COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF DEVELOPMENT PLAN MEETING

Thursday, February 04, 2016

MOTION NO. 27

MOTION: Councillor L. O'Toole

Motion: L. O’Toole, Cllr G. O’Connell, Cllr P.Gogarty

That the lands at Coolamber, Lucan, Co Dublin, off the Newcastle Road be rezoned OS”, given that they are adjacent to existing OS lands across the road at Finnstown and any amenities provided off the road would be accessible.

REPORT:

The subject lands, which were zoned for residential development under the 1998 County Development Plan, are located within an established residential area and have a long established zoning history. The lands have also been subject to a planning permission for residential development in the past therefore further establishing the precedent for residential development.

It is a requirement under the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended) for the County Development Plan, including its Core Strategy, to be consistent with the Regional Planning Guidelines for the Greater Dublin Area 2010-2022 and to ensure that sufficient and suitable lands are zoned to meet the population and housing requirements for the County. The Core Strategy contained in the Draft Plan identifies a growth in population of over 26,300 people and a need for over 32,000 dwellings during the lifetime of the County Development Plan. It is a requirement to ensure that enough lands are zoned for such need and in appropriate places.

The subject lands are designated within the Metropolitan Consolidation Town of Lucan in an area where population and housing growth should be directed particularly the context of their location close to the Dublin – Kildare rail line. The Settlement Strategy contained within the Regional Planning Guidelines (RPGs) identifies Metropolitan Consolidation Towns as settlements that will continue to support such key public transport corridors and will be important locations for services, retail and economic activity. This is reflected by the Draft County Development Plan.

The subject lands are ideally positioned to help meet the population and housing needs of the County and prevent a sprawl of development beyond the boundaries of the identified settlements and into rural and high amenity areas of the County that are not served by public transport. The use of these lands purely for open space purposes would represent an inefficient use of zoned lands located close to a high capacity public transport corridor particularly in the context of their long established zoning history and planning history. This is also particularly the case in the context that there is sufficient open space provision in the area of the subject lands.

The removal of the proposed RES-N zoning objective from the lands would also reduce the Draft Plan’s Housing Land Capacity particularly for the Metropolitan Consolidation Town of Lucan and would be at variance with the Core Strategy and the Regional Planning Guidelines.

Recommendation

It is recommended that this motion is not adopted.