Councillors lambast proposed 289-home Ennis development

ENNIS councillors have voiced concerns over plans for the largest ever private housing scheme in the county capital, with fears it could lead to “social problems”.

Glenveagh Homes has lodged plans for a €65-million 289-home scheme at Ballymacaula direct to An Bord Pleanala under the Strategic Housing Development (SHD) scheme.

However, at this week’s meeting of the Ennis Municipal District councillors highlighted a number of concerns about the plans, including that the density of the development is too high.

The meeting was told that the council’s planning department is preparing a report for An Bord Pleanala on the proposal, and that councillors views were being sought.

If given the green light the development will include 125 three-bed townhouses, 74 3/4-bed semi-detached homes, 66 two-bed townhouses, 12 two-bed duplex and 12 one-bed maisonettes. There are also plans for a 60 place creche and 488 car parking spaces.

Speaking at the meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, Councillor Pat Daly acknowledged that people are “crying out” for housing, however he said that the size of this development “needs to be substantially reduced”. He said the plans as they are, “could cause social problems down the road, there are too many houses in one area.”

Councillor Mary Howard also spoke on the need for housing, adding that she too is “worried about the social consequences” of the development and agreeing there are too many houses.

She also pointed out that the estate has one entrance in and out near a busy route close to the N85. “I worry about having the creche at the front of the estate, at 8.50am you will have everybody wanting to drop off their children, is that safe?”

The impact on traffic and density of housing was also highlighted by Councillor Paul Murphy who added, “I am concerned about the social impact of having so many houses in a condensed area.”

Councillor Johnny Flynn commented he believed the plans are contrary to national planning objectives in a number of areas, and that the development “fails abysmally” in its scale.

“It is hugely over concentrated,” he said adding this will lead to “problems in the future”.

“There are no services other than the creche which is located at a potential accident spot,” the councillor continued, “There is not a playing pitch in this, there are some fancy looking green areas but nowhere to play for teenagers to kick a ball and where will they go then, but in over the wall to the golf course.”

Fears that having one entrance could lead to issues if there is an accident on the road was also raised by the councillor.

“This is a town centre development out in a suburb,” he said. The councillor called for more affordable family homes and accommodation for the elderly in the plans saying, “We have a housing crisis but we need to get the mix of housing right.”

Mayor of Ennis, Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy commented that this is the largest ever private development in the town and “we need to take great care it doesn’t create further social problems.” While supporting the provision of housing, she said this development “seems to be in the wrong location”.

The entrance is a “cause for concern” alongside the lack of services for young people. She added, “For young people in the estate it is a long walk to school, clearly parents will drive and that is what we don’t want, if parents drive we will have congestion. I can see future problems if this goes ahead.”

According to a planning statement lodged with the application “the proposed development has been designed to provide high quality residential units that will contribute positively to Ennis and deliver much needed housing in this area”.

The statement adds that “the proposed site layout focuses on the creation of a distinct residential neighbourhood that will enhance and integrate with the wider area. The proposed development has been designed in such a way to ensure it integrates in a cohesive manner and makes a positive contribution to the Ennis locality.”