Sunday 28 March 2010

Glanbia's old Kilmeaden plant gets new zoning status

Glanbia has had part of its former cheese production facility in Kilmeaden designated a strategic development site in the new Waterford county development plan, which will govern future construction in the county from 2011 and 2017. It follows its earlier success in having 64 acres of the 260-acre site rezoned from industrial zoning to a combination of industrial, commercial, office and mixed use.

The decision to pursue the rezoning followed a review of options for the land undertaken by the company's property business unit following the relocation of the facility in 2006. At that stage only the 30 or so acres surrounding the cheese factory buildings were zoned industrial.

"The site is extremely well positioned to take advantage of the new M9 motorway opening later this year, which will provide motorway status links from the site at Kilmeaden to Dublin and Belfast. Furthermore Kilmeaden is situated eight kilometres west of Waterford city on the N25 main link to Cork," the company told the Sunday Tribune. "The other key strategic advantage is an established natural gas supply to the site which is not available in other locations of this scale in the region."

Glanbia subsequently set up a task force that includes personnel representing the IDA, Enterprise Ireland, Waterford Co Council, Waterford Chamber and business professionals which has been in place for 18 months. Its members are actively promoting the site to potential inward investors, including life science groups.

Sunday Tribune

www.buckplanning.ie

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