Clonliffe College development

The overall site is approximately 14.5 hectares. Hines has acquired approximately 7.74 hectares while 5.12 hectares is owned by the GAA with the balancing 1.64 hectares, including the Archbishop's House, retained by the Dublin Archdiocese.

Hines plans to develop a residential led community with additional and supporting uses with up to 1,614 new homes for rent, all professionally managed in-house by Hines. It is anticipated that the profile of the residents will be reflective of the demographic profile of Irish society with around 70% of the population being single occupants or couples with no children and the other 30% being larger than 2 person households, including families. The breakdown of the types of apartments proposed responds to this and will include around 540 studios, 603 - 1 beds, 418 - 2 beds, 53 - 3 beds. These new apartments will be supported by 3,504 sq m of dedicated residential amenity space and will include spaces such as gyms, entertainment rooms, co-working areas, and lounges. 20% of these new apartments will be social and affordable housing. There are no plans for student housing or co-living across this development.

The Hines proposal also includes 602 sq m of retail space, a 627 sq m creche and over 20% of the Hines site has been retained as accessible public open space with the continued enjoyment of the lands by the neighbouring public at the forefront of the development intent. This open space will be delivered as a continuous green loop around the site, or a ‘necklace' of public open spaces, each with different character areas which have been established across the site overtime and will be fully accessible to the wider community.

Source: https://www.iip.ie/thought-leadership

Subject to planning, our aspiration is to commence construction in Q1 2022, and it is estimated that construction will continue on site until mid-2025.

It's important to note that 80% of all apartment developments built in Dublin end up on the rental market - regardless of whether they are owned by institutional investors or by private investors*. While still in its infancy in Ireland, purpose-built rental communities like that being proposed, are a long established and very successful model of housing in Europe. Post the financial crash the ownership model has changed - with pension funds replacing one-off investors, who have remained nervous to invest in recent years. Indeed, as has been more commonplace in the US and Germany for decades, many small investors are now opting to invest collectively via these larger professionally run entities and do away with the hassle of managing an apartment themselves.

Purpose-built rental homes, professionally managed by an institutional style landlord, has been the more typical model in Europe and the US because it actually provides a longer term and higher-quality living experience for residents, which leads to less turnover of tenancies through the build-to-rent model. Major parts of key European cities such as Berlin or Paris have similar scale purpose-built long-term rental communities of this nature, developed and owned by pension funds. This is true of most US cities as well. These communities are well established, stable and fully integrated into the wider neighbourhood. There is nothing in the design & planning for this scheme to suggest that we will not replicate that success here, as we have tapped into the Hines experience of developing and managing these types of development elsewhere.

It is important to note that institutional style landlords, the type of landlord that is proposed for this site, own less than 5% of the residential rental stock in Ireland. The vast majority are still owned by private individuals.

As recently confirmed by the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland, the cost of higher density apartment development in Ireland is very expensive and a lot higher than traditional housing. With the current rules on borrowing caps, it would not be financially viable for a private developer, with no subsidies, to develop a project of this nature at price points that could be sold at affordable levels in any volume.

As well, if there was a viable business case for a build to sell (B2S) model it would take many more years to deliver than build to rent (B2R), with B2R developments taking on average 3-4 years to develop vs B2S developments taking about 8-12 years to develop, due to the much slower absorption rate of B2S schemes. If we are going to address the major deficit of housing supply in Dublin, in particular for 1 and 2 person rental homes where the deficit and crisis is most acute, this will be the quickest way, by far, of helping. The shorter build time combined with the typically faster occupation time of homes in BTR schemes contributes to the creation of community and with the arrival of a significant new population the surrounding neighbourhood will benefit from increased spending in local businesses, more economic & social activity and increased employment opportunities.

Furthermore, a competitive rental sector will improve housing affordability as an increase in supply and competition will reduceoverall rents. This will in turn allow for increased saving amongst residents who can save more money for a house if they desire.

