Millionaire insists land is for housing

A PROMINENT city businessman has confirmed to the Sentinel that he will lodge a planning application this week for the retention of unauthorised works he carried out in Knocknacarra.Millionaire auctioneer John O’Dolan has admitted that he did not have planning permission to build a roadway described by one city councillor as being as “wide as a landing strip for small aircraft” – orto erect fencing on his lands at Lough Rusheen.Mr O’Dolan dismissed claims from concerned residents and local city councillors that in the long run he intends to develop the land for anything other than his own private dwelling.In addition Mr O’Dolan said he is in discussion with the City Council about exchanging some of his lands north of Rusheen Bay to widen the Barna Road. However he categorically denied that he would use that as a 'bargaining chip’ to get retention of planning at the unauthorised road at the southernend of Rusheen.“Firstly, it’s not a roadway I built it is a pathway that is no more than five metres wide, not 22 metres as has been stated. I knew that the City Council were going to build a walkway along my land in afew years anyway so I went ahead and did it. I have goats and horses on my land andwas told by the Department of Agriculture that I had to erect fencing, so I did.“The reason I was building the pathway was because I had just spent €35,000 on...