Retired Laois Fine Gael councillor plans housing development

A retired Laois Fine Gael county councillor who stepped down from her role in 2021, is reviving a previously unused plan for building houses.

Mary Sweeney who served as a councillor for 22 years, is for the third time seeking planning permission for a development of six new houses in her village of Ballyroan.

She has lodged an application to Laois County Council for permission to construct four semi-detached two storey 3 bed dwellings, one detached 3 bed two storey dwelling and one detached 3 bed dormer dwelling.

The six houses would all be connected to the public sewer with all associated siteworks as previously granted under permission Nr. 18/327.

The application was previously granted planning permission, in 2018 and in 2005.

The site was later placed on the market for a time and the 2018 permission is about to expire.

The application includes a Site Specific Flood Risk (SSFRA) assessment, because the site borders the Gloreen River which it says floods every year. The houses are planned on the other side of the section with has a 1 in 1,000 chance of flood each year.

It recommends that the houses should have finished ground levels at least a foot above the estimated 0.1% flood risk event flood level, and to have finished floor levels of at least two feet high. It notes that site filling works could flood water elsewhere but that this is "negligible in consideration of extreme flood events within the Gloreen River". 

A decision is due by October 11.