The High Court ruled that Galway County Council must repay O’Malley Construction Company Limited a €1,100,456 planning contribution after the full Barna bypass was not completed within seven years. The court also held that interest is payable from January 2010, with the rate and amount still to be determined after further discussion with counsel.
The judicial review concerned a housing development of 148 dwellings at An Creagán, on an 18-acre site north of Barna’s main street. The planning permission required the company to contribute towards the proposed bypass. Another condition prevented vehicles from accessing the bypass directly from the development, directing the internal road instead to end at a turning area.
An Bord Pleanála determined the contribution at €1,100,456 in 2005. The company later transferred 0.75 acres valued at €235,000 to the Council and paid €975,456 towards the contribution. It also paid a further €100,000, described in correspondence as a goodwill gesture, to help the Council acquire land for the bypass. The Council issued a letter confirming compliance with the contribution condition in December 2005.
The bypass was planned to extend 2.7km. By January 2010, when the condition’s seven-year period expired, only a 460-metre section north of the development had been built. The company sought repayment, arguing that the payment depended on completion of the bypass and that the completed section represented only part of the planned route. The Council refused. The judge accepted the Council’s figures on the proportion completed but said they did not affect the outcome.
The court found that the completed section, with no direct vehicle access from the development, did not benefit it. The full bypass would have reduced traffic on Barna Main Street and helped the development, but there was no realistic prospect of completing the remainder in the foreseeable future. The judge held that the Council lacked authority to retain a contribution for works that ultimately did not benefit the development. He concluded that the contribution condition was ultra vires to that extent and that the €1,100,456 had to be returned with interest from January 2010.
The court rejected the company’s separate claim for repayment of the €100,000. The judge accepted that the company had argued the payment was made under duress, but found it was part of an overall settlement and voluntary. The Council’s evidence was that the money was spent in good faith to acquire land for the 460-metre section. The court therefore held that the payment was not repayable.
The judgment resolved the repayment claims, but left the interest rate and calculation for later determination.