39-house development approved for Rosslare while council refuses planning for further 13-house scheme
Wexford PeopleWexford County Council (WCC) has granted planning permission for a 39-house scheme in Ballygillane, St Helen’s while, at the same time, refused planning for a 13-house development in the same area.
An application to build a mixed residential development of 39 units, consisting of 8 one-bedroom apartments, 4 two-bedroom apartments, 20 two-storey, three-bedroom terraced houses, 4 two-storey, four-bedroom end of terrace houses, and 3 bungalow 3-bedroom houses was submitted to WCC on May 2 of this year by JEM Property Holdings Ltd.
The proposed development, which also provides for vehicular access, site development works including storage of excavated materials and associated landscaping/communal public open spaces with connection to existing local public mains services and all associated site works, was subsequently approved by WCC on October 1 subject to conditions.
However, an application to construct of 13 houses, consisting of 4 semi-detached houses, 7 three-bedroom houses, and 2 two-bedroom houses in Ballygillane has been refused by the local council. Submitted by a Mr Peter Cumiskey on August 15 of this year the development also requested permission to demolish an existing bungalow, create EV charging points, and a path with pedestrian links to existing footpaths.
Outlining its decision to refuse permission for this development, WCC said the proposed location of the two open space areas included in the application had “no natural surveillance” points and “could result in the area being used for antisocial behaviour”.
The council also said “insufficient information” had been submitted with the application in relation to “vehicular and pedestrian access points, traffic safety and pedestrian crossing measures, footpath details, vehicle and emergency sweep areas, public lighting and boundary treatments to allow the planning authority to fully assess the proposed development”.
Mr Cumiskey’s application was also the subject of a number of submissions from local residents with many raising concerns about the addition of 13 new units so close to a roundabout which serves traffic coming to and from Rosslare Europort.
"The proposed development is located on an extremely hazardous road without adding the potential of 26 more cars (most households now have two cars),” read one submission. “As it is, it is very hard to exit our drive safely with increased traffic in the area. We dread to think what the proposed application will bring should same be approved.
"This road is used by school goers that cycle and walk to and from school. By adding more houses and cars, this will cause the road to be unsafe for our children.”
Concerns were also raised about the impact the proposed development would have on the privacy of existing residents.
Describing Mr Cumiskey’s application as of an “inappropriate scale” not in keeping with the surrounding houses, one resident said that, “proposing to build two storey-houses behind existing bungalows is completely unacceptable and (will) impact on everyone’s privacy.”