"Rebuilding Ireland, An Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness" published in 2016 acknowledges that the housing stock in Ireland was not built with the needs of long-term renters in mind and as such there was a need for the construction of purpose-built accommodation for the long-term rental market with appropriate on-site amenities. Pillar 4 of Rebuilding Ireland specifically seeks to "Improve the Rental Sector". The key objective of this Pillar is "addressing the obstacles to greater private rented sector delivery, to improve the supply of units at affordable rents". A key action for achieving this objective is to encourage "build-to-rent".

The design proposals for the Clonliffe College site includes unprecedented facilities for residents and an enhanced benefit for the wider community arising from the retention and enhancement of the extensive trees and parklands that characterise this unique site. Experience internationally is that purpose built, professionally managed Build to Rent homes are not for "transient" communities. Many people live happily in rented homes for many years. Build to Rent developments place a large emphasis on resident amenity offerings and social spaces offering attractive facilities tailored to residents at all stages of life, many of which are included in the monthly rent which may assist in savings. A heavy emphasis is also placed on managing the scheme and fostering community to encourage residents to stay for as long as possible or move within the building or development.

The proposed scheme promotes the creation of a new urban development, the design and layout of which is safe and suitable for a variety of age groups, family units, abilities and incomes and is consistent with national and local development management standards.

The apartments are designed to maximise space, offer consistent quality and make the most of the surroundings views. The proposed scheme's typical apartment is open plan with a central living space which combines the living area and kitchen, maximising the amount of daylight that can get into the apartment. The design team have carefully considered the importance of natural daylight and have provided each of the apartments with large glazed windows. The vast majority of apartments will also have private balconies or terraces.

New research on apartment sizes throughout Europe shows that Ireland ranks as having amongst the largest. The research, which can be accessed here, assesses the standard codes for the UK, France, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium and Spain with Ireland emerging as being 11%-19% larger than the European average. The apartments that are proposed for this development will be fully in line with national planning policy. In light of more people now working from home, we're also designing workstations into the apartment layouts which will be complemented by significant co-working hubs spread across the scheme.

All buildings will be compliant with Part M of the Building Regulations which sets out standards to ensure that buildings are accessible and usable by everyone, including children, people with disabilities and older people.

In developing the most appropriate and sustainable mix for the scheme, Dublin's housing needs were heavily considered.

In 2017 a modelling exercise was carried out by the Irish government and the ESRI in order to provide a foundation for strategic policy-making and the direction of population growth in Ireland up to 2040. In 2019, this exercise was taken further, and population estimates were applied to a housing needs model to establish a county level projection on future housing requirements. These studies show that the population in Dublin is projected to increase by c. 8% over the next 10 years and that there is a requirement for 99,062 units to be completed in Dublin from 2021-2030 to meet population growth and changing household preference.

Assessments also point to “the pattern of falling household size requirements persisting to 2030 and the majority of this demand will be for 1-and 2-person households which will account for 65,062 or 72.5% of preferences. Demand for larger homes will decrease and in the case of 5+ bed units the level of demand will actually be negative indicating an oversupply of that unit type for the household composition of Dublin”.

The composition and density of this scheme fits with the projected housing needs for the city up to 2030 by building more efficient homes that cater for a broad range of demographics including single occupants, couples, sharers, graduates, single parents, young families and older people looking to scale down.

The profile of existing housing in the local area is diverse with apartments amounting to 39.3% of total units. Just 21% of households have more than 3 persons living there, and 36% of households are being privately rented to multiple sharing occupants (compared to the Dublin City average of 29.7%). This is despite the fact that 61% of the housing stock is semi-detached or terraced housing. This composition would indicate that there is a mismatch between the type of homes available and trends/demands in occupancy and tenure in the area. The new homes will allow more people to live in the neighbourhood and will benefit the wider neighbour with increased activity for local businesses, underpinning the 15-minute City concept.

In considering these new buildings, which will have a planned life of 100 years or more, flexibility and adaptability is also important. Unit type adjacencies have therefore been carefully considered to allow for future adaptability if required decades from now, for example we have the capacity to convert two studio apartments into a 2-bed apartment should market demand shift towards this sized unit.

