Connacht Tribune
Developer told that fast-track housing plan requires higher density
An Bord Pleanála has rejected a proposal for more than 110 homes on a site in Bearna under new fast-track planning legislation – telling the developer there should be up to 200 homes on the site.
Burkeway Homes sought permission to develop 113 homes on an 18-acre site on the Bearna-Moycullen Road under new ‘Strategic Housing Development’ regulations which came into law last year and is aimed at tackling the housing crisis.
In its decision to refuse planning permission, the Board said the proposal would not develop the land at Truskey East (adjoining the Heather Hill/Cnoc Fraoigh estate) at sufficiently high density.
Developer Michael Burke told the Connacht Tribune his design team is already working on a new proposal and he intends to lodge a new application with the Board in the next few weeks, with hopes construction can begin this summer, creating up to 150 jobs.
“The team at Burkeway Homes was scheduled to commence on the Truskey East site in early spring. While the An Bord Pleanála decision will delay this somewhat, it does provide the opportunity for us to bring to the market a greater number and variety of quality homes on this fantastic site.
“Since we received the planning decision, we have been busy working with our architects on a revised scheme incorporating the feedback from the An Bord Pleanála decision. We intend to lodge a resubmission again under the Strategic Housing Development process in the coming weeks.
“On this basis, we are confident that we will be in a position to start work on site in late summer with a Phase 1 launch of the development before the end of the year,” said Mr Burke.
The original application was for 46 detached homes, 64 semi-detached and two terraced units (72 four-bed homes, 33 three-bed and 8 two-bed), and six pedestrian link bridges, with a pedestrian route to Bearna village.
Third party submissions on the application raised concerns about excessive scale and density, inadequate facilities to cater for additional population, and whether there is a need for such a volume of new homes in Bearna, given the 10.3% area vacancy rate recorded in Census 2016.
Residents in the adjoining estate also raised concerns about increased traffic, an inadequate road network and a history of flooding on the site.
Galway County Council submitted that it was “favourably disposed to a grant pf permission”, but said conditions should be attached, including a stipulation that a minimum of 20% of the homes should be restricted for Irish speakers.
In its decision to refuse permission, the Board wrote: “The site of the proposed development is on serviceable lands, within the development boundary of Bearna, in an area earmarked for Phase 1 residential development and within the Galway Metropolitan Area.
“Having regard to the proposed density of development, it is considered that the proposed development would not be developed at a sufficiently high density to provide for an acceptable efficiency in serviceable land usage given the proximity of the site to the built-up area of Bearna and Galway City and to the established social and community services in the immediate vicinity.
“In addition, the proposed development does not have an adequate mix of dwelling types, being predominantly semi-detached and detached housing.
“It is considered that the low density proposed would be contrary to these aforementioned Ministerial Guidelines, which indicate that net densities less than 30 dwellings per hectare should generally be discouraged in the interests of land efficiency.
“The proposed development would therefore be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area,” the Board wrote.
The Burkeway proposal is understood to have been the first such ‘fast-track’ planning application outside of Dublin. The legislation can be used by a developer planning 100 or more houses or for student accommodation with more than 200 bed spaces (where the land is appropriately zoned).
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
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The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
