DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL has tonight rejected a controversial plan to erect flood barriers along Clontarf promenade.
Residents of the north Dublin suburb had objected to the proposal which would have seen a flood defence built along the length of the 3 kilometre seafront.
The wall, which was originally designed to be 9 feet high in some places, was criticised by local residents and business groups for tourism and security reasons. Over 5,000 people protested at a rally along the seafront last month in protest at the proposal.
The plan was unanimously rejected by councillors at a meeting in City Hall this evening.
Councillor Jane Horgan-Jones, who represents the Clontarf area on Dublin City Council and proposed the motion, said that the campaign had been “hard-fought”.
“Two months ago, the City Manager was on the verge of signing a contract to commence the works but the community came together and refused to let that happen,” she said.
“As a result, the Council was forced to accept they had failed to properly consult residents on their proposals. Now we have a chance to go back to the drawing board”.
Several thousand Clontarf residents had made submissions to the Council on the plan with over 95 per cent opposing the scheme, Horgan-Jones said.
Local residents and business owners praised the decision, saying that “common sense had prevailed”.
Clontarf has been hit badly by four major flooding incidents in recent years following heavy rain. Dublin City Council has spent over €70,000 mobilising temporary defences to deal with the flooding several times since 2002.
City Manager John Tierney said officials would now meet with Clontarf residents and small business owners to discuss a new plan.
At last month’s meeting of Dublin City Council one councillor compared the barrier to the building of the Wood Quay offices on top of Viking remains, in terms of the damage that it would do.
Dublin City Council made this video to show how the area would look once the wall had been built:
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