Tag Archives: National Planning Framework

FAR-REACHING adjustments to the forthcoming development plan for Clare have been recommended by the State’s planning watchdog. After examining the draft plan for 2023-2029, the Office of the Planning Regulator (OPR) has told the Council it is in breach of a number of national and regional guidelines. The regulator has made a total of 13 recommendations and eight observations on draft. The proposed settlement strategy, whereby population and growth targets are allocated across the county, is the focus of the greatest concern for the OPR. Five recommendations and one observation have been made on this aspect of the document. In its submission, seen by The Champion, the OPR has identified “a number of concerns regarding the amount of residential land zoned in certain towns”. This, it says, is “risking the ability to deliver housing that is well located and served by services and amenities”. The regulator has warned that “significant adjustments” will be needed to ensure the plan is fully …

Councillors want legal advice on means to challenge NDP projections A COUNCILLOR has blasted proposed population allocations for the county saying it “effectively will be the end of rural Clare”. Legal advice is to be sought by Clare councillors on the constitutionality of proposed population allocations for the county set out in the National Planning Framework. Councillor PJ Kelly at the monthly meeting of Clare County Council insisted the population targets in the framework, which has to be adhered to in drawing up the County Development Plan, are “discriminatory” and “effectively will be the end of rural Clare”. He was backed by Councillor Joe Killeen who, while welcoming projected population growth in Ennis and the Limerick / Shannon Metropolitan area, said “the difficulty is for the remainder of the county the population projections are very low for Clare”. He said this puts services for communities in rural Clare “in jeopardy” with “a further diminishing of what is there already”. In …

THE risk that some lands owned by council could drop substantially in value, because of new national planning policies, has been flagged by a member of the West Clare Municipal District. Councillor Cillian Murphy told a meeting of the district committee that huge opportunity presented by the pandemic to bring people back to rural Clare could be lost if lands have to be zoned under the terms of the National Planning Framework (NPF), which will shape the forthcoming county development plan. The Fianna Fáil member asked the authority for details of all lands owned by the local authority and details of their zoning, whether residential, industrial or residential. “The impetus for this,” he explained, “is that we need to look at what lands the council owns in the context of the NPF. There is a huge drive from government to deliver affordable housing and a huge opportunity because of the pandemic, for people to live and work in rural Ireland.” …

The Construction Industry Federation has welcomed the €115 billion investment in infrastructure announced by Government today (Friday) as a “potential gamechanger” for the southern region. The announcement was made as part of the government’s 10-year public capital programme and National Planning Framework. Regional CIF director, Conor O’Connell stated, “Today’s announcement could represent a game-changer for the southern region and for the Irish economy. Cities like Cork, Limerick and Waterford and our regional towns can be developed into a dynamic regional economy in the south that can counter-balance the irish economy’s overdependence on the greater Dublin area.The construction industry in the region has significant capacity to deliver the essential housing, infrastructure and specialist buildings underpinning the ambition outlined in the National Planning Framework.” Mr O’Connell said the €115 billion outlined will give construction companies in the region the confidence to invest in their businesses again and we expect to see significant increases in activity across all our sectors including civil engineering, …

THE draft National Planning Framework developed by Government has been described by the IFA as “Dublin-centric and lacking ambition for rural Ireland.” “The Government’s aspiration to develop a planning framework out to 2040 in a balanced and coherent way fails rural Ireland, particularly in the addressing following four areas: the decline of rural towns and villages; the need to rebalance development towards the regions; the need for rural housing; and, supporting community based renewable energy development,”said Thomas Cooney, IFA Environment chairman. In a submission to Government, IFA has detailed a number of areas that need to be addressed. To reverse the decline of rural towns and villages, IFA says new business start-ups should receive incentives, such as exemptions from rates, for an initial time period and relief from capital gains tax, to encourage innovation and enterprise. Double tax relief should be provided on rental expenditure for businesses establishing in rural towns and villages. A condition for a valid planning application for …

THE chief executive of Clare County Council has said that the Government’s National Planning Framework (NPF) will “undermine” potential investment options in Clare and the Mid-West. Pat Dowling, who is also the chair of the Mid-West Chief Executive’s Group, said the region’s three local authorities will soon make a joint submission to Government stressing the need for the NPF to correct economic imbalances across the island. Among the targets outlined by the group, which includes representatives of Clare County Council, LIT, UL, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Shannon Group and private enterprise, is the expansion of the Clare campus of UL, the development of a conference centre within the county, securing Shannon Airport as the designated airport for the Wild Atlantic Way and promoting indigenous industry in rural areas. Speaking on behalf of members, Mr Dowling expressed concern that the draft NPF “does little to redress the existing economic imbalance across the country and, in its current form, will undermine future …