Lack of serviced land is big problem in Birr, says Cllr Maher

A LACK of serviced land is a big problem in Birr which is stymieing development.
During an interview with the Tribune Cllr Seán Maher pointed out that the issue is holding back industrial development in the town. He cited Syngefield Industrial Estate as an example. Syngefield Industrial Estate is thriving and very successful with several companies on site, but it is at capacity and has no room to expand because of the lack of serviced land. “This means that no new companies can come into the estate,” Cllr Maher remarked.
Serviced land is a plot of land that has utilities and infrastructure, such as water, sewage and electricity and is ready for construction. The land can be zoned under one of the Council's zoning designations (such as “residential”) but this is no guarantee that it is serviced.
The problem is also an issue on Roscrea Road in the town. During a Budget Breakfast meeting held in Tullamore in October, which was attended by the then Minister for Finance Paschal Donohue, Mark Clendennen, Manager of Applied Concepts (which is located on Roscrea Road) told the meeting that there is no serviced land in Birr and he has nowhere to expand his company. He pointed out that he could create 25 new jobs, doubling his workforce but this wasn't possible because of the current situation.
Mark asked if it would be possible for the State to provide services on private land which was available to purchase. The Minister told him that he would prefer if he developed on IDA land but if none was available there could be a possibility of providing support to private landowners to develop services on their land.