Trouble on the menu for ‘flagship’ Mcdonald’s

13th August 2010, 7:50am

Plans for what is described as a flagship McDonald’s restaurant in Dublin, with a drive-thru facility, have run into vigorous objections from local residents and councillors.

The proposed restaurant would be located in the upmarket suburb of Sandymount, midway between the Aviva Stadium – formerly the Lansdowne Road rugby ground – and the O2 concert arena. But the objectors claim it should be refused planning permission on the grounds that it would cause anti-social problems in the area and create traffic gridlock, plus the fact that it backs on to two local schools.

The site, formerly occupid by car showroom, is owned by Maxol, which operates a nearby petrol station. The company applied to Dublin City Council for permission to demolish the showrooms and build a drive-thru restaurant. But the application did not mention that the restaurant would be a McDonald's franchise, an omission that greatly angered residents, who felt they had been misled.

According to the application, the restaurant would operate from 7am to 11pm daily. A McDonald's spokesman confirmed that the dvelopment would be "a flagship restaurant for Dublin", with the drive-thru facility accounting for 29% of sales. The company estimated that the project would create 60 full-time and 40 part-time jobs, as well as indirect jobs through suppliers.

But the local residents' association insisted that the proposal was "completely unsuitable" for the area and would "substantially alter the settled, peaceful and residential nature of this older part of Dublin". It would worsen traffic congestion and lead to an increase in anti-social behaviour, it claimed.

Parent groups in the area also denounced the suggestion that a fast-food restaurant could be sited close to two schools that operated healthy eating policies, particularly at a time when the Department of Health was expressing concern about obesity among the young. A local Labour Party councillor, Kevin Humphreys, said that several local councils in the UK were considering introducing fast food-free zones around schools and Dublin should do likewise.

A decision on the planning application is due later this month. Whatever the outcome, it is certain to be challenged at the Planning Appeals Board.

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