Millionaire JP's private lake gets green light

Limerick millionaire JP McManus has been granted permission by Limerick county council to build a lake on the grounds of his mansion in Martinstown just outside Killmallock.

Although not the size of 31,000sq meters he had been looking for, the 57 year old business man did mange to get council approval for a much smaller 5,500sq m lake.

"When plans for the lake were lodged with the county council earlier this year, planners said the size and shape of the lake would not blend into the local countryside. The local authority requested that the applicant, Noreen McManus – Mr McManus’s wife – supply a revised version of the plan minimising the use of artificial embankments and using gently sloping grades.

This week the council granted permission for the elaborate project subject to 11 conditions.One of the conditions is that no motorised vehicles be used on the lake and that the proposed boathouse, which is to be constructed nearby, must not be used for any other activity apart from those relating to the lake.

Another condition is that no fish can be stocked in the lake without prior written approval of the planning authority."
via Irish Times

Reports say he originally wanted the lake to be in the shape of Limerick County itself.