Being ignored by local council, would you go to a TD?

SwordofLight

Would love to get some opinions on this?

Could a TD be of some help here - getting advice on alterations to my house but impossible to speak with anyone in the council, waiting a few years whereas building has taken place illegally on the same street.

I attempted to engage a solicitor who said I'm wasting my time trying to engage the council.

Could a local TD or Councillor help? FG/ FF/ SF or an independnet? Do I just phone up and ask for an appointment? Does it cost? Would be a first for me.

Sophia Petrillo

Have you requested a pre-planning meeting with the local authority? Absolutely dreadful advice supplied by your solicitor. Unless the proposed works are exempted development you will have to engage with the local authority at some stage. I would suggest a TD would advice same.

SwordofLight

Thanks Sophia, yes, I phoned a few years ago and applied. Still nothing. I've been in touch four times since, enquiring as to how much longer I'd have to wait, the secretary apologises and still no contact.

BronsonTB

'getting advice on alterations to my house' - Very generic, what kind of alterations? Alot depends on what you are trying to do. (front/back/side/Attic - size)

A pre-planning meeting should be possible face to face, but some councils are better than others at these. What county council is it?

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120767374#Comment_120767374

A few different plans, one being alterations to the location of the entrance.

Tbh I'd prefer to keep from naming the council.

T-Maxx

Appoint a professional to prepare and submit a planning application. By the sounds of it it's a fairly modest domestic application which shouldn't be a show stopper.

The council is not going to do it for you, or spoon feed you.

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120767696#Comment_120767696

Actually the council offer a pre-planning meeting so as to avoid having to fork out on needless plans should it be the case no planning is necessary. Everyone else is being seen, why not me? I can't figure it out other than there was a place illegally built two doors down and I have suspected council involvement in it and it's possible giving me a platform to air that might land people in trouble, I don't know maybe I've watched too many movies (about corruption in Irish councils haha).

Mrs OBumble

Yes of course you should be asking a local Councillor to help smooth things along for you.

Am guessing you're either an unpopular blow-in or even worse a foreigner (nothing wrong with that, I am too!), so you will be at the bottom of the queue. It shouldn't be that way, but some places it is.

Peregrinus

Approach the councillors who represent the area in which you live - there are likely three or four of them. They'll be falling over one another to help you.

(Their help may be effective in getting you your pre-planning meeting; possibly it won't be. But they certainly won't ignore you.)

Dav010

Op, are you living in a council owned house? It is hard to understand why you are having problems with the planning office if you own the property, your architect should be able to advise you on the process or you should just go in to the planning office and arrange a pre planning meeting with the planner for the area.

CreadanLady

Are you a council tenant in social housing or are you a house owner looking to get planning permission/

That really is the first thing to establish here.

If you are a tenant, then you really are at the mercy of the housing department in the Council. Their obligation is to house you in a habitable house - not to make changes to the house to suit your whims and preferances. You won't be applying for planning permission in any case if you are a tenant.

If you are a home owner, then you might need planning planning permission depending on what you are doing. If you can't get a pre-planning meeting with the planning department in the council then just get on to an architect or engineer in you area who deals in domestic work, and they will advise you of what you need to do and if necessary they can apply for planning permission and manage the whole process on your behalf. For a fee of course.

AlanG

Just apply for outline or even full planning permission. It's not difficult. Buy the OS map pack and do a few alterations to drawings from similar properties on the council site. Submit it and the Council will have to engage with you. It's actually very simple. There is no requirement for it all to be a fancy computer generated pack.

Obviously, if you are building then engage an engineer before starting to spec materials etc.

CreadanLady

The OP hasn't clarified whether they are a council tenant or a home owner. The vibe of the first few posts gave me the inkling they may be a council tenant. If so, then talk of planning permission is neither here nor there.

SwordofLight

No, is my own house - didn't think a council tenant could apply to alter a house that is not theirs?

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120775479#Comment_120775479

Council tenants can. I’ve done planning for many of them. There’s a process to obtain a letter of allowance from the area engineer.