Source:
a. https://www.esri.ie/publications/regional-demographics-and-structural-housing-demand-at-a-county-level
b. https://npf.ie/

20% in total with an even split between both. Part V housing will be delivered in accordance with existing statutory requirements. 10% of the overall total of apartments will be provided as social housing and developed in tandem with the overall construction programme. Procedurally, the exact location and unit mix is agreed post-planning and will be a matter for Dublin City Council and the approved housing agency appointed to the development.

A further 10% of the overall total of apartments will be provided as affordable housing.

To achieve the 15-minute city concept, the Dublin City Development Plan promotes a 100 unit per hectare target, but the City is falling well below this target with an average density of 20.6 units per hectare. This makes the task of achieving sustainable neighbourhoods very challenging. Currently within a 2km radius of the site the density of the area is 28 units per hectare. Upon completion of the proposed development, this number will rise marginally to 29 units per hectare, having little impact on the current density of the surrounding area.

The location of the new buildings has been carefully considered to maximise the amount of public green open space and minimise disruption to the mature trees on site. The emerging Masterplan will very much seek to retain and enhance the historic character of the site. In assessing the history of the site, we have derived a masterplan which respects the existing historical landscape, roads, and walkways, which date back to the construction of the college. In adhering to the emerging site specific parameters, a series of potential development pockets have been identified amongst the mature trees, historically identifiable routes and vistas which are respectful of the setting and preserve the site character which has been enjoyed by the public over time as institutional lands.

A very unique aspect to our properties is that we will have a full management team working on-site 7 days a week. Quality of service is fundamental to the build-to-rent model due to its strong focus on community building and resident retention. We feel it is important for residents to have direct access to our teams to communicate their experience, book amenities, report any issues or concerns, give feedback or just come by for a chat. We also believe it is necessary for our teams to have a keen ear to the ground, mingle with the residents and local community daily and build that much needed trust particularly from the outset. Our teams are hospitality trained with a core focus on quality of standards and service. It is also important for us to hire individuals from diverse backgrounds allowing for more ideas and processes and a broader range of skills, experiences and perspectives. Our team are made of individuals specialised in areas such as sales, leasing, marketing, operations, maintenance and on occasion include guest representatives during our calendar of events. Members of the team will also have the opportunity to live on site, which gives us more insight into our property's living experience.

Our teams will host a full calendar of events throughout the year that will foster resident interactions and give the opportunity to meet and know our teams. These events will take place within the community utilising the green open spaces and on-site amenities. We have also invested in leading technologies through our resident application and website to communicate online and at ease with the use of community news feeds/boards, forums, polls and much more. We will engage residents with continued community feedback through surveys, questionnaires and live events across our platforms.

We will look to partner with local retailers and business owners in creating great benefit for the community and encourage a "buy local" initiative which will strengthen the relationships within our communities. We understand that by spending locally we are growing the local economy and helping in supporting jobs and small business growth.

In terms of sustainability we too are working hard to ensure we look after the environment and wider society. We are actively involved in lining up our properties to achieve accreditations across multiple green and sustainability bodies in becoming part of the most sustainable developments in Ireland and Europe.

Over 20% of the site will be retained as accessible public open space and the continued enjoyment of the lands by the neighbouring public is at the forefront of the development intent. We are very cognisant of how the public enjoy the mature landscape currently and a key priority is to have this incorporated within the new development. This will be delivered as a continuous 1.5km green loop of public open spaces, including formal gardens and woodland walks, around the site which is proposed to be open to the public 24/7. These safe, public spaces will be well lit and overlooked by new homes thereby ensuring passive surveillance. Exercise stations are dotted along the various walking and jogging loops, as is sculpture, picnic tables and BBQ areas as well as space for yoga, meditation or quiet contemplation to read a book on a bench. The public open spaces are easily accessible to everyone through a number of entry routes to the site via the Clonliffe road and the Drumcondra road, and pedestrian/cyclist access to these spaces will not be restricted in any way.

