Future of €34 million retail park to be decided

A decision on controversial plans to construct a €34 million retail park on the outskirts of Ennis is to be made in the coming days by An Bord Pleanála.

Ennis Town Council refused planning permission for the development on a site at the Limerick Road/Tobarteascain Road in January, deeming it “premature” pending the upgrade of the wastewater treatment plant at Clareabbey and the implementation of the Ennis South Flood Relief Scheme.
An Bord Pleanála is set to make a decision on the plans next Monday, a year-and-a-half after the plans were originally lodged with Ennis Town Council.
According to developers Michael Lynch Ltd, if given the green light, the ­development would lead to the creation of approximately 300 jobs and between 180 and 200 jobs in the foodstore.
However, those opposed to the plans have expressed fears it could lead to a ‘doughnut’ effect, taking business from the town centre in a similar way to what has been seen in Limerick.
According to the developers’ appeal, the reasons for refusal can be “readily overcome” through a series of engineering solutions. They also insist the planned development will not compete with business in the town centre.
Ennis Chamber and Ennis Development Forum have made further submissions opposing the plans, as requested by An Bord Pleanála, in relation to the proposed development.
In their submissions, both Ennis Chamber and Ennis Development Forum, along with other street associations in the town, outlined their concerns for the proposed development. 
Among the concerns is the statistical data on which the application is based, justifying the need for significant additional retail space, claiming it is out of date given the changing economic circumstances and that the Census of ­population for County Clare, which shows a very significant slowdown in the level of population growth for the county and which indicates that the level of population necessary to sustain the development for the projection year 2012 as presented by the applicants, will not in fact be achieved and is likely to fall far short of the projections submitted.
Speaking about the further submission, CEO of Ennis Chamber, Rita McInerney said, “We are very concerned that this proposal is located on a flood plain area designated as a flood risk A, the most at-risk category.  Given the very serious history of flooding in Ennis, we cannot accept the suggestion that the development could proceed until the detailed flood studies recommended by the OPW have been carried out indicating that flood risk can be overcome and these studies have not been carried out to date. 
“It is suggested that certain alterations to the existing Clare Abbey treatment works, together with the provision of a possible new treatment facility on site, could overcome the issues of inadequate sewage capacity. 
“However, there is no planning application for such proposals.”
A spokesperson for the Ennis Development Forum added, “We are concerned for the economic survival of our town. 
“The level of collapse of small business generally and of the retail sector in particular over the past four years is unprecedented. 
“All the evidence indicates a 25% drop, at least in retail expenditure since 2008.  Therefore, we feel granting permission for the proposal will put an end to Ennis Town Centre as a viable retail area.”