A NEW development that will deliver 1,400 much-needed new bed spaces for students in Castletroy has been given the green light.
The proposal to build a large-scale residential development to house thousands of students near the University of Limerick (UL) campus was given the go ahead by planners at Limerick City and County Council.
The purpose-built student accommodation scheme, proposed by Groody Developments Limited, is hoped to house up to 1,400 students on the outskirts of the UL campus on land fronting the Groody Road and Dublin Road in Castletroy, an area which already has a thriving student population across a number of estates.
The proposed new development consists of 196 bed ‘clusters’ which will be delivered in two phases, and distributed across five separate apartment blocks ranging in height from five to eight storeys. The developer is hoping for a delivery timeframe up to seven years.
Bed clusters usually involve private rooms with shared common spaces such as kitchens, bathrooms, and living rooms.
Block A of the new project, comprising of eight storeys, will provide 28 bed clusters and 224 bed spaces, as well as a new student library and student ‘union’ space.
Block B, spread across seven storeys, will accommodate 52 bed clusters (400 beds) and feature a reception, office, and student canteen.
Block C will cater to up to 355 students along with a student gym, while Block D and E will provide 355 and 211 bed spaces respectively.
Vehicular access to the site will be accessible from the Groody Road with pedestrian access from the Dublin Road.
There will also be pedestrian and cycle connections from the Groody Road to the Groody Green Wedge, while natural landscaping and public walkways within the Groody Green Wedge, and a wetland area adjacent to the Groody River are also proposed.
As part of the planning permission, developers propose to use the accommodation outside of student term time for short-term letting.
Some objections were submitted to the proposed development, including from Environmental Trust Ireland (ETI), who claimed the application was “premature” and “will cause greater traffic congestion in an already congested area”.
The ETI submission said the proposal “failed to take into account the impacts of the proposed new through road from Golf Links Road to Groody Road” currently before An Coimisiún Pleanála.
The ETI also claimed the development site is at risk of flooding and would cause severe harm to the environment and contribute to the loss of biodiversity in the area.
