The controversial Lidl development in Castleknock has been granted planning permission despite strong opposition over the impact the additional traffic will have on the village.
An Bord Pleanala last week granted permission for the building of the €15m commercial development that will include a supermarket, medical centre and shops.
Local politicians and residents have expressed concern that the increased traffic will have an adverse effect on the area.
Cllr Ted Leddy said: “I am very disappointed by this decision. Once again I will state that this is not just a Castleknock village issue, it is a wider D15 issue. Everyone in D15 who wishes to drive into the city centre has to drive either down the Navan Road or through Castleknock village. This decision by An Bord Pleanala places a major commercial development at the choke point of one of those routes.
“As the economy continues to grow, congestion is going to be an increasingly serious problem.”
Traffic volume on a proposed development is calculated using a system called TRICS. In April, The Gazette reported that two local residents had carried out their own traffic survey on the site of the proposed development and found that the traffic volume at the site was twice that which TRICS predicted.
It was also claimed that the samples used to demonstrate the expected traffic flow for the health clinic in the new development contained many samples that were not comparable in terms of size and location.
Joan Burton (Lab) expressed concern at the scale of the development and its impact on the village. “The development really has the potential to take away from the historic village of Castleknock and is completely inconsistent with the existing buildings and especially St Brigid’s church, which form part of an architectural conservation area,” she said.
A spokesperson for Lidl said that they welcomed the decision from An Bord Pleanala and would be consulting with residents before construction started.
Alan Barry, director of property said: “We are pleased that An Bord Pleanala has recognised that this development will contribute positively to the local area. We have designed a development to the highest standards which I believe complements the area.”
