Planning permission - next door Neighbour has objevtef

homeless

Hey everyone. We are looking to extend our house at the moment. We have an architect who submitted the plans with the council in a pre planning meeting and we tweeked some of the design on their advice. Our next door neighbor has put an objection on the basis that the new windows will overlook their garden. Their house is set much further back than ours so currently our back windows overlook their garden and house. Our new plan has no back windows at all but a full length side window that will overlook the driveway leading to their house, we will no longer be able to see their house in the new design.
We have a side alley currently that has low walls and currently overlooks their garden anyhow.
I suppose my question is, firstly, if the council were happy with our design in the pre planning meeting what are the chances of them refusing planning now? Secondly, on the planning website as well as objections, it mentions you can send in correspondence in support of a planning application. Any idea what sort of reasons are considered supporting an application? Lastly, we are slightly worried as the family that are objecting are extremely well connected. Are brown envelopes still a thing? Could they actually influence the decision by having connections in the council or is that a thing of the past?
Thanks everyone in advance

Penn

homeless wrote: »

Hey everyone. We are looking to extend our house at the moment. We have an architect who submitted the plans with the council in a pre planning meeting and we tweeked some of the design on their advice. Our next door neighbor has put an objection on the basis that the new windows will overlook their garden. Their house is set much further back than ours so currently our back windows overlook their garden and house. Our new plan has no back windows at all but a full length side window that will overlook the driveway leading to their house, we will no longer be able to see their house in the new design.
We have a side alley currently that has low walls and currently overlooks their garden anyhow.
I suppose my question is, firstly, if the council were happy with our design in the pre planning meeting what are the chances of them refusing planning now? Secondly, on the planning website as well as objections, it mentions you can send in correspondence in support of a planning application. Any idea what sort of reasons are considered supporting an application? Lastly, we are slightly worried as the family that are objecting are extremely well connected. Are brown envelopes still a thing? Could they actually influence the decision by having connections in the council or is that a thing of the past?
Thanks everyone in advance

The Planners will take any submissions/objections into account. However, this doesn't mean that a) they wouldn't have felt it was an issue anyway even without the objection being made, or b) that they'll think the objection is an issue at all. Even with the pre-planning meeting, they generally only take a very quick review of the project for that unless it's something that was specifically talked about. But the fact you had a pre-planning meeting with them will work in your favour.

If they do think it's an issue (with or without the objection having been made), they might ask you to modify the design to correct it. Change a window or similar.

Don't worry about the whole brown envelope thing. The planner has to be able to justify all decisions they make (as their reasoning goes into a public file, and if you appeal the decision to An Bord Pleanala in the event of refusal or being told to remove the window, their decision will be under scrutiny), and it's unlikely they'd risk their career for the little extra they might make over a small window overlooking a driveway.