COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
Monday, June 09, 2008
HEADED ITEM NO. 4 (e) (i)
Adjourned Lucan/Clondalkin Area Committee Meeting (1) 4th June 2008 (originally scheduled for 21st May 2008)
The following motion was passed at the Lucan Clondalkin Area Committee meeting held on Wednesday 4th June 2008:-
“That the Manager would present a detailed and up-to-date report on progress agreed in the interest of consistency, and following my prolonged representations on behalf of the Residents Association and the Residents of Moy Glas Estate, Lucan, that additional fencing be installed at those short stretches of boundary on the Outer Ring Road at Moy Glas Estate where no boundary fencing was installed as part of the Outer Ring Road Widening Works, and that this Committee now requests the Manager to provide this fencing”.
The Motion requests that additional fencing be installed at those stretches of the boundary of the Outer Ring Road at Moyglass where no boundary fencing was installed at part of the Outer Ring Road Widening works.
Technical assessment has indicated that it is not necessary for additional fencing to be installed at these locations. It is normal practice during the course of construction of a road scheme that new boundary treatment is provided where existing boundaries are interfered with or where required by the Scheme, such that minimum disturbance is caused to the existing environment.
It should be borne in mind that an Environmental Impact Statement was prepared by the Council’s Consulting Engineers and submitted to An Bord Pleanala in 2004. This assessment concluded that in addition to the low noise road surfacing being provided along the length of the road, noise amelioration barriers were required at particular locations and heights. The EIS also concluded that these barriers were not required along the entire length of Moyglas and at other locations along the route.
Following a long and protracted public hearing, An Bord Pleanala conditioned the Council to implement the Scheme in its entirety without modification at these locations.
It has always been Council practice in terms of road construction to minimise the impact on the existing environment and to modify boundary treatments only where necessary. In this instance, as additional boundary fencing was not required for noise amelioration or engineering reasons it was decided that the existing boundary in question was adequate and does not justify additional expenditure from the Council’s scarce resources.
Such an additional expenditure estimated to be in the region of €140,000 for 350m of fencing could have a detrimental impact on other elements of the Council’s capital programme particularly in the current financial climate, where the Council is hard pressed to meet current commitments.
The Council has prepared a detailed report and re examination on the request of the Moyglass Residents Association to provide additional noise treatment along the boundary wall. This report was communicated to the Moyglas residents and local councillors some time ago and is included at the end of this report.
The conclusion of this report is as follows:-
The result of this re-examination confirms that the situation at Moyglass is no better or worse than prior to the advent of the Scheme and that no additional noise mitigation is required to that already in place along the route. The Council is satisfied that it has met its obligations in relation to the construction of this road and has adopted a consistent approach to its development similar to other road schemes in the County.
Boundary Treatment on Outer Ring Road Phase 2
Old Lucan Road to the Adamstown roundabout
Introduction:-
The boundary treatment along the Outer Ring Road Phase 2 consists of environmental noise barriers, retaining walls, low wall and railings, solid block walls and stone walls. This variation reflects the situation that existed before the scheme commenced. This was due to different boundary treatments being used by different developers along the route. Many of the pre-existing boundary treatments have been retained unchanged. Where a section had to be removed to facilitate the road construction scheme it was reconstructed to match the existing.
Old Lucan Road to Ballyowen Roundabout.
Amendments were made to the original plans in the area between the Old Lucan Road and the Ballyowen park junction. These amendments were carried out in agreement with the landowners, residents, Arup Council officials and local members. The original plan to alter the boundary with the business park including Woodies was changed due to a dispute relating to the land ownership. This has resulted in the existing railing on the corner being left in place.
The boundary treatments and scope of works were re-assessed along the boundary with Willsbrook and Woodville following appeals by TD’s, councillors, residents and local children. This resulted in the construction of additional retaining walls. By constructing these retaining walls the need to carry major earthworks in the estates was eliminated and it also resulted in us being able to save a large amount of trees and shrubs which would otherwise have been removed. It was necessary to face the retaining wall at Woodville with stone as conditioned by An Bord Pleanala. The wall was also raised to 2 metres to ensure safety for school children as pointed out by local residents and prevent pedestrian traffic crossing a low wall onto the approved bus lane where because of the land constraints a footpath was not provided.
In order to minimise construction impact at Willsbrook Crescent a low retaining wall was constructed which necessitated the construction of a timber wall extension to meet An Bord Pleanala requirements in terms of height. It had the added benefit of providing additional privacy to Willsbrook Crescent which was not required under the approved scheme. The section immediately facing the existing estate road was pebble dashed to match the existing walls for aesthetic reasons. Because of these works there was minimum interference with the other side of the road and a timber fence has been erected on the Hermitage side.
The planned low wall and railing at Ballyowen Court was amended to a high wall following discussions and agreement with the residents and had no additional cost implications for the contract.
Ballyowen roundabout to Penny hill Junction.
The boundary treatments between Ballyowen park junction and the Pennyhill junction are various types of low wall & railing and high wall which were in place before the scheme started. Some of these walls have been defaced by graffiti, others are damaged. Clonmel Enterprises (CEL) have agreed to remove any paint or spray that they put on the walls when they are snagging. These walls were not otherwise interfered with and remain in reasonable condition without the need for refurbishment.
Penny hill Junction to Griffeen Avenue.
The boundary treatments between Pennyhill and Griffeen junctions are pre-existing low wall & railings and high walls. Environmental (noise) barriers were installed in three locations as per the original design at Moyglas. The design was based on an assessment of the requirements by Arup and approved by an Bord Pleanala.
At chainage 1600 to 2000 alongside Foxborough Estate there is a section of solid block boundary wall approximately 2.2m high and 400m long which has been left in an unfinished state by the developer. During the course of the design and construction of the road scheme there was a dispute with the developer which prevented the Council from carrying out any remedial works until the matter was resolved. The resolution took place too late for the road contractor to effect remedial works and cannot therefore be undertaken as part of the road scheme contract.
This is the only area that could be considered for further works. The length of 400m can be divided into 2 areas of approximately 200m each. The first part is at the back of the footpath and would require pebble dash, rendering or coating. The second part has a grass margin in front of it and could be hidden from view by planting and landscaping and will be examined in the context of the landscaping proposals. This section of the road can be considered for refurbishment in the context of the available maintenance budget and any contributions that can be obtained from development levies in view of the long outstanding completion to a satisfactory level of this estate boundary.
Further maintenance works could be carried out by SDCC to remove graffiti, clean and re-paint the walls along the scheme as and when resources permit.