Dublin City Council planners have now told the developer that they are prepared to grant permission for a high-rise landmark building which they considered "high quality, carefully considered, innovative and creative".
According to an internal document by a senior planner, Kieran Rose, planners believe "that a landmark building of architectural excellence is required at this location and equally that the building be of sufficient scale as to act as a land-mark".
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Also, they said the office tower "could be said to be desirable".
In the report Mr Rose said planners would consider "by way of a new application a building that meets these criteria on this part of the site".
The planners did not grant permission for Dunne's original proposed 37-storey tower because of a lack of policy governing high-rise buildings, despite its "many positive aspects".
The council also denied plans for a 10-storey office block as it was not permissible under the existing Z1 residential zoning.
Mr Dunne had said that his company, Mountbrook, will appeal the decision to An Bord Pleanála as the tower is an integral element of the proposal and office space is an important part of any mixed-use development.
If the appeal is unsuccessful Mountbrook intends to submit a revised application in order to recoup a large percentage of the denied apartments.
However, Fine Gael Dublin South East TD Lucinda Creighton has described the decision as questionable and said the entire proposal is flawed.
She said: "Although the proposal for a 37-storey tower has been turned down, I am still of the view that the entire project represents bad planning, contravenes the Dublin City Development Plan, and is contrary to the area's zoning status."
(VB)
