There appears to be a growing trend of planning decisions related to IPAS being referred to An Coimisiún Pleanála. On Tuesday I reported on a case in Kilcock where Kildare County Council has referred an IPAS related application for retention to ACP.
One of the McEnaney adjacent network of contractors, Streamland, has taken the initiative in making such a referral after their application for the use of a large house in Navan as asylum accommodation was turned down by Meath County Council.
Streamland had applied to the Council on September 10, 2025, to seek whether “The use of the residential dwelling at Athlumney House, Boyne Road, Navan, County Meath, to provide accommodation for persons seeking international protection is or is not development and is or is not exempted development.”
The Meath planners had rejected the application last October on the grounds that the building is a “private residential dwelling house” and therefore does not qualify for an exemption. Readers will be familiar with the fact that Class 20F of the amended regulations specifies almost every type of building imaginable for potential change of use other than residential dwellings.
It is therefore interesting that the application from Streamland does not seek change of use, but simply refers to “use of the residential dwelling.” In its appeal to An Coimisiún Pleanála Streamland state that the use of the building for that purpose will only be “temporary.”
The contractor claims that Meath County Council have misinterpreted Class 20F and that there is no change of use proposed as “The existing use of the property is residential, and the proposed use remains residential.” Therefore, the only change is the “occupant’s profiles.”
They include references to cases in Leitrim and Donegal where An Coimisiún Pleanála or its predecessor An Bord Pleanála found that the use of residential apartments for asylum accommodation did not constitute development and therefore did not require planning permission as they were entitled to Class 20F exemptions.
The appeal is from Hughes Planners who have extensive experience in submitting applications for exemptions for this purpose. It is one of the more closely argued submissions that I have read and would suggest that the original application which does not refer to “change of use” was specifically worded that way. .
If An Coimisiún Pleanála accepts that argument then it would further ease the process of securing exemptions and effectively bypass one of the mechanisms which the local planning authority currently have to refuse permission.
This might be of great importance given that the local planning authorities appear to be exercising those powers more effectively than they might have been perceived to be in the past.
Any use of the building as asylum accommodation would also require a contract from the Department of Justice but there is no reference in the available documents to whether the contractors have been given such a contract.
Athlumney Cottage itself dates back to the 1800s and the current owner, according to the application from Streamland who are leasing the building, is Ciaran Coburn who has an address in Lagos, Portugal. Coburn was a director of a company called Mobile Market Development which also traded as ECOPOD which had an address at Athlumney Cottage.
Coburn also has several companies registered with the UK Companies House including 2 Talbot Place Residents Limited with an address at Athlumney Cottage, and others.
Coburn’s Linkedin page describes himself as an “entrepreneur and start up business investor/advisor.” Well, there is no better start up business to be in than the collection of cheques from the taxpayer for the provision of asylum accommodation.
Mind you, the McEnaney clan do not require such advice. That would be akin to teaching your Granny how to suck eggs.
Streamland has already done well from the asylum caper, trousering €1.7 million in the first nine months of 2025. The company is based in Carrickmacross and is owned by Padraig Hegarty. Padraig is involved in a number of companies with Banty McEnaney including Corvalley Transport of which he has a one third and Banty a two thirds shareholding. Hegarty is also a director of Westenra Hotels which is owned by Corvalley Enterprises.
Padraig is married to Nora McEnaney, Banty’s sister.
It will be worth keeping an eye on the cases which have been referred to An Coimisiún Pleanála as my spidey senses and those of other suspect that those decisions might be important in dictating what way future applications for asylum accommodation are processed.