A barrister claims she is being bullied by “kleptocratic” State agencies who want to demolish her north Co Dublin property to enhance views of Swords Castle and make way for a cultural centre.
Angela Heavey is seeking to appeal the High Court’s rejection of her application aiming to quash An Bord Pleanála’s decision to uphold a compulsory purchase order (CPO) for her corner site on North Street in Swords.
Her site consists of a single-storey former office building, a substantial outbuilding and a rear yard. She describes the lands as her home and office, and as having been in her family for more than a century. She says she and her family are entitled to develop the site themselves and to realise its development potential.
Fingal County Council said its CPO aims to conserve and enhance the historic site and view of Swords Castle and aid its development as a tourist attraction and cultural hub.
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The council plans to demolish Ms Heavey’s buildings and build a cultural centre – including a county library, theatre, arts centre and civic space – as the key development within the “Swords Cultural Quarter”.
Ms Heavey prevailed two decades ago against the council when it tried to make a compulsory purchase of the site as part of its plan to regenerate and widen North Street and create a walkway around Swords Castle. An Bord Pleanála overturned that CPO in 2004 following Ms Heavey’s objection.
The High Court last August refused Ms Heavey’s request for permission to challenge An Bord Pleanála’s rejection of a CPO appeal from last May. Litigants must secure “leave” from a High Court judge to bring cases for “judicial review” of a decision of the State or a State agency.
Mr Justice David Holland ruled that Ms Heavey’s proposed challenge lacked substantial legal grounds and therefore did not meet the threshold for judicial review permission. In his August judgment, he said Ms Heavey levelled “many scandalous allegations against numerous public officials on no apparent evidential basis”.
On Monday, she told his colleague, Mr Justice Richard Humphreys, that she has been “ordered” off her site and told to “take the money and get out”. She said people came to her home last Friday seeking to take possession.
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“I do not like that kind of coercive, autocratic, and I would say kleptocratic, conduct,” she said, adding that there seems to be a “goldmine under our kitchen”.
She asked the judge to grant a “stay on the aggression” until her application for an appeal gets dealt with.
Ms Heavey apologised for becoming emotional about the issue but said she was standing against “bullying”.
The actions being taken against her are “not in keeping with a Christian or humane democracy”, she said, adding that EU law entitles citizens to “good administration”.
She said Swords has a history of developing towers, and that her family is “not looking for Trump tower” on their site but for one of five to seven storeys.
Mr Justice Humphreys allowed Ms Heavey to bring an application seeking High Court permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal against Mr Justice Holland’s decision to refuse leave.
He also ordered a pause to the effects of the CPO for two weeks, when he will reconsider this order. Her case is against An Bord Pleanála and Fingal County Council.
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