Variation No. 2, Senior Executive Officer
Forward Planning Section,
Planning and Transport,
South Dublin County Council,
County Hall,
Tallaght,
Dublin 24, D24 A3XC March 12th 2O26
Re: Variation No. 2 to the South Dublin County Development Plan 2022-2028. –
Proposed Rezoning of Finnstown Castle Lands
Dear Sir/Madam,
I refer to the above matter wherein a Statutory Notice has been given pursuant to Section 58 of the Planning and Development Act 2024 (as amended) that South Dublin County Council, proposes a variation to the South Dublin County Development Plan 2022-2028 (“the Proposed Variation”).
I am a resident and homeowner at Personal Information and accordingly my family and I are materially affected by the proposal to rezone certain lands at Finnstown Castle.
I further refer to the call for public submissions in respect of the Proposed Variation and please find my submission set out hereunder:
- County Development Plan 2022-2028
The proposal to rezone the Finnstown Castle lands wholly undermines the above County Development Plan. A submission was made in September 2021 to rezone the majority of the Finnstown Castle lands from Objective OS to Objective RES-N. This proposal was submitted under SD-C195-132. It was fully considered and deliberated upon subject to the statutory planning process and ultimately it was rejected by Chief Executive’s Report. I believe that settled the matter until 2028. We are entitled as an affected resident under the doctrine of legitimate expectation to rely on the above plan and to expect that the provisions were not to be unravelled and undermined by the ad hoc and arbitrary manner this Proposed Variation is being advanced.
It was wholly inappropriate for SDCC to undermine its own County Development Plan by proposing the current rezoning.
- Breach of Strategic Development Zone (SDZ) Boundary
The boundary between the Somerton Estate and the Finnstown Castle lands constitutes a SDZ boundary and fall outside the curtilage of the Adamstown SDZ. The SDZ boundary will be breached by this rezoning and made a mockery of.
Strategic Development Zones as you are aware, were established in the Planning and Development Act 2000 and are areas of land designated by the Government for development that is considered to be of social or economic importance. When purchasing my property I was entitled to rely on the current SDZ boundary in order to ascertain the planning control situation on the ground. I purchased my home on the basis of the current SDZ boundary. The Material Variation constitutes a de facto amendment to that boundary. I say this is unlawful and is an abuse of process.
A Ministerial Order is required to amend a SDZ boundary you cannot do it surrepticouslty and by the back door via a Material Variation.
- Adamstown SDZ and Clonburris SDZ
The Material Variation is premature on the basis that the Adamstown SDZ and Clonburris SDZ are incomplete. Adamstown SDZ is still only at the mid-term review stage with 5,200 out of 10,000 units completed whilst Clonburris SDZ has only 2,630 housing units completed out of a proposed final figure of 9,500.
- National Planning Framework
I say that the Material Variation constitutes a confused, incoherent and manifestly incorrect response to the National Planning Framework. I base this observation on a reading of the “Report to Elected Members – NPF Implementation: Housing Growth Requirements Development Plan Settlement Capacity Audit – Technical Summary” as issued by Colm Ward, Chief Executive, SDCC on October 9th 2025 (“The Ward Report”).
I think it can fairly accepted that the figures in respect of potential zoned housing unit delivery as contained in the 2022 County Development Plan are fair and accurate. This plan states that sufficient land is zoned within South Dublin County to support 42,570 housing units. If you strip out long term delivery that figure is 21,490 housing units. There was no basis to make the Finnstown Castle rezoning in 2022 due to that figure of 21,490.
The Ward Report is predicated on the basis that the NPF creates an undersupply issue for SDCC. I believe that the Ward Report is mistaken in that regard.
Table 5 of the Ward Report deals with Zoned Land Capacity and Status within South Dublin County as of Q3 2025. It states that the Total Current Zoned Land Capacity of South Dublin County is sufficient to support 35,480 new housing units and a further Long-term Zoned Potential (up to and beyond 2040) supporting an additional 21,615 new housing units yielding an aggregate figure of 57,175 new housing units.
However, the Ward Report in Table 7 therein sets out a Forecast of Land Capacity Shortfall & Potential Maximum Additional Provision. This figure is what Colm Ward suggests is the needed figure to comply with the NPF guidelines. Again he gives two figures. Firstly there is a Cumulative Baseline Housing Growth Target of 45,803 housing units and a Cumulative Shortfall to Baseline Target figure of 10,323 housing units resulting in a figure of 56,126 new housing units
Accordingly there is enough land currently rezoned (based on Colm Ward’s own figures) to support additional housing provision within the baseline NPF guidelines. Colm Ward’s own figures disprove the case for rezoning the Finnstown Castle lands in order to satisfy the NPF.
Further, the NPF is not a statutory enactment, it has no force of law in its own right, it constitutes guidance only – the SDCC’s supine attitude to the NPF is completely disproportionate, wholly unreasonable and manifestly wrong.
