Decision looms on outline plans for new ‘Ceannt Quarter’

A decision is looming from CIE management on outline proposals for the development of ‘Ceannt Station Quarter’ – a project which will cost several hundred million euro and shape the future of Galway City Centre. Last September, CIE advertised for a partner for the redevelopment of 8.18 acres into a new urban quarter for the city. It will potentially include an extended train and bus station, along with a new hotel, shops, apartment ‘skyscraper’, offices and an urban park space. It is understood that the project attracted significant interest among national and international property development companies – according to the commercial property agents handling the deal, as well as the well-documented pent-up demand for high-quality office space and residential units, around 20 national and international brand names are looking for retail space here of a suitable size.

Read the full article @ Connacht Tribune

Galway port plans €200m expansion

GALWAY HARBOUR Company will seek planning permission for a €200 million modernisation of the city’s port early next year.

The State company’s chief executive, Eamon Bradshaw, told the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport yesterday it intends redeveloping the port in two phases, the first from 2010 to 2015 and the second by 2020.

The redevelopment of the port will cost €200 million. The company intends applying to An Bord Pleanála for planning permission next April.

It will present the plans to Galway City Council members next month and to their County Council colleagues in December.

Galway port can only take vessels with a maximum capacity of 7,500 tonnes, but needs to be able to handle craft of up to 20,000 tonnes, which requires a full-scale redevelopment.

The plans also provide for marine leisure facilities and cruise ship docking.

Mr Bradshaw told the committee that as the Government wants port companies to fund their own developments, Galway harbour would not be entitled to seek support from the State for the project.

He pointed out that smaller ports are being treated in the same way as their bigger competitors, and suggested that the Government look at this again.

Meanwhile, Enda Connellan, chief executive of Dublin Port Company, told the committee it is essential that An Bord Pleanála approve its plans to extend the port and add new berths and deepwater facilities. He warned committee members that if the plans were not approved, it would not be good for Dublin Port Company.

“But that’s not the issue,” he said. “Goods must be landed, and the further away from the city, which is the main consumer of those goods, that they are landed, then that’s going to add to the cost of those goods.”

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

AIB plan opposed by An Taisce

AN TAISCE has warned of “irreparable damage” to one of Galway’s most historic quarters, following a decision to grant Allied Irish Banks (AIB) permission to redevelop part of Lynch’s Castle.

An Taisce’s Galway branch is to appeal the plan, which involves demolition of later additions to the medieval building on the corner of Abbeygate Street and construction of a new three-storey building from the castle’s northwest wall.

The new building will include a “glazed facade”, and the planning application includes removing existing buttresses and altering and repairing the castle, which is a protected structure.

The concept has been opposed by Galway City Council’s heritage officer, Jim Higgins, who points out tourists would never be able to photo the detail of Lynch’s Castle, due to the reflection of so much glass on the adjoining building.

Lynch’s Castle was recorded on the 1651 pictorial map of Galway and is the only surviving building of its type among mansions owned by the city’s 14 “tribes”. Its carved facade bears the arms of King Henry VIII, and it has been described as an excellent example of Irish Gothic architecture.

Mr Higgins has argued any new structure should not impinge on the castle, and the frontage should be in keeping with the quarter, which includes Century Buildings.

He compares AIB’s approach to that taken by the Revenue Commissioners in Druid’s Lane, where the Red Earl’s Hall owned by Richard de Burgo was excavated and a modern building “designed around” the rich archaeology.

“Shoebox excavations of the castle site, which the AIB is proposing, are not sufficient. This is a sensitive area, which may include remnants of the Lynch family mansion, and it needs to be resolved archaeologically first,” he says.

An Taisce’s Galway branch chair, Derrick Hambleton, says an appeal has been lodged with An Bord Pleanála. An Taisce believes the design is “not sufficiently well-thought out, given the proximity of such an iconic medieval building”, he says. “The balance between the preservation of the old, against the development of the new is a delicate one and, while we would not wish to see a row of pastiche, replica shopfronts which might be thought to match the buildings on the opposite side of Abbeygate Street, we are concerned about the overuse of glass,” he said in his objection.

An Taisce “believes that insufficient weight has been given to the advice of the city’s own heritage officer”, Mr Hambleton said, and he supports Mr Higgins’s call for a complete archaeological licensed dig of the whole site.

