€10 million Ennis plaza to go ahead after High Court challenge dismissed

A challenge against the granting of planning permission for a €10 million Barrack Obama Plaza-style motorway service station just outside of Ennis has been dismissed by the High Court.
The court’s decision comes a decade after an Ennis plaza was first proposed by Supermac’s managing director Pat McDonagh and paves the way for construction to go ahead.
This was the fourth planning application made by the fast food supremo for the development at Junction 12 of the M18 at Kilbreckan, Doora, with An Bord Pleanála in 2022 upholding a decision by Clare County Council to grant permission.
However, the development was stalled when Kilfenora civil engineer, Michael Duffy, brought a judicial review proceedings before the High Court seeking to quash the An Bord Pleanála decision.
Mr Justice David Holland dismissed the proceedings this week, rejecting Mr Duffy’s complaint that An Bord Pleanála “failed to have regard to or engage with his submissions”.
In a statement to The Clare Champion Mr McDonagh welcomed the High Court decision to dismiss the judicial review application. He said it represents the fruit of ten years work since the decision to develop the plaza was made. “I would like to thank the in-house team and external consultants who perservered with this project over the last 10 years,” her said.
“I would also like to thank Justice Holland for his detailed judgment that upholds the planning permission granted by Clare County Council and that was upheld by An Bord Pleanála. The length of time taken to secure planning permission was regrettable. No gain was achieved from the prolonged process to which planning applications are subjected because of a pointless and costly judicial review roundabout being conducted in a bubble in which a number of applicants for judicial review have become serial lay litigants whose costs are sheltered by guarantee under Section 50b of the Planning Acts.”
Mr McDonagh continued by saying he welcomes the limiting of this disincentive to development as provided for in the 2023 Planning Bill.
He insisted this new plaza will be a huge boost to economic activity in the Mid West with construction due to begin as soon as contracts can be awarded, and pre-development planning conditions are met.
“I determined from the very outset that the benefit for Ennis town and North and West Clare will be emphasised by ensuring that the plaza will promote the attractiveness of Ennis and the magnificent Clare landscape as important tourist assets in the County,” he said.
Mr McDonagh previously told The Clare Champion that 120 people are expected to be employed at the Ennis plaza and a further 100 jobs during construction.
Plans for a motorway service station on the same site were withdrawn in 2019 following a request for further information. At the time Supermacs stated, “It was felt that the elements required under the further information request would be best dealt with as part of a new application.”
A previous application in September 2016 was withdrawn just a month before a decision was due, with Mr McDonagh saying this was to allow more time to address a further information request.
That 2016 application was made less than two months after An Bord Pleanála rejected a 2014 application by Mr McDonagh for the site, which had been granted permission by Clare County Council.