Plans lodged for 250-apartment scheme along Grand Canal in Dublin 8
Plans have been lodged with Dublin City Council (DCC) for a 250-unit, build-to-sell apartment scheme spread across four blocks and a terrace along the Grand Canal in Dublin 8.
The up-to-seven-storey scheme, proposed by an applicant under the name of Green Urban Logistics 3 White Heather Propco Limited, would be developed in White Heather industrial estate in Dolphin’s Barn, behind Our Lady of Dolours Church.
It is mostly made up of one-bedroom units, of which there are 148 planned, with the remainder studio apartments (12 units), two-bedroom apartments (74 units), eight one-bed duplex apartments and eight two-bed duplexes.
Internal residential amenity spaces are also planned as part of the scheme, which is classed as a large-scale residential development, along with a crèche and a café.
Car parking would be relatively limited on site, with 86 spaces proposed, along with 421 bicycle parking spaces and 8 spots for motorbikes.
The demolition of existing on-site industrial warehouses is proposed to accommodate the development, with the exception of the An Post parcel delivery centre and local business Storage World on the eastern edge of the site.
In an accompanying design statement, the developer said the proposal would provide a “vibrant and diverse community”, with “high-quality landscaping and public realm”.
"White Heather gives the opportunity to revitalise a section of ‘lost’ canal frontage and create an access to a new public amenity by the Canal,” it read.
The scheme is also well served in terms of public transport, they wrote, citing nearby high-frequency bus routes and the Luas Red Line, located approximately 850m from the site.
A larger 335-apartment scheme on the site was refused last year on the grounds of inappropriate scale and having an adverse impact on residential amenities.
In an effort to quell such criticism this time around, the applicant provided a townscape and visual impact assessment prepared by Model Works Ltd.
In it, the firm said the existing industrial buildings on the site, “make no positive contribution to the character or visual amenity of its townscape context.”
Pointing to approved developments in the centre of Dolphin’s Barn such as the Player Wills and Bailey Gibson schemes, which are up to 19 storeys, they said a “new urban quarter” was taking hold, “causing a shift in character” in the area.
“The above describes a townscape of mixed character with a relatively high capacity to accommodate change,” they said.
In pre-planning meetings, DCC staff noted several concerns with the development, suggesting that the height be reduced to a maximum of six storeys, and criticising proposed drainage solutions.
They said that the proposal should be set back from the canal “as much as possible”, noting that the design and layout looked similar to the previous, refused application.
A council conservation officer added that the proximity of the proposal to the Grand Canal was “of concern” and a soft landscaping element should be introduced between the development and the amenity.
The scheme was amended following the feedback, with public comments on the updated proposal invited until January 20, 2026 through the DCC planning portal.