Some 55 per cent of overseas visitors stated “historic towns and cities” were a primary motivating factor in choosing Ireland as a holiday destination in a 2006 survey of visitor attitudes by Fáilte Ireland, Mr Hambleton pointed out.

AIB declined to comment and said it was a matter for the planning authorities.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Travellers must leave Galway site today

THE GALWAY Traveller Movement has called for cross-departmental commitment to resolve Traveller accommodation issues, following the continued impasse over halting sites in Galway city.

An 11-strong group of Traveller families with 28 young children are due to leave a temporary halting site in the city today, as a result of a High Court order obtained by the local authority.

The site, which is the subject of a Bord Pleanála appeal for planning approval, is due to remain open until November – but only four families are permitted to stay there until then.

The 11 families ordered to leave by today have said they will respect the court decision.

However, they believe that they are being singled out by the local authority for taking legal action earlier this year over their right to a nomadic lifestyle. The Delaney, Stokes and Corcoran families say they will inevitably attract complaints from residents wherever they go, and that they are anxious to keep their children in primary school.

The 11 families have long maintained that they do not want to live in housing, as this is not part of their culture – and they moved out of temporary housing after the suicide of one of their group.

Earlier this year, Galway city councillors voted to remove provision of halting sites from its Traveller accommodation plan for 2009-14, with one councillor, Donal Lyons (Ind), describing such hard stands as a “failed concept”.

The city manager warned at the time that the decision, which was supported by all but four of the 15 councillors, could be open to legal challenge.

That ruling is to be the subject of a judicial review later this year.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Approval for Galway bypass 'contravenes' EU law, court told

AN BORD Pleanála approved the €17 million Galway city bypass after finding the impact of the project on the Lough Corrib conservation area, while “locally severe”, would not adversely affect the “integrity” of the site, the Commercial Court heard yesterday.

The decision was akin to saying, if we have a lot of early church stained glass in Ireland, it does not matter if you allow 10 per cent of it to be destroyed, Paul O’Higgins SC, for environmental campaigner Peter Sweetman, said.

That was “entirely contrary” to the purpose of European law on conservation of habitats.

In proceedings by Mr Sweetman, which opened yesterday, the State has agreed with claims by Mr Sweetman that the board’s approval of November 2008 is invalid because it breaches provisions of the EU habitats directive requiring that such projects must not adversely affect the integrity of a conservation site, in this case the Lough Corrib candidate Special Area of Conservation (cSAC) site.

The State has also claimed the approval exposes it to potential legal action and fines by the European Commission.

Under the habitats directive, Mr Sweetman claims EU member states cannot approve projects which will have a significant impact on a cSAC and/or priority natural habitat when there has been no assessment of solutions.

The board’s own inspector had recommended approval should be refused after an oral hearing in which the inspector accepted the alternatives to the proposed road project had not been subject to an appropriate assessment, Mr Sweetman said.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Environment also expressed opposition to the project during the oral hearing.

In opposing Mr Sweetman’s challenge, the board denies any breach of the habitats directive or the EC (Natural Habitats) Regulations and claims it took account of all the evidence before granting approval.

The board said it considered the approved road development would be an appropriate solution to the identified traffic needs of Galway city and surrounding area and, while having a “localised severe impact” on the Lough Corrib cSAC, would not adversely affect the integrity of the cSAC.

The challenge to the approval for the N6 Galway City Outer Bypass scheme is one of two being heard in tandem by Mr Justice George Birmingham. The board granted approval for the road scheme, with the exception of a connection between Gortatleva and An Baile Nua.

The case by Mr Sweetman, Lower Rathmines Road, Dublin, is against the board and the State, with Galway City Council and Galway County Council as notice parties, essentially centres on the argument that the road approval breaches the habitats directive and Article 30 of the EC (Natural Habitats) Regulations.

Other issues relate to whether the “substantial grounds” standard of review applied by the Irish High Court to environmental cases, and the alleged “prohibitive” cost of such challenges, breaches Irish and European law provisions relating to rights of access to the courts and other right.

The second action is by Hands Across the Corrib Ltd, “Carraig Ban”, Ballinfoyle, Co Galway, an environmental non-government organisation.

It claims the board’s approval for the road project was based on a flawed environmental impact assessment, and argues that an “efficient, intelligent, public transport system” is a “very real alternative” to the proposed bypass.