Seating has also been planned throughout the landscape masterplan in line with age friendly guidance. Typically, seats are located on 50m intervals to provide rest points. Seating opportunities have been provided at key locations around attractions such as play, exercise or key thresholds to allow meeting points at key nodes or moments in the landscape.

The sites greatest natural assets are its existing trees. The design works to protect and celebrate these as part of its character. Furthermore, the design is enhanced with additional tree planting to all boundaries and its internal space, creating a variety of spatial experiences. Almost 300 trees were surveyed on the site, and of these 300 trees surveyed 25 have been identified for removal due to poor condition. To facilitate the new buildings, around 80 trees are expected to be removed however these numbers are subject to further detailed design and as many trees as possible will be preserved. The proposal includes an extensive tree planting programme and currently proposes that over 400 new trees be planted, predominately from a native tree species palette, allowing the proposal to almost double the number of trees currently on site.

An independent survey of the landscape will be submitted as part of the planning application.

The proposal does envisage allotment gardens being part of the communal courtyards for residents of the new apartments.

It is anticipated that the development will offer a net gain to biodiversity through the development of additional habitat connecting existing surrounding ecological stands with continuous tree canopies for bat and bird roosting and provision of specific plants for wildlife to forage through. An increased number of trees, areas for surface water treatment and wildflower meadows coupled with best practice maintenance will ensure a sustainable landscape for the future. Edge conditions and relationships with neighbouring developments are sensitively integrated and screened. The primary objectives of the design are to encourage biodiversity through varied tree and shrub planting, create a series of interlinking spaces which "blur" the boundaries and create "moments" for interactions crafting a sense and extension of the community for the wider Clonliffe neighbourhood

It is proposed that the public open spaces will be managed by the private management company overseeing the new apartments.

The size of the site, its proximity to the built environment, the extensive tree cover across the site and topographical conditions, means the proposed development has an ability to absorb taller buildings at certain locations to create an interesting and architecturally attractive urban form, avoiding monotony.

National policy in Ireland requires that any site in excess of 2 hectares, in our major cities, is designed in a manner that optimises density. However, the use of height in any design proposal is subject to being able to meet a set of “development management” qualitative tests as detailed in the 2018 Urban Development and Building Heights Guidelines. The proposal has been designed strictly in line with these qualitative tests.

The height profile of the site steps down along Drumcondra road, rising towards the playing pitches before dropping down towards Clonliffe Road. The majority of buildings will be between 3-8 storeys in height. Two buildings will be above 8 storeys, and these taller buildings will be 13 storeys and 18 storeys respectively and will be positioned away from the edge of the site so as to avoid overshadowing of the surrounding streets and houses.

The 18-storey building has been positioned over 100 metres from the nearest existing structure and the 13 storey building has been positioned c.90 metres from the nearest existing structure, eliminating any risk of overshadowing or amenity being damaged by overlooking

The buildings that bound the Clonliffe Avenue/Jones Road boundary of the site are proposed to be 4 and 6 storeys, in line with the adjacent properties, stepping up to 8 storeys at setback.

The positioning of all buildings has been considered with the privacy of nearby residents in mind. The proposed separation of the new buildings from the existing properties is further enhanced by the introduction of a "green buffer" which connects the green network of public open spaces to the proposed Tolka riverside walk.

Sunlight and shadow analysis have been carried out on the masterplan to ensure the required design standards are met and ensure public and communal spaces across the site provide a high quality amenity to the residents and local community in compliance with section 6.6 of the "Sustainable Urban Housing: Design Standards for New Apartments Guidelines for Planning Authorities'. This analysis has shown that the proposed development will have minimal impact on the surrounding properties, due to the positioning and profile of the new buildings. A copy of the survey will be submitted as part of the planning application.

A flood risk assessment has been carried out for the Hines site. The levels of the site are such that this is negligible risk of flooding to the proposed development. In terms of our development increasing flood risk on the Tolka River, the Clonliffe Road development will attenuate (ie temporarily hold back) Surface Water and it will limit the rate of surface water discharge from the site in accordance with the Greater Dublin Strategic Drainage Strategy and Dublin City Council requirements. This means that the development does not change, or add to, the pre-existing conditions/flood risk in respect of the Tolka.

