16.3 - Monitoring, Implementation and Phasing

16.3.1 Monitoring

The development plan will be reviewed and a two-year progress report will be prepared on achievements in securing the objectives of the plan. The two year review will include a full schedule of all the objectives in the development plan and will comment on the progress being made in implementing each objective.

As far as practicable, every effort has been made to ensure that the objectives of the plan follow the SMART approach (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound). This approach will assist in the transparency and objective evaluation of the two-year review process. It is acknowledged however, that not all policies and objectives may be measured by easily identified quantitative values and implementation may be subject to external factors, economic circumstances and availability of resources.

Dublin City Council will continue to engage with the Regional Assembly, and will regularly report to the Assembly setting out progress made in supporting the objectives of the RSES and the MASP in accordance with Section 25A(1) of the 2000 Planning and Development Act (as amended).

Dublin City Council will continue to publish an annual report of progress on the City Council’s Climate Action Plan 2019, or as updated, which will include accurate measurements of energy efficient improvements, delivery of renewable energy and sustainable transport infrastructure and the overall carbon emission reductions in the city.

Article 10 of the SEA Directive requires monitoring of the significant environmental effects of the implementation of the city development plan in order to identify, at an early stage, unforeseen adverse effects and to enable appropriate remedial action to be undertaken.

The plan (and any future variations) will be subject to a separate monitoring and review exercise as part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). This aspect of monitoring will ensure compliance with the strategic environmental objectives as set out in the Environmental Report which accompanies this plan and will also safeguard the special characteristics and features of the designated Natura 2000 sites.

Dublin City Council plays an important role on the Dublin Housing Supply Coordination Task Force, an initiative of the Government’s Construction 2020 – A Strategy for a Renewed Construction Sector. The task force comprises the four Dublin local authorities, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and a number of other bodies. Dublin City Council compiles regular updates on residential developments completed, under construction and those currently in the planning system, such as current planning applications, in order to monitor the delivery of housing units and the quantum of ‘ready to go’ and potential development sites in the city.

The City Council will also actively monitor development patterns occurring in the city and the nature of new development that is being delivered.

16.3.2 Implementation and Phasing

During the implementation phase, proactive measures will be taken to enable the delivery of the housing targets outlined in the core strategy. The policies and objectives of the plan are aligned with the principles of compact growth. Active land management including the implementation of the vacant land levy or any successor on all vacant residential and regeneration lands as set out in the Urban Regeneration and Housing Act 2015 is a key means to implement the plan. It is also an objective of the plan (CSO6) to establish a database of strategic brownfield and infill sites and promote their development over the plan period. Chapter 2: Core Strategy, sets out a further range of mechanisms to secure active land management including funding, plan making and collaboration with the Land Development Agency. The City Council will also liaise with other state agencies and infrastructure providers to ensure the timely delivery on infrastructural programmes.

In terms of an overall approach, Dublin City Council seeks to promote the implementation of the development plan in a rational and sequential manner. It is also an objective of the Council to ensure that developments are appropriately phased and that essential facilities, (such as roads infrastructure, water, sewerage) are secured and provided in conjunction with proposed developments.

To ensure that the implementation of the plan is sustainable and contributes towards the long-term vision of the city, Chapter 13 sets out development principles for each of the SDRAs (Strategic Development Regeneration Areas). This chapter will assist in development management and in the preparation of any future LAPs and masterplans. In Strategic Development Regeneration Areas, Dublin City Council will work towards developing a protocol that would encourage and promote official local monitoring committees anchored by DCC where residents, planners and developers can interact and communicate on large scale development projects.

16.3.3 City Performance Indicators

In addition to the preparation of the two-year progress report, a Development Plan Core Strategy Monitoring Report on the City Performance Indicators, which will measure the city’s performance and progress, will be prepared. The indicators are a key mechanism in assessing the delivery of the housing and population targets set out in the core strategy and will help inform the report which will be presented to the City Council on an annual basis.

City Performance Indicators are a means by which the city’s progress can be measured in accordance with stated goals by providing benchmarks. The indicators are broad-ranging, from planning statistics and environmental data, to transport and economic data. Sources of data from other organisations which are readily available will also be used, where appropriate. Indicators can prompt action, and are a means by which to communicate to the public the progress made towards the development plan vision.

These indicators have been devised to reflect the vision and key components of the core strategy and are broader than the range of purely environmental indicators under SEA and AA.

Table 16-1:      City Performance Indicators