The Fingal County Council has turned down the proposal by Dublin Airport’s operator, DAA, to build a new car park meant to provide an additional 950 spaces for staff. DAA initially made an application to expand the existing Holiday Blue long term car park westward, claiming that the proposed number of spaces were the bare minimum required to meet the current demand.
The DAA further explained that the plan was to replace staff parking spaces that were lost due to ongoing development activities across the airport grounds. Nevertheless, the Council rejected the proposal entirely, citing three key reasons for their decision. Among these was the fact that the proposed car park was premature, given that the planning application regarding infrastructural upgrade works planned for Dublin Airport lands was still under review.
The council also mentioned that the application could not be analysed independently and without accounting for the required external road network upgrade for Dublin Airport, as well as enhancements to the pedestrian and cycling infrastructure along the R108. They also highlighted that the plot set for development has been zoned for enterprise and employment purposes as per the Fingal Development Plan for 2023-2029.
According to the council, the proposed development would fundamentally contradict the objective of the ‘GE’ zoning, which aims to ensure that lands zoned ‘GE’ are utilised for intense employment-related activities. The planning authority also pointed out deficiencies in the Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) submitted, specifically, it lacked proper information and failed to consider reasonable alternatives to the proposed development.
Furthermore, potential impact on birds and bats, as well as potential climatic impacts, were said to be inadequately considered. Without this information, the authority claimed they could not determine the acceptability of the proposed development on environmental grounds. DAA expressed their disappointment with this decision, stating that Dublin Airport operates round the clock and thus needs ample parking for staff from all companies to function effectively.
A spokesperson for DAA emphasised that the planned car park was meant to replace spaces that had been removed due to airport development, not create new parking spaces. Additionally, the proposed development was intended to mitigate daily traffic entering the Dublin Airport campus by serving as a ‘park and ride’.
The National Transport Agency (NTA) and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) had no issues with our plan. However, we’re deeply disheartened by the refusal of Fingal County Council to grant planning permission. We’re now considering other options,” he expressed.