Draft Local Area Plan for Tramore

Closing date for this is 9th February, 2007.

Here's what the Waterford Today thinks:

The recently-published Draft Local Area Plan for Tramore has many positive elements in pointing the way for the development of the county’s most populous town, states Deputy Mayor, Joe Conway.
It is a comprehensive statement of the Council’s ideas about how Tramore can grow in scope to become an even better place to live. It does not confine itself to building developments and population expansion alone – although these two elements necessarily feature prominently.
From a quality-of-life perspective, I am particularly gratified to see that there are commitments to providing a new Public Park around the area of the boating lake, and the commissioning of a new playground for the Riverstown community. These are two areas that I have lobbied hard for over the past number of years, and it is immensely satisfying to see a commitment to complete these two projects within the lifetime of the plan. I will spare no effort to see that this schema is upheld.
The Riverstown area community richly deserve this commitment and it ties in succinctly with the Council’s policy to provide quality play structures for our young people. The regret is that, through years of neglect, this has not happened sooner – but every sinew will be tautened by me to ensure delivery of this commitment.
We have had a serious deficit of open-purpose Park in Tramore for countless years now. I have been lobbying constantly with the Council to have this addressed, and now at last we have got this promise – not that it ought to happen, but that it will happen. Those who have visited the Vendée area of France will know what a beautiful feature of their coastal towns are their sea-adjacent parks, where one can stroll amidst lush greenery and have the chorus of the sea in the background. Such will be the legacy of our generation to those who come after us in Tramore.
Not everything in the Draft Plan meets with my approval. The failure to address adequately the question of a proper public transport service from outlying new areas to the Centre gives cause for concern, as it signals an acceptance that the car will continue to be king. This has serious implications for the town, and the environment.
The 15% minimum of site area for open space is, in my opinion, inadequate and will give rise to densities that the Council itself is already using as a refusal criterion for planning applications. I believe, further, that the provision to accept contributions from developers - in lieu of Open Space - begets a culture of horse-trading that can have a deleterious effect on the quality-of-life of future residents.
Fundamentally, and in the final analysis, the Draft Local Area Plan gives every person in Tramore the right to have his or her say in shaping the growth of the town. I would exhort everybody to be aware of the Plan and its provisions, and to make observations – whether of a positive or negative content. The plan can be viewed in the Library, in the Civic Offices (Tankfield) or on the Council’s website, and observations are being accepted through 9th February, 2007.