Thread by @otrosnosotros

PLANNING “OBJECTIONS”; a thread:

Under Art. 29 of the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, anyone can make a SUBMISSION or OBSERVATION on planning applications.

This is a feature of living in a democracy although some might paint it as a pesky glitch in the system.

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These submissions are called “Third Party Observations” and can be submitted within 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt of the planning application stating the name & address of the person making the observation / submission + a fee of €20.

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❗️The period for Local Authorities to make decisions on applications doesn’t change if there’s zero or 10,000 “Third Party Observations”.

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‼️The decisions on applications aren’t made based on the number of people in favour / against the development either.

(This point is VERY important, it is often explained & sadly it is still missed by the same people who claim observations on applications stop housing)

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So what’s the purpose of an observation? It gives the public the opportunity to participate! Oftentimes, the public highlights specific issues of developments, elements of the proposals that breach development plans, errors, omissions of important information, etc.

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*Can observations be poorly conceived or have little to no relevant content? Sure, some can simply say “I am in favour / against this development” or “The design is bad”… these observations are acknowledged but have no impact on decisions*.

Moving on…

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After observation periods end, Local Authorities have 3 weeks to make a decision by looking at all the information submitted by the applicant. This consists of numerous maps, drawings, reports, surveys, and often enormous amounts of incredibly specific information.

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I wish it was obvious but I’ll spell it out: Huge files & amounts of information doesn’t automatically mean a submission is right, adequate or that is has no issues. It’s up to the applicant to get things right and oftentimes they don’t.

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So with countless planning applications for projects big & small, a limited number of planners in Local Authorities AND increasingly more demanding / complex planning submissions, the existence of observations by the public becomes ever more important.

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Individuals, environmental groups, conservation groups, politicians, residents associations, etc etc etc… take time to see & analyse planning app materials submitted by applicants. This is no easy task and Ireland is lucky to have competent & concerned citizens doing this.

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But the narrative pushed by @FineGael, @fiannafailparty & their useful idiots is that evil nimbys, radical leftists, Marxists & other bogeymen write objections & automatically stop housing! Well folks this is false but parroted ad nauseam by people who benefit from this lie.

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If we lived in a world where misinformation & internet lies stay on the internet we’d be simply laugh at the nonsense but as early as last week, the actual Minister for Housing @DarraghOBrienTD has drafted anti democratic policy relying on lies about objections & nimbyism.
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This blatant power grab by @DarraghOBrienTD has been heavily criticised and luckily commented upon by various media outlets. This move reveals he is either completely incapable of differentiating fact from fiction or knowingly pushing bad policy.

Which is it minister?

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Ultimately, we have to enshrine in our planning laws the value of public participation & access to justice i.e. the courts, as a fundamental Democratic principle for the proper & sustainable planning of our built environments.

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This means we must encourage environmental groups, solicitors, engineers, architects, politicians, individuals, planners, and all members of society to participate and learn to scrutinise planning applications, to become active in the process that makes or breaks our towns.

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We will certainly never see an equitable, sustainable, affordable, rational built environment if we, as a society, allow random politicians and internet lies to take hold of our democratic processes. WE MUST REJECT THEM and do so with absolute and total determination.

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The current @FineGael @fiannafailparty @greenparty_ie coalition are seeking to jeopardise our ability as a society to access justice and to discourage active participation in deciding the future of our own built environments. This is serious & we must not forget this.

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I encourage everyone to look at planning applications for big & small developments. To see the amount of information that needs to be scrutinised and what this means at a city-scale for planners, Local Authorities.

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If we didn’t have active participation by groups & individuals who challenge bad decisions by both planners and @anbordpleanala taking their concerns to the courts we would not only live with bad developments around us but each one would be setting precedent for the next.
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I urge everyone to dismiss the claims that nimby objections stop housing. This is an absolute lie, an idiotic fabrication that is successfully giving incompetent politicians a way to blame concerned citizens for their own failures.
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We are not living in a era of nimbyism, we are living in an era of private housing markets that do not exist to achieve housing affordability. They exist to generate high returns on investment for shareholders by buying & renting homes, buying, flipping or hoarding land, etc.
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We looked at the USA and laughed at the seeming gullibility of some people who fell for the Republican BS in 2016; yet here we are now in Ireland, inching towards 2023 seeing useful idiots in Ireland importing the nimby nonsensical rhetoric which also affects the USA today.
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All of this nonsense and misinformation is as frustrating as it is damaging to the actual future of our towns and cities, to the health of our environments and to the real and seemingly unavoidable looming social catastrophe that will result from the housing emergency.
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The last thing we need is to see these narratives spread unchallenged, letting anyone repeat unsubstantiated dogmatism while we see our actual laws change to appease liars & lobbyists restraining society from shaping our future, our own built environments.

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Call out the lies in social media, in real life, but most importantly, participate in the planning process of your built environment. Read site notices, look at their online submissions, read observations by others & understand the real issues of development beyond the spin.

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Etc…

#GobshiteBingo #AssetUrbanism #HousingDisaster #Housing #Nimby #YiMbY #Housing #Urbanism #Architecture #LandlordUrbanism

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