Galway city and county councils want the project to go ahead and are supporting the board in its arguments.

The hearing is expected to run for six days.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

State agencies divided in row over Galway bypass

A NUMBER of different government agencies are set to take opposing sides of a bitter High Court battle over a controversial €317m Galway city motorway.

A judicial review of An Bord Pleanála's decision to approve part of the Galway city outer bypass will be heard in the High Court's Commercial Court from Tuesday.

Environmentalist Peter Sweetman is taking a case against the state and An Bord Pleanála. Environmental group Hands Across the Corrib of Ballinafoyle, Co Galway, claims that a decision by An Bord Pleanála to approve part of the massive project was based on a flawed environmental impact assessment.

The National Park and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and the Department of the Environment have joined with objectors such as Sweetman and Hands Across the Corrib in the case against An Bord Pleanála, which in turn has the support of the National Roads Authority and Galway County Council.

The NPWS and the Department of the Environment, which will be represented by the attorney general, is arguing that the decision by An Bord Pleanála may contravene an EU habitat directive.

Galway TD Frank Fahey, who is the chair of the Oireachtas Transport Committee, has called for co-operation and mediation between the opposing government agencies on the issue as he believes a protracted court battle could jeopardise the future of the controversial project.

Fahey said: "That government agencies are opposing each other in a High Court case in this way is ludicrous.

"The relevant agencies should come together to discuss the potential contraventions to the habitat directive, with the viewpoint to reaching a compromise that would allow this vital infrastructural project to proceed.

"The Galway City outer bypass is crucial for the development of the city and the delay to its development has already proved damaging for the city."

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Councillor succeeds in getting his own land rezoned

A major row has erupted after a county councillor in Clifden, Galway, sought to have the council rezone his land for development, despite severe objections from the county manager.

With only weeks to go before he seeks re-election, Fianna Fail councillor Josie Conneely, who is a developer, has been criticised for attempting to have 12 acres of land around the Rock Glen Hotel in Clifden, which he owns, rezoned.

One of the main objectors to Mr Conneely's plan is the county coroner Ciaran McLoughlin, in what is being seen locally as a major clash between two of the area's leading figures.

The main issue is that Mr Conneely's hotel is on a very narrow minor road and any additional development along there would be "ridiculous and unworkable", according to an objectors' spokesman.

"The plan is totally unsuitable for the area. The road is so narrow cars can't pass each other and every time there is a burial at the nearby cemetery there is chaos. This can't work," the spokesman said.

Dr McLoughlin declined to comment on the matter but he is known to be willing to fight this all the way.

And it is not just the residents who are opposed to the plan. The county manager Martina Moloney recently informed councillors that the proposed Local Area Plan (LAP) already provides for 100 acres of new residential land, which will provide for around 3,000 new Clifden residents. However, any additional developments are severely restricted under the national guidelines for planning.

Last week, despite the objections of residents and the county manager, a proposal in favour of the rezoning was carried by eight votes to one. Cllr Seamus Walsh (FF), proposed the motion while Cllr Conneely absented himself from the chamber for the discussion and vote.

Defending his decision to propose the rezoning, Mr Walsh told the Sunday Independent: "There are major flaws with the LAP and I am totally in favour of having the road widened to facilitate the development. It is in the interests of the local area to allow this to go forward."

Yesterday, Mr Conneely denied anything he was doing was wrong, and said that he strongly disagreed with the county manager's objections.

Speaking to the Sunday Independent, he said: "The plan as proposed is flawed. At a time when building is being hammered, I am trying to build a major attraction for the area which would provide as many as 50 jobs."

Mr Conneely also attacked Dr McLoughlin and described him and the other objectors as "mere blow-ins". He also accused them of objecting in order to protect their own "cosy" interests.

He said residents had ensured his 2006 plans to build a leisure centre and 24 holiday homes failed, and that failure had cost him a lot of money.

DANIEL McCONNELL Chief Reporter
Sunday Independent

www.buckplanning.ie

Councillors seek meeting over plan for sewage-treatment plant

CONNEMARA COUNCILLORS are seeking an urgent meeting with Minister for the Environment John Gormley over plans to build a sewage-treatment plant at one of the area’s most scenic parts of coastline.

Sruthán pier at Carraroe has been earmarked for the treatment plant by Galway County Council.

