County planners reject plans for significant housing estate in Athenry

Galway Bay fm newsroom – Plans for a new housing estate in Athenry consisting of 91 new homes have been rejected by county planners.

Coffey Construction sought permission for the homes at a site at Parklands, with access via the existing estate.

There had been a considerable number of local objections lodged against the plans.

Among the issues raised were the zoning of the land, the suitability of the proposed access road, intrusion on nearby existing estates and construction traffic through a laneway.

Now, county planners have refused permission on a wide-ranging number of grounds.

They held that the overall design of the estate is substandard, and that the applicant has failed to demonstrate a ‘masterplan’ approach to the wider site it controls.

Planners were also concerned over the capacity of the surrounding road network, particularly the Parklands estate road and the R347.

Issues were also raised about the potential impact on nearby European conservation sites, a lack of archaeological assessments, and the zoning of the land.

Overall, the plans were refused on eight seperate grounds and the developer has a month to lodge an appeal with An Bord Pleanala.