Rezoning of Carlow lands pushed through despite council executive’s opposition
Proposed variations to the Tullow District Town Plan were discussed at the May plenary meeting of Carlow County Council
Members of Carlow County Council have proceeded with plans to rezone lands in Tullow for housing, despite the opposition of the council executive.
Proposed variations to the Tullow District Town Plan were discussed at the May plenary meeting of Carlow County Council.
The variations will see two sites, namely at Roscat and Tullowphelim, rezoned as ‘new residential’ lands.
Senior Executive Planner Wesley Keogh outlined a number of submissions which the council received in relation to the variations.
In its submission, Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) raised concerns over the fact that these lands are located at the side of the N81.
It noted that the national road has a speed limit of 80km/h, which the TII deems unsuitable for residential areas.
Meanwhile, the National Transport Authority raised concerns over the lack of public transport in the area.
It argued that these houses would be left dependent on cars, arguing that the locations of the sites were “remote”.
Meanwhile, The Office of the Planning Regulator questioned whether housing developments at such locations would give rise to sustainable communities.
Senior Planner Anita Sweeney said that it was the belief of the executive that the variations were contrary to Town Centre First and would compromise road safety.
She added that it was the “strong recommendation” of the planning department not to proceed with the variations.
Fine Gael councillor Brian O’Donoghue, speaking on behalf of the Tullow Municipal District councillors, thanked the council staff for their work.
However, he said that the Tullow councillors did not agree with the submissions or the executive’s recommendation.
He said that councillors have “very few powers” but rezoning land was one of them and that they should have the final say on the matter.
“If we don’t have the final say, we don’t matter,” Cllr O’Donoghue stated.
He continued by saying that the attitude of the bodies who made submissions seemed to be that “if it’s not perfect, it’s out”.
Cllr O’Donoghue argued that the council’s priority had to be to rezone land for housing and that it can’t allow speed limits to be an obstacle to achieving that.
He said that “the mind boggles” at the NTA submission, arguing that there are already many houses in Carlow which are car dependent.
Subsequently, he questioned whether the people who had worked on the submission had ever been to Tullow.
These sentiments were echoed by Fine Gael councillor Ben Ward, who said there was a “clear rationale” behind the proposed variations.
He added that the council can’t be “held to ransom” over the fact that the lands are located beside national roads.
Meanwhile, Sinn Féin councillor Jim Deane said he found some of the comments made in the submissions “a bit strange”.
Cllr Deane argued that the speed limit on the N81 was the responsibility of TII and that similarly, the NTA is responsible for the provision of public transport in the area.
After a lengthy discussion, 16 councillors voted against the council executive’s recommendation, meaning the variations will proceed as planned.
Independent Ireland councillor John Cassin and People Before Profit-Solidarity councillor Adrienne Wallace both abstained.