It’s not entirely sure what you are asking about your own property here. It seems you’ve wasted more time waiting on a pre planning meeting which have dried up since covid and lack of planner resources means they are finding it harder to facilitate (in Dublin anyway).

What’s exactly have you done so far?

what exactly are you asking the council?

SwordofLight

I didn't expect the covid-related problems to impact on videocall pre-planning meetings, it's not Dublin and a small area...

I'm considering changing the front living room window into the main house entrance. It's because of no rear entry to the house and bin collection issues, I'd keep all of that in the old house hallway entrance.

dennyk

At this stage, if the council isn't responding to requests for a pre-planning meeting, then you're probably better off just consulting with your architect/engineer and submitting your official planning submission following their advice. If they're local, they should be familiar with your local council's planning requirements and give you at least some notion of how likely it'll be to get approval.

CreadanLady

Pre-planning meetings would be prioritised for significant developments - a fella fiddling around with his front door is unlikely to get a pre-planning meeting , and certainly won't be given any sort of priority.

The way to do this is get you planning application submitted, once that is done you'll have their attention and the process will be followed. If you had just done this first day you'd have your new door and it would all be a memory.

Unless you are in some sort of terrace of houses, or in an architectural conservation area, or you are in or near a protected structure, a simple window to door change such as you are proposing is not likely to run into trouble. If you are in a rural house then twould likely be no issue at all.

I would even say that what you are proposing is done by the hundred up and down the country with no planning and no issue. But don't do that.

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120776988#Comment_120776988

Yes, it's a terrace house and it was done with no planning on the same street last year by a neighbour. Maybe I'm too much of a 'by the book' type!

Looks like the best thing to do by all accounts is to pay out for advice and plans. Just not in a position at the minute to do that nor will I be for a while.

Claw Hammer

It looks like the council don't want to talke to you because of the other unapproved development. If they say no to you, you will say "what about the other one?". Then they will be obliged to take enforcemant action, which they probably don't want to do. What you want is clearly not an exempt development so you would have to produce plans and make an application if you want to do it by the book.

If you do it without approval you may have problems selling in the future.

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120787526#Comment_120787526

Yep, that's my gut feeling as to what's gone wrong. Because it's let now to social housing so they won't want to touch it. Yep it's hard to know what to do!

Maybe I'll phone up and ask them directly about the above.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120787546#Comment_120787546

Noooo.

Do not ask. That will lay the issue open and they will have to address it.

Just obfuscate to get the permission you want.

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120787588#Comment_120787588

So they should address it! It makes a mockery of the whole planning process on the street here. No consulatation with us, the residents, to change the face of the row of houses, and then installing problem social housing tenants on top of it after a year of listening to drilling and hammering.

headtheball14

ok to be clear so you don't have money or any intention to do the work you just are annoyed about the neighbours work and the council in general.

this is probably why your solicitor is advising you the way they are .

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120790727#Comment_120790727

Where did I say I'd no intention to do the work? I wrote about it in a post above.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120790687#Comment_120790687

So when you approached a local councillor to complain about it, what did they say?

ted1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120770655#Comment_120770655

Well you said you phoned, do you put in a written request ?

SwordofLight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120798190#Comment_120798190

I'm not sure how a written request would go, unless I email something into the secretary.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120793145#Comment_120793145

Have not done just yet. A bit depressed with the whole situation.

Dav010

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120798321#Comment_120798321

If phoning isn’t yielding the result you want, then either walk into the council office and make an appointment, or write to them requesting an appointment.

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120780306#Comment_120780306

If your. It ina a position to do the works yet, a pre planning meeting at this stage is worthless.

By the time you lodge a new planner could be in place or a new county development plan.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120787526#Comment_120787526

Will probably have problems anyway, not too many prospective buyers would regard turning an entrance hall into a front-mounted bin shed an attractive feature.

There are vast numbers of terraced houses in Dublin and other cities, they cope with bins. Some of them have no front garden and the front step is on the footpath, they cope too (council permits bag service for them) - so what are the other houses on the street which haven't converted potentially habitable space into bin sheds doing?