Hines intend to put in a network of surface water tanks in place which will attenuate rain water to the Tolka, separating foul water from surface water, as is best practice. This will lessen the strain on the existing sewer. We have engaged extensively with Irish Water and DCC Drainage and they have confirmed in principle that they are happy with our proposal. No residential development is planned for within the flood plain.

Yes. This is something we have done in Cherrywood and will also do at this development where feasible.

Based on the local movement trends and the fact that the development site is situated just 2.5km north of the city centre (a 10 minute cycle from O'Connell Street) and it is well communicated with public transport, it is estimated that approximately 80% of the trips made to/from the development will be undertaken by sustainable modes, with just 20% of the trips originating from the development to be undertaken by private car. The proposed car parking strategy has been designed to achieve this transport mode targets, with a ratio of 0.3 car parking spaces per residential unit.

Though the vehicular impact of the development will be relatively low, further mitigation measures have been identified as part of the Mobility Management Plan (MMP) to limit any adverse impacts. The aim of these measures is to further reduce the proportion of car trips, from an already low base, and promote sustainable travel by future residents of the development. These mobility measures will also support and enable those residents who may be living "car-free" providing them with a range of sustainable mobility options and negating the need to own a car.

The surrounding streetscape bordering the site will be improved to provide enhanced permeability for residents and the surrounding community. The existing high boundary wall along Clonliffe Road is proposed to be replaced with a low wall and railings which will improve visibility into the site, introducing a new access into Clonliffe for the community.

A key pedestrian access is proposed to be through Holycross Avenue. The existing pedestrian crossing point on Clonliffe Road at Holycross Avenue will be improved by narrowing the road at the crossing point and providing dropped kerbs and tactile paving.

The primary vehicular access to the site is proposed to be from Clonliffe Road through the existing gates. The existing entrance will be upgraded and incorporated into the existing signalised junction with Clonliffe Road and Jones's Road. A second vehicular access point has been proposed to the north of the site from the Drumcondra Road as a left in and left out arrangement. This is an existing entrance which will be upgraded as part of the development of the site. The site will also be accessed from Holy Cross Avenue for pedestrians and cyclist only.

To prevent "rat running" through the site, a barrier control point will be situated to the north of the development. Residents requiring access to the car parking areas will be provided with a fob to lift the barrier. Service and emergency vehicles will also have access to this area.

The proposed access strategy for pedestrians and cyclists has been designed to deliver a high level of permeability for both residents and visitors to the site. The entire internal road network will be traffic calmed with a 30kph maximum speed limit, enabling cyclists to safely travel on low speed and low trafficked streets. In addition, a series of pedestrian and cycle links are provided throughout the site connecting each of the entrance points to the residential areas, playing pitch and amenity areas.

Based on the provision of 1,614 apartments and with consideration to the predicted mode share for the development, we will be looking to provide approximately 480 car parking spaces for residents of the development, with 5-10% of the provision being accessible spaces. Approximately 10% of the parking spaces will support Electrical Vehicle parking, with the scheme being future proofed to enable more electric vehicle parking spaces to be provided in the future as demand arises.

It is proposed that residential car parking spaces will be located at basement level and will be let separately to the apartment units and will only be available to residents. Parking will be supported by mobility management policies which will limit the need for residents to lease parking spaces. For example, a car sharing scheme (Go-Car or similar) will be operated on the site, providing residents with access to a car if necessary.

In addition to the above, the development proposes to provide over 2,100 secure cycle parking spaces for residents. These will be provided in safe and easily accessible areas in the basements or bike sheds. Additional cycle parking spaces will be provided for visitors throughout the development.

In support of a sustainable residential development of the proposed scale there are a number of non-residential uses proposed which are located at key locations across the site. A Social Infrastructure Audit was undertaken which dictated the proposed retail and commercial spaces for the site. In the northern sector, a creche and retail unit is planned adjacent to the Drumcondra Road. Towards the centre of the site and accompanying an important amenity hub is a public cafe fronting onto the formal green.