- Use of Indicative Development Potential figures
On November 25th 2025 the Elected Members received a presentation of a PowerPoint document entitled “NPF Implementation - CDP Variation Preparation”. On a site-by-site basis a figure described as an Indicative Development Potential figure was noted on that document. The figure for Finnstown Castle was noted as circa 1,000 dwellings.
However, at the public consultation held in Lucan Library on Wednesday, March 4th the above document was not available for review. Rather, a booklet entitled “Proposed Variation No. 2 Book of Maps which did not contain Indicative Development Potential figures was made available.
I believe this prejudiced people who did not have access to the PowerPoint document, which in turns places a doubt over the legitimacy of the public consultation.
The Indicative Development Potential figure for Finnstown Castle at 1,000 is alarming and speaks to a proposal, which proposes an unprecedented level of intensification of use. It was clearly in SDCC’s interest to withhold from the public consultation the Indicative Development Potential figures.
- Disproportionate impact of Potential Variation on Lucan
The Lucan Electoral Area constitutes 10% (8.6 square miles) of the overall land area of South Dublin County (86 square miles). Of the 204 hectares of land being proposed for rezoning under the Material Variation, 94 hectares are situate in the Lucan Electoral Area – 46% of the rezoning is coming out of Lucan an area with 10% of the land in South Dublin County. This is disproportionate.
- Proximity of a Protected Structure
The Finnstown Castle Lands have a storied history stretching back to Tudor times and are the last portion of estate lands, which have an association with Patrick Sarsfield.
Records dating back to 1547 refer to the area as “Fyne’s Town”. Finnstown House is the last of the three principal country house estates in the parish of Esker – the other two are either demolished (Woodville) or have been converted into a golf club house (Hermitage).
A Joseph Browne was living at Finnstown in 1622. By the 1640s, Finnstown was owned by Lamerick Nottingham, a brother-in-law of Patrick Sarsfield, Earl of Lucan and hero of the Siege of Limerick. In 1650, Finnstown Castle belonged to Alderman Walter Kennedy. When he died in 1672, Finnstown passed to his eldest son, Christopher Kennedy. However, the Kennedys’ Jacobite loyalties were their undoing, and Christopher Kennedy’s son, Colonel Thomas Kennedy, fled to Spain.
By 1837, Finnstown House was owned by John Rorke, a Dublin solicitor with offices in Upper Temple Street.
In the 1860s, Thomas James Nash (1825-1887) from Millstreet, Co Cork, bought Finnstown House and its surrounding estate of almost 3,000 acres.
Finnstown House is a protected structure (RPS Ref 112).
- Loss of Green Space and Amenity Lands
Lucan has a profound lack of green space and amenity lands. The Finnstown Castle lands are the last remaining portion of green space between the N4 and the 12th Lock of the Grand Canal along the Newcastle Road corridor.
Sports clubs in the Lucan area are under enormous pressure for playing space. Notwithstanding the private property rights of the owners of the Finnstown Castle lands the current status quo with the current zoned Objective OS “ to preserve and provide for Open Space and Recreational Amenities” is the correct zoning for these lands – as stated above the SDCC can meet its baseline NPF objectives without rezoning another blade of grass in Lucan – however the loss of open space would be irreversible and the zoning status quo needs to be preserved in that regard.
- Property Values
I believe that the Material Variation as concerns the Finnstown Castle lands will have a negative impact on the value of my property given the profound and overbearing nature of the potential rezoning as well the decrease in light, privacy and loss of residential amenity.
- Privacy
Under the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended) local authorities must ensure that any development protects the residential amenities of the area. I say that the Material Variation is potentially injurious to my residential amenity and will adversely affect my right to privacy.
- The Newcastle Road (R 120)
The R120 currently demonstrates a number of functions: It is a link road connecting to the N4 and onwards westwards to the M4 and eastwards to the M50. It also links several village centres such as Newcastle Village, Lucan Village, Adamstown, and in time to the Clonburris development. It also is connected to Grangecastle Business Park. There are also several residential communities along with supporting schools, shops and other amenities adjacent to the R120.
The above sets out the multiple challenges the R120 faces. It is barely meeting any of those challenges currently, it is in a near permanent state of sclerosis. To decant the car complement of 1,000 extra houses onto the R120 would in my view be utter madness.
- Site Access - Old Tandy’s Lane
The majority of the Finnstown Castle lands can only be accessed through Old Tandy’s Lane – a minor local access only road and wholly unsuitable for construction traffic and the access and egress of 1,000 households.
- Sustainability
Finally it is submitted that the Material Variation does not propose sustainable development and does not conform with the Sustainable Residential Development and Compact Settlements Guidelines for Planning Authorities.
Yours faithfully,
Mr Mohammad Bajilan