Approval for ten four-bed houses at old Bower Convent
By Rebekah O'Reilly
Approval has been given to plans change a proposed apartment block to ten four-bed houses at the old Bower Convent, now Bower Hall.
Developers had originally received permission for an apartment block with 14 two-bed apartments on the site, located at the old tennis courtyards of the former Bower School Convent.
The two-bed apartments were part of a larger scheme which was initially granted permission in 2021 and which received planning extension for 36 months last year, expiring in October 2029.
Planning for the change to the ten houses was granted subject to seven conditions, including compliance with the approved plans, heritage protection measures, road safety and infrastructure requirements, the provision of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, restrictions on the initial sale of the homes to individual, social, affordable or cost-rental purchasers, and the payment of €35,035 in development contributions to Westmeath County Council.
It is planned that each of the houses could accommodate up to seven people. There are two private secure bike spaces and one visitor bike space, as well as two carpark spaces allocated for each house in the plans.
The site was last used as a tennis courts for students of Our Lady’s Bower Boarding School and Convent, which closed in June 2014.
Since 2021, part of the site was used to host Ukrainian refugees for some years, with Bower Hall currently operating as student accommodation.
The larger housing project on the site also includes converting the old 1889 Convent Building (Our Lady's Bower) and later 1960s extension from convent and boarding school to library and residential apartments and new residential apartment block extension to the north-west side of the existing 1960s building.
The updated housing mix on the site will now total 95 units, including 3 studio apartments, 12 one-bedroom apartments, 57 two-bedroom apartments, nine three-bedroom apartments, one four-bedroom apartments, three three-bedroom Townhouses and ten four-bedroom detached houses.