Permission for new estates upheld following appeal

Thirty-nine homes to be built

AN Coimisiún Pleanála have upheld the decision by Galway County Council to grant permission for a residential development of 39 homes in Mountbellew.

Galway County Council planners had given approval for Cahermorris Development Ltd for the development in February, with 29 conditions attached. The development is earmarked for a 14acre greenfield site in the townland of Treanrevagh, to the rear of Aldi and the Holy Rosary College secondary school in Mountbellew.

The local authority’s decision was appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála. The single appellant cited concerns with the planning history of the proposed site, wastewater capacity in Mountbellew and other matters.

An Coimisiún Pleanála’s planning inspector said they were satisfied that the lack of wastewater capacity at the treatment plant in Mountbellew was going to be addressed and resolved by the planned upgrades to the treatment plant that are due to be carried out by Uisce Éireann.

One of the local authority’s conditions of planning was that none of the 39 homes are to be occupied until the residential development is connected to the upgraded Mountbellew Wastewater Treatment Plant, unless otherwise agreed in written correspondence. This was also included as one of 20 conditions by An Coimisiún Pleanála.

The housing development is to consist of 33 two-bedroom units and six three-bedroom units. The homes will be a mixture of terraced, two-storey terraced, two-storey semi-detached and bungalow-terraced houses.

A separate housing project of 30 homes in Barnswellgrove in Mountbellew, close to the GAA grounds, was also given planning permission by the County Council last January. The same stipulation that none of the dwellings shall be occupied until the housing development is connected to the upgraded wastewater treatment plant was included by local authority planners.