The local authority says the site would facilitate linkage to the existing sewerage network running through the village. Attempts to reach an agreement on an alternative location over the past year appear to have failed.

Raw sewage is currently discharged untreated into Casla Bay. However, the local community believes a plant overlooking the Atlantic and within 75m of housing would have a negative impact on the area.

A community group, Coiste Chéibh an tSrutháin, says its main areas of concern relate to “visual impact, odour pollution, noise pollution and discharges from the plant”.

“We believe that developing this sewage-treatment plant at this location will have an adverse effect on the wellbeing of the whole local community in many ways – environmental, physical, psychological and economic.”

The group says camouflaging the plant would be impossible. and it knows of “no other similar sewage-treatment plant in a similar location anywhere in the country or, indeed, anywhere abroad”.

Representatives of the community staged a protest at Galway County Council’s headquarters this week, which resulted in deferral of a draft proposal before the authority to begin building the plant.

Connemara councillors who are seeking to discuss the issue with Mr Gormley have been advised that the Galway county manager has the authority to pursue the project if a decision is not taken within six weeks.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

New €50m school for engineers at NUI Galway

A NEW €50 million engineering school is to be developed at NUI Galway, Minister for Education Batt O'Keeffe announced last night. Tendering for the new school will begin shortly.

When the building is completed in 2010, NUI Galway will have facilities for more than 1,100 engineering students and staff.

The project will be funded through a combination of exchequer funding under the National Development Plan 2007- 2013, resources realised by NUI Galway, as well as donor funding.

The 14,000sq m building will bring all the engineering disciplines from across the campus together.

Last night, Mr O'Keeffe said the new development will enhance the number of skilled graduates in the sector and broaden Ireland's appeal as a location for the study and research of engineering.

When this project is completed, it will represent a major Government-sponsored investment in the development and modernisation of facilities at NUI Galway, he said.

The Minister stressed that investment of this nature was not granted lightly.

"Capital projects such as this one are subject to a rigorous assessment under the Government's capital appraisal guidelines," he continued. "In this instance, both my department and the Higher Education Authority recognised the essential benefits of this project and accepted the comprehensive business case made by NUI Galway."

More than €50 million has been invested by the State in capital developments at NUI Galway in recent years. The funding has enabled expansion and growth of research programmes in fields such as biomedical engineering, nanotechnology and marine science.

NUI Galway will also receive €6 million under the research refurbishment scheme, allowing the university to maintain and upgrade its research facilities.

Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Eyre Square renovation could now cost city €20m

THE CONTROVERSIAL Eyre Square project in Galway could cost up to €20 million as a result of a High Court ruling, the city's mayor has predicted.

Mayor of Galway Cllr Pádraig Conneely says that it is time to "seriously question" Galway City Council's professional management abilities" following the High Court judgment.

The judgment, issued on Friday, rejected the city council's legal efforts to overturn an arbitrator's finding that it had behaved unreasonably towards a construction company hired to renovate Eyre Square.

Mr Justice Bryan McMahon upheld all the arbitrator's findings.

The contractor, Samuel Kingston Construction (SKC), ceased work on the site on June 27th, 2005, some 17 months after it had started the refurbishment project at Eyre Square.

Three weeks before, on June 4th, 2005, the city council had withdrawn all sums paid to the company under an acceleration agreement.

Mr Conneely said that the project, quoted at costing €9.6 million by Galway City Council, could now cost an extra €10 million.

"We have never got the accounts for this project, which had to be completed by another contractor.

"But once compensation is paid to SKC and legal costs are met, we could well be talking about a total of €20 million," Mr Conneely said.

"My stance in relation to the management of this has been totally vindicated," he said.

"If this was the private sector, heads would roll," said the mayor.

Galway City Council is understood to be studying the judgment before commenting further.

In a related development, NUI Galway writer-in-residence Mary O'Malley has warned that she believes the city to be at a "tipping point" due to the dramatic "consumption" of its own civic space by development.

"The issue of civic space, from public allotments and parks, to hospitals and railway stations, has become increasingly urgent as such space is privatised," said Ms O'Malley, who has initiated a series of public discussions on the issue at the university.

Film-maker and mountaineer Dermot Somers will address the theme of Wilderness in the City at NUI Galway's Arts Millennium building tomorrow.

