Housing and bogs front and centre in Offaly's development plans

Housing solutions and the future of bogland are the headline issues in Offaly according to the pre-draft notes on the county's next development plan.

The plan will direct the policies prioritised and undertaken by Offaly County Council from 2021 to 2027. 

The pre-draft directions were presented to councillors at the January meeting of the full council on Monday, January 20.

A special in-committee council meeting was held previously on December 2, 2019, where councillors were asked to put forward their ideas for the potential direction of the plan. Management distilled these views into a document which was presented to councillors on Monday.

Housing was the major issue addressed with one of the proposed directions advising the examination and promotion of a range of rural housing options, "some of which may be real alternatives to one-off rural housing."

The pre-draft direction will examine whether the 'Sráids' scheme should be in the new plan as a viable alternative to dispersed rural living. It calls for proactive measures undertaken by the council to ensure their success as small-scale rural settlements. 

Councillors urged the plan to focus on "promoting the re-use of derelict or vacant stock in villages" and "incentivising, if possible, the re-use of building stock in villages." Upon questioning by Cllr Ken Smollen, the council confirmed this promotion would include vacant or derelict commercial units. 

The plan's main aim on housing will be to "ensure more social and affordable housing is delivered throughout the county using the council's blocks of land for local authority housing," according to the pre-draft document.

It is also proposed that the plan addresses regional roads policy and the protection and possible strengthening of services at local train stations.

The possible future uses of cutaway bogs also featured heavily in the document. This focus comes as decarbonisation and the cessation of peat production leaves bogs idle across the county. 

It read: "The plan should promote looking at the peatlands in a holistic way, for example giving weight to potential economic development opportunities, as well as opportunities for reverting to nature and possible carbon sinks." Councillors specified this and said such examinations should not be left to others. 

The pre-draft plan also read: "The wind energy strategy should be examined in terms of cumulative impacts, particularly in the Edenderry area. The plan should consider the issue of community benefit."

It noted that the location of wind turbines on cutaway bogs is considered an appropriate location. Responding to this, Cllr Noel Cribbin said: "We're going to become the wind turbine capital of Ireland at this rate in North Offaly. At some point, we have to say enough is enough with the number of wind turbines and I think in the Edenderry area, we have enough."

"The plan should investigate the potential of all types of renewable energy in the county. It should promote more jobs development in Edenderry and Portarlington, particularly in light of the imminent cessation of industrial peat extraction and the large number commuting to Dublin from the areas," councillors suggested.

The draft development plan also said the final document should "talk up" the county and "promote the county for economic activity, tourism and as a good environment in which to live."

It is also to examine the concern at the wastewater treatment plant capacity in Edenderry. 

Cllr John Leahy welcomed the plan's focus on housing and said, "we want to see more people living in rural Ireland" but issued a word of caution on the potential of planning restriction affecting such development. "Hopefully this plan will give people the opportunity to live in their own areas."

Cllr Frank Moran and Cllr Declan Harvey welcomed the inclusion of rail services in the plan and blasted the suggestion that Clara Station will be unmanned in the near future. "People had to climb walls and crawl through bushes over Christmas to get out of the station," Cllr Harvey said.

He also said in terms of the environment, "we all need trees and I'm for trees, but dangerous trees spotted around the Tullamore area need to be taken out." Cllr Neil Feighery agreed and said certain trees are "becoming a problem" in the area. He suggested a county-wide survey to identify such trees.

The pre-draft document was welcomed by members present and it will now go forward to full draft stage later this year.