of Tuath Housing, in response to the further information request, included a report on the architectural and historical significance of the site.
It states that former Marist College/Hermitage building was constructed in the 1940s as an extension to the original Garrow House building. Garrow House dates from the 19th century and was converted, around 1910, from a private home to boarding school.
The building is a protected structure but sustained serious damage in a fire in 2018 and has "no surviving internal features of interest" according to the report submitted on behalf of Tuath Housing.
The planning application notes that the proposed apartments "will include conservation works to the surviving historic fabric of Garrow House and the Marist College, ensuring their continued survival and enhancing their architectural character and significance".
It adds that the proposed new residential block "will be located to the rear of the site, ensuring that there is no visual impact on the front elevation and setting" of the protected structures.
Tuath stated that the development, if approved, would be funded by the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage through the Capital Assistance Scheme (CAS) under the 'older persons category' of housing need.
The power to contravene the development plan lies with councillors.
Should a proposal to contravene the development plan to facilitate the Tuath housing project be brought before the members of Westmeath County Council, and approved, it paves the way for the council to then grant planning permission.