Other participants in the series include human geographer, Valerie Ledwith, playwright Marina Carr; poets Sinéad Morrissey and Maurice Riordan, and writer Peter Sirr.

The sessions will be chaired by Ms O'Malley and NUI Galway's Dean of the College of Arts, Social Sciences and Celtic Studies Prof Kevin Barry.

The discussions are open to the public.

Further information is available by calling 091-495610.

The Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Galway to get new 'cultural quarter'

Galway councillors have agreed to develop a cultural quarter around the historic Spanish Arch area.

They unanimously agreed the plan at a meeting last night.

The cultural quarter would include the Galway City Museum, Spanish Arch, the soon to be refurbished Druid Theatre and the new Art House cinema to be built across the road from the museum.

Councillor Niall Ó Brolchain, who proposed the motion, said Galway’s credentials as a city of culture were “second to none” and that it was important to ensure arts groups, businesses and community groups get a say in how it is developed.

"I believe that the potential of the area is enormous if we can get things right", he said.

“It is important that we get a look and feel to the area that we are all happy with and this can only be achieved by careful and considerate planning."

Ireland.com

www.buckplanning.ie

Residents oppose plans for revamp of traditional Galway city area

RESIDENTS OF Galway city's "West" neighbourhood where writer Walter Macken was born have expressed opposition to "environmental improvements" proposed by Galway City Council.

The Small Crane and Henry Street "enhancement" scheme aims to "improve the quality of the public realm" with "landscaping, paving, public lighting", according to the council.

It also aims to "rationalise and co-ordinate" parking and traffic, and "promote an inclusive and accessible environment" in line with commitments to the Barcelona declaration on accessibility.

However, long-time "West" resident and arts administrator Paraic Breathnach says the plan is "no more than gentrification to facilitate a proposed hotel development nearby and to increase property values and rates". The plan "poses a serious threat to the fabric of a close-knit community", he says.

"This bourgeoisification is being introduced without adequate consultation, because the local authority is embarrassed about its industrial past," Mr Breathnach told The Irish Times.

As a century-old locality within walking distance of Galway city centre, the "West" was home to employees of mills, factories and workers on the Eglinton Canal. Its community atmosphere was captured by photographer Jane Talbot in an exhibition entitled Knock, Knock which was so successful that it was exhibited twice at Galway Arts Centre in 2006.

Ms Talbot has maintained gardens at Walter Macken's birthplace and other parts of the neighbourhood. She said that while she favoured proposals by the local authority to plant trees, she felt the whole scheme was "too much too soon" in an area ignored for years. "This a real, live residential area, not a shopping precinct," she said.

Sally O'Shaughnessy (77), who was born in her home in the "West", said that when the local authority owned the terraces it was "pure hell" to get repairs done. "Now, all of a sudden, you want to change everything in our area that we love so much," she has said in a submission to the local authority.

The West Residents Association has already filed objections to a plan to construct a multistorey hotel with conference, leisure and restaurant facilities on the site of the old Connaught Laundry in St Helen's Street.

The council denies the "enhancement scheme" is linked to any developer-led plans in the vicinity.

A council spokeswoman said that the model for the plan is available on its website, and it is hoped to submit the plan for approval of councillors within the next two months.

The Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Galway road plan a threat to wildlife haven, say campaigners

Galway's "green lungs" are under threat from city council roadway plans, according to a new environmental campaign.

The Friends of the Forest campaign has been initiated to highlight the negative impact of a proposed new city relief road on the 120-acre Terryland forest park.

Terryland forest, which extends from the Corrib river to Castlegar, owes its origins to a residents' campaign in the mid-1990s to protect green areas close to the Corrib. As a result, the Corrib has one of the few undeveloped riverbank environments on the island.

The associated forest is a haven for hares, voles, foxes, rabbits, swans, kestrels, pheasants and bats.

Brendan Smith, spokesman for Friends of the Forest, said that Galway City Council had actively promoted Terryland as the most ambitious urban forest park development in Europe, with a target planting of 500,000 native Irish trees.

At the park's first one-day community planting in March 2001, more than 3,000 people turned up to plant trees, Mr Smith said, and schools began to use the area as an "outdoor classroom". The "eco-social experiment" had helped to engender civic pride, created a "carbon sink" to offset global warming and "produced oodles of good will towards City Hall".

