Ardmore residents lodge appeal with an bord pleanala

A residents group has lodged an appeal with An Bord Pleanála against Westmeath County Council’s decision to grant planning permission for a new housing development on the Ardmore Road.

Last month, council planners gave local construction firm Shaston Construction Ltd the green light to construct a 27-unit housing development on a site on the Ardmore Road despite the objections of a large number of residents.

The Ardmore Road Residents Association, which says it represents 43 households living along the road, objects to the development on a number of grounds including concerns over road safety and road width, environment and a lack of amenities.

The group also believe that the development goes against council policy and is unnecessary due to the number of unfinished estates in the Mullingar area.
In late July, the council refused Shaston’s planning application for a 76-unit housing development on a second site on the Ardmore Road, while last month another local developer, Frank Bell and Son, applied for planning permission to construct 70 new units at Ardmore Hills.

Speaking at this month’s Mullingar Municipal District (MMD) meeting, Cllr Mick Dollard noted that with the residents’ concerns over traffic and other issues, “the number of recent planning applications may be premature”.

“The Royal Canal development is not completed and in other developments in Mullingar there are a lot of vacant units. The road structure is not in place. A lot of people walk along the Ardmore Road and the footpath appears to have been built on an adhoc basis. There is a stretch of footpath and there is a gap. I think that the planning applications are premature.”

The public has until October 7 to make submissions to An Bord Pleanála regarding Shaston Construction Ltd’s development.