High Court dismisses challenge to 416-home development on Dublin’s South Circular Road

The High Court has dismissed a challenge against the development of 416 homes at Dublin’s South Circular Road. The build-to-rent scheme by a subsidiary of US property group Hines received permission from An Bord Pleanála in September 2020, but local residents Sinéad Kerins and Mark Stedman sought to overturn it through a judicial review. The case went to the Court of Justice of the European Union to determine legal questions, which was welcomed by Hines as it prepared to proceed with the development. All grounds of challenge were rejected by Mr Justice Humphreys, including a point about a jointly prepared masterplan by Dublin City Council and Hines that had been deemed not to require a Strategic Environment Assessment. The Bailey Gibson lands, where the development is set to take place, adjoin another portion of the South Circular Road site which holds planning for 732 apartments across four blocks. One building will be 19 storeys high. This portion of the scheme has also been referred to the CJEU for a determination.