The intention is that the on-site facilities are there as an amenity to meet immediate needs of residents, and the plan is that most of their needs in terms of shopping and eating and dining out will be met by the local "high streets", in particular Drumcondra. This will add significantly to the customer base on these streets and benefit local businesses with increased spending.

There will be no excavations directly behind existing homes as the basements are set back from the perimeter edges.

We are happy to engage with any direct neighbour to talk through any boundary concerns they may have and they can contact Dublin.Information@hines.com to arrange a meeting.

A construction management plan will be submitted as part of the planning application and it will include on-site parking for construction staff. It will also be a requirement in the tendering process that the contractor signs up to the Considerate Constructors Scheme. Heavy Goods Vehicles will only travel on routes and roads agreed with the planning authority prior to construction. Construction traffic will not be permitted to park on the public roads or within the general area outside the main site. Vehicles exiting site will use a wheel wash to reduce dust emissions.

Construction operations will be carried out in accordance with any granted planning conditions. However, it is expected that normal working hours will be from 07:00-18:00 Monday to Friday and from 08:00 – 14:00 on Saturdays. It may be necessary for some specific construction activities to take place outside of these times and in those cases, a specific derogation will be sought from the Planning Authority, An Bord Pleanala/Dublin City Council.

Monitoring devices will be installed along the perimeters of the site at sensitive receptors. The monitors records daily. These recordings will be documented in the daily site diary and compiled into a technical report which will be available to the public on request. The recordings will be evaluated/assessed against standard practice threshold limits and baseline readings.

Once a contractor is in place, a construction liaison will be appointed, and more details will be made available.

The Hines site contains a number of Protected Structures including The Seminary Building, Holy Cross Chapel, South Link Building, The Assembly Hall and The Ambulatory while the wider Holy Cross College lands also includes Protected Structures including The Red House and the Archbishop's House. The Hines application proposes the renovation and extension of the Seminary Building and South Link Building to accommodate new apartments and the renovation of the existing Holy Cross Chapel and Assembly Hall buildings for use as resident amenity spaces.

The apartments in the Seminary Building, South Link Building will have a unique quality due to their setting within the fabric of the protected structures on the site. The high-quality apartments will benefit from original period features and are light-filled apartments with generous floor to ceiling heights of up to 4.1 metres.

As Hines is one of the three relevant parties in this regard, we have consulted with both the GAA and the Archdiocese of Dublin both of whom are substantial land owners on the Clonliffe site on this decision.

We very much understand the desire for the land to be opened up to the public but there are a number of important considerations which have a significant bearing on the landowners' decision to restrict public access currently. The design phase of a scheme of this scale demands a good deal of on-site activity and prior to lockdown a number of contractors were engaged in various survey works, which necessitated the use of heavy machinery and some earth moving. For example, soil boring exercises are necessary in order to test and sample the ground conditions; assessments are also required of the water table and water courses etc. These types of works, which are currently suspended, have left the ground unstable in parts and exposed at other points and would be unsafe generally for general public access to be allowed to occur. There is also heavy construction machinery and vehicles required on site for such works, and once restrictions are lifted these will be in use again. Both its presence on site combined with the accessing and exiting of the site of such equipment and vehicles, would pose an added risk were public access to be provided. Health and Safety is foremost in our minds in our decision to withhold public access to the site.

Additionally, given the current government restrictions that are in place, there has been, and continues to be, limited staff of the Dublin Archdiocese on site. As I'm sure you're aware, the site is very large, and the archdiocese staff have previously acted as custodians over the site. The health and safety concerns combined with the lack of capacity to manage and secure the facility as a public amenity space poses a real concern to each of the landowners in terms of the public's health and safety should they be afforded access to the site.

Regrettably, for these reasons, public access to the site will need to remain restricted for the foreseeable future.

It is worth noting that the completed development is envisaged to be accessible to the public to enjoy public walks, newly established formal gardens and the Tolka river bank. There will also be two full sized GAA pitches.