Local group welcomes decision to dezone land outside Dundalk

Haggardstown and Blackrock Community Forum has said that it is delighted to report that, 12 months after forming, it has “managed to successfully agitate against a large housing development that was planned for a site situated between Bóthar Maol and Dundalk Golf Club on the R172 road.”

In a statement from the community group said that it relates to a 45.8 acre site where planning permission was being sought by Glenveagh Properties for 502 houses.

The statement said that members of Louth County Council voted that this land be dezoned, was not suitable for a high-density development, and that councillors from across all political parties, voted to rezone the ‘new residential’ land to ‘strategic reserve.’ The statement said that over the last 12 months the forum, chaired by local resident Hermione Duffy, maintained continuous pressure on local representatives and TD’s including Jack Chambers.

They also made a detailed submission to Justice Lorna Lynch who is currently conducting a review on behalf of An Bord Pleanála with regard to conflict of interest and governance irregularities in relation to strategic housing development grants. In this correspondence, the forum says it petitioned Justice Lynch to review the questionable extant planning permission granted by Deputy Chair of An Bord Pleanála, Paul Hyde, who in 2019 granted planning permission for Strategic Housing Development on this site.

Haggardstown and Blackrock Community Forum said it “strenuously communicated that the site and surrounding area was wholly unsuitable for a dense housing development”. It said that this has been well documented in submissions and reports over the past 12 months and said that “the complexities and impossibilities facing this site” from a planning perspective include:

• Its close proximity and potential associated risks to a NATURA 2000 site
• There is no entrance - the site is landlocked
• There is no road network
• There is no sewage connection provision
• All land to the east of the site along the R172 is located within flood zone A and flood zone B.

Furthermore, the forum's statement continued, the OPW ruled against the suitability of the site because of the risk of flooding and The National Parks & Wildlife Service recommended the wet woodland should be retained as part of the Special Area of Conservation nearby.

The forum said that it constantly maintained that due diligence and proper regard to governance had never been upheld when this site gained initial planning permission for a housing development in 2019. It said that the issue that stood out most was how the inspectors report for Glenveagh’s appeal was polar opposite to the LCC inspectors report.

It said that the recommendation by An Bord Pleanála’s inspector was that the small secondary entrance on Bóthar Maol could be used in emergency in the event that the main entrance flooded, pretty damning in light of the recent OPW submission to the LAP regarding flooding.

The forum said it “relentlessly continued to communicate this to everyone with any influence”. It said that the site “is in essence an extension of a vast ecosystem, being connected via a watercourse to the existing Natura 2000 site to the east” and that “it is already an essential foraging area for protected birds and wildlife, and wholly unsuitable for any development, let alone over 500 units”.

As a local residents committee, Haggardstown and Blackrock Community Forum said it “endeavoured at every juncture, to mobilise the local community, encouraging them to make relevant submissions to the Dundalk Area Plan, to avert a catastrophic and damaging planning permission, which has now been successfully over turned”.

The ultimate aim of the Haggardstown & Blackrock Community Forum, it said, “is to hold local representatives to account on the planning and development of this seaside village, and rural hinterland. All the local primary schools are full to the brim, there are no spaces in any of the sporting clubs, and there is no sustainable travel plan for either parish.”

It added: “The forum’s ultimate aim is for sustainable, manageable development that maintains the essence of what Blackrock and Haggardstown are - small villages. “More houses must be accompanied by appropriate facilities and amenities. “So, although this is a great start, there is a lot more to do.”