Houses and apartments in new development in Tullamore set hit the market soon

HOUSES at a new development in Tullamore are expected to come on the market in September.

Ridley Place is a 126-unit residential scheme of more than 100 houses and 20 apartments off Collins Lane and adjacent to the Hawthorns on the north side of the county town.

An agent with GVM Auctioneers, the firm handling the sale, said details of the release, including the pricing of individual properties, have not been finalised yet.

The estate is on a greenfield site between Scally's store and the Clara Road roundabout on Collins Lane.

While the development of much needed housing was broadly welcomed, residents on Collins Lane were concerned about the impact of the additional residential accommodation on the road.

Over a dozen bungalows have been built on the southern side of the road and some will face Ridley Place directly.

An initial plan to build a block of apartments along the boundary with Collins Lane was met with opposition and was dropped by the developers, Collins Lane Housing Development Ltd, a company headed up by Laois-based property developer Patrick Flanagan.

In the final plan approved by Offaly County Council, a row of houses will run along Collins Lane instead.

Furthermore, an original proposal for a vehicular entrance to Ridley Place from the road was also abandoned after complaints from residents.

Some believed another outlet for traffic along that stretch of road would cause disruption because there are already two sets of traffic lights nearby, one at Scally's shop where Collins Lane begins at Arden Road, and another at the Ballin Ri junction.

There were also concerns about how close the new houses would be to the road.

The planning permission granted indicates the houses on Collins Lane will have a minimum three-metre setback from the footpath edge.

Each house will have a grass garden to the front enclosed by a fence or metal railing with access for pedestrians to a footpath along Collins Lane.

READ NEXT: Offaly MEP says planning bottlenecks threaten economic progress

As well as that footpath, there will be a new cycle way. This will be a continuation of an existing one and it will extend to Scally's store.

Residents of the new houses will have parking at the rear of their residents. The developer has assured the community that no car parking is being provided along Collins Lane.

The cycle lane will be at the edge of the road and inside that will be a 1.2-metre grass strip with trees planted at intervals, along with a two-metre wide footpath.

The entire development includes the construction of a creche and after-school facility.

The apartments will be towards the western part of the site.