MMA fighter Conor McGregor’s planned sprawling mansion, complete with a cinema, bar and two swimming pools, will not have any undue impact on local residents, according to new planning documentation lodged with Kildare County Council.
The documents concern McGregor’s application to demolish his existing five-bedroom home at The Paddocks, Castledillon, Straffan, and replace it with 32,693sq ft six-bedroom "family home".
The new home is to be a two-storey over basement house complete with a 19.6-metre indoor swimming pool, a 21-metre outdoor swimming pool and a cinema.
The fully sunken basement is to include car-parking, a bar, games area and ancillary rooms.
McGregor paid €3 million for The Paddocks in 2019 and planning documentation shows that McGregor’s staff are to be housed in a nearby home at No 5 Castledillon “which is now also in the full ownership of the applicant”.
Records with the Residential Property Price Register show that No 5 Castledillon was purchased for €1.65 million in June 2022.
The purchasing of the neighbouring No 5 Castledillon has increased McGregor’s landholding from 5.8 acres to 10 acres.
In response to the proposal for the new home on the site of The Paddocks, council planners last July wrote to Mr McGregor telling him that the design and scale of the proposed home due to its length, massing and scale did not comply with the Kildare County Development Plan.
In the further information request, the council requested Mr McGregor to submit revised proposals which take account of the County Development Plan.
The council also asked Mr McGregor to submit a comprehensive design statement.
The new home is being designed by Dublin-based architects Tyler Owens Architects.
Now, in response to the council's further information request, a submission on behalf of McGregor does not include any proposals to reduce the scale of the home.
Instead, the submission says it is clear from a revised suite of photomontages submitted that the subject site “has the capacity to comfortably absorb the proposed dwelling without resulting in any undue impacts or dis-amenity to surrounding residents”.
The submission says the photomontages demonstrate that careful siting of the proposed home and the large scale nature of the site.
It also says the planned home “is largely screened from the view from the adjacent public road and neighbouring properties, any intermittent views are further obscured to the presence of existing and proposed supplementary planting”.
The document says the various items in the council’s further information request have been comprehensively dealt with and that the proposal “is compliant with the policies and objectives as set out in the Kildare County Development Plan 2023-2029.
McGregor previously secured planning permission to partly demolish and extend and renovate The Paddocks.
However, Tyler Owens Architects told the council that having started the process of demolition back in 2022, it became apparent that the existing quality of construction of the remainder of the house, along with the client’s changing needs, indicated that the works would not make sense.
This has resulted in the planning application for the complete demolition of the Paddocks and replacing it with a new family home.
The design statement says that by prioritising harmony with the rural landscape, the new house design adheres to guidelines on scale, massing and sustainability, ensuring integration into the surrounding environment.
The statement says “the proposal also maximises the natural site features, promotes energy efficiency and incorporates adaptable design for long term functionality”.
It adds that it balances modern architectural innovation with respect for local elements, offering a dwelling that complements its setting while addressing future need.
The council is due to make a decision on the planning application later this month.
In November in the High Court, a jury found against McGregor in the civil rape case taken by Nikita Hand and McGregor has until the middle of next month to lodge appeal papers.
The Dublin woman was awarded nearly €250,000 in damages after the jury found that she was raped by McGregor in the Dublin hotel in December 2018 and McGregor also faces paying the bulk of the legal costs estimated at more than €1m associated with the case.
