A local association brought a judicial review action against An Bord Pleanála’s 2020 approval for the scheme near the main campus of University College Cork. File photograph: Bryan O'Brien/The Irish TimesA developer whose permission to build 216 student accommodation units in Cork City is under legal challenge appears to have abandoned the project, the High Court has heard.
The Orchard Road and Grove Planning and Environmental Protection Group, representing local residents, opposed the demolition of an existing structure and the construction of student housing, including a five-storey block, at Orchard Road. He said the board has asked his client to agree to its proceedings being adjourned generally, given the circumstances. The residents’ group is not prepared to agree to that, he added.
He questioned why the court could not make a “without prejudice” order quashing the board’s permission, if it was the case the approval would not be acted upon before it expired.Ms Carroll said the board’s decision is legally valid and an order overturning the permission would indicate invalidity. The board took the decision, she said, that a general adjournment was a “practical solution” to the current situation.