€200m revamp of Shopping Centre okayed

Date Published: 07-Oct-2008

THE way was cleared last night for a massive redevelopment of Galway Shopping Centre, when City Councillors agreed by a majority of 12-2, to contravene the City Development Plan — it will see the size of the existing centre quadruple.

Long before the actual vote last night, it was clear that the long awaited €200 million project — which has been in the pipeline for nearly four years — would be given the thumbs up at a meeting of the City Council, though there had been some opposition to the project aired in recent weeks.

The application for planning permssion had materially contravened the City Development Plan, by virtue of the provision of an access off the Sean Mulvoy Road and through a section of the lands already zoned for ‘Recreation and Amenity’ use.

For this reason the matter had to come before the City Council, where 11 of the 15 sitting councillors had to vote in favour of rezoning lands. Only then could planning permission be granted. Director of Services, Tom Connell, advised members to accept the recommendations being made by the Council’s executive, adding that it was “a vote of confidence that such an investment is to be made in the city.”

In a detailed report, senior planner Caroline Phelan said that the existing building was a legacy of the 1970s, being single storey and built on a site that was not regarded as being central at the time and is thereby dominated by the car today.

She said that the 13.5acre site was underdeveloped and that there was an inefficient use of such a prime location. She envisaged that the new development would not involve replacing like with like, and that the residential element would render this commercial area alive.

She said that the application before cCouncillors had been tweaked many times over the past four years, and that planning staff were now satisfied with the project, which if granted carried 67 conditions.

She said that the access roadway from the Sean Mulvoy Road would be 70m in length, and …..