Settlement reached in dispute over works at Merrion Square property

A settlement has been reached in a company’s case alleging a developer is unlawfully working on a neighbouring Merrion Square property under planning permission that is subject to an appeal. 

 

Minoa Limited, which owns numbers 2 and 3 on Merrion Square, claimed unauthorised works were being carried out on the Merrion Building (Morrissey’s) property, situated between the Davenport Hotel and 1 Merrion Square North. 

 

The developers, Persian Properties Unlimited Co and Blue and White Diamond Unlimited, previously agreed to pause what they said were minor changes to approved office building works. 

 

When the case returned to court on Wednesday, Mr Justice Charles Meenan was informed an agreement had been reached that allowed the case to be struck out. 

 

Terms of the settlement read to the court included undertakings from the developers not to carry out any further works that are the subject of a grant of planning permission that is under appeal to An Bord Pleanála. The undertakings will last until the appeals board has communicated its decision on the application. 

 

The developers, which have registered offices on South Cumberland Street, Dublin, have agreed to conduct a survey of works that were the subject of the proceedings. 

 

When the action first came to court last December, Minoa’s barrister, Jarlath Ryan, said the approval for the works at the Merrion Building effectively does not exist until the third party appeal has been determined. 

 

The 2022 planning permission under appeal was a revision of earlier permissions secured by Persian Properties, said Minoa, which has an address on Clontarf Road, Dublin. 

 

The 2019 and 2020 planning approvals, which are finalised, allow for the demolition of the existing building and construction of a five-storey office block. The revision concerned various internal facilities and an extension to the ground floor area beyond what was already approved, Minoa said. 

 

Minoa claimed the allegedly unauthorised works were similar to those approved under the 2022 decision and include a ground floor extension, elevational alterations to the building, changes to the office dimensions, window system installations and bike parking removal and construction. 

 

Micheál D O’Connell SC, for the defendants, previously described the proceedings as a waste of court time. What his clients were doing was simply providing a place for cyclists to shower when they cycle to work. 

 

Mr Justice Meenan struck out the case on Wednesday. 

 

The Irish Times