However, the local authority, beset by the Eyre Square refurbishment controversy in recent years, began to lose interest in the Terryland park steering committee latterly, said Mr Smith.

"The few public events that did take place since 2005 did so with insufficient publicity, and therefore [ low] community participation, and the absence of park wardens has led to the woodlands becoming prone to litter and bush-drinking."

The proposed relief route from the Dyke Road, running by the forest park and the river Corrib to Quincentennial Road, is intended to reduce traffic congestion. However, the campaign said it would do the opposite and that it was "developer-led".

"The adjoining Headford Road/ Woodquay zone is already too congested, and the possibility of transforming the Dyke Road into a new major artery for pedestrians, cyclists and possibly public transport will be lost forever," Mr Smith said.

"At a time of rising global water levels, the Dyke Road lands are unsuitable for further development and should be preserved as wetlands and woodlands.

"Any such roadway would also undermine plans for sustainable recreational amenities, including an interpretative centre which would teach skills such as dry-stone-walling and coppicing.

"And a roadway would represent a betrayal of the tens of thousands of children and adults who planted trees and bulbs in Terryland since 2000," he said.

Mayor of Galway Tom Costello (Lab) and former mayor Niall Ó Brolcháin (Green Party) have both expressed support for the campaign, and representatives met senior city officials last week.

The campaign intends to initiate a petition in the new year.

Galway City Council was unavailable for comment.

Lorna Siggins
The Irish Times

www.buckplanning.ie

Council goes against Galway's wish

COUNCILLORS in Galway city have voted to expand the 33m Briarhill shopping centre in the suburb of Doughiska despite strong opposition from local residents and planning officials. A 1.4-hectare residential site part owned by a Fine Gael councillor is to be rezoned commercial to facilitate the expansion of the centre despite claims by city manager Joe Mc Grath that there is already "sufficient zoned land in the area". Councillor Brian Walsh, who has a 5% stake in the land, with local developer Liam Mulryan owning the remainder, left a recent council meeting during heated discussions on the issue. Residents claim their concerns over poor local infrastructure, particularly the inadequate roads network, have been ignored by politicians who have reneged on earlier promises to improve public facilities in the area.

"The feeling is that if you are a rich property developer then you jump to the top of the queue and get what you want, whereas if you are looking for traffic lights or footpaths then you go to the back, " says Doughiska residents association, spokesperson, Fearghal Wall. "We are looking for basic infrastructure, not an extended shopping centre.

The entry to the centre from the Dublin road is an absolute disgrace, if a bus and a car are passing in opposite directions then it's gridlocked.

"All the councillors are going on about how they are going to get this and that for the area but then they go and pass a motion which will bring in more industry and traffic."

The existing shopping centre, which opened in October has been broadly welcomed by local residents who had complained of the absence of retail facilities in the suburb, located five miles from Galway city. The 14,887sq m (160,242sq ft) centre is anchored by Dunnes Stores and includes 16 units of various sizes, office space, 22 two-bed apartments and 554 parking spaces on ground and basement levels. The planned expansion will almost double the size of the centre and will involve extending the Dunnes outlet and building a drive through restaurant and a petrol filling station. The centre is expected to create 300 jobs when fully operational.

Architect Paul Dillon says he is anxious to address the concerns of local residents when designing the extension to the development. "Our design team is now starting work on this phase and as part of the design process we intend to address all of the concerns which have been raised locally and any input from residents will be well received."

"Briarhill is already a huge shopping centre, " says Labour councillor, Tom Costello. "But it's this second phase of the scheme which is to include further commercial development that's worrying local people. They're concerned about heavy trucks offloading goods in a confined space. The planned restaurant will also mean there will be a lot of activity at various times in the area. It could be said that the real decision on this has now been taken although when the planning submission is made there will at least be an opportunity to look again at the proposals."

Sunday Tribune

www.buckplanning.ie

New €125m retail centre for Tuam

Plans for a new €125 million retail centre in Tuam have been submitted to Galway County Council.

If planning permission is approved, the centre will include a supermarket, department store, 55 shops and commercial units,112 residential units, a creche, a restaurant and office accommodation.

The development is proposed for the Palace Centre Site and will have the Bishop’s Palace as a centrepiece. The palace is a seven-bay, three-storey over-basement house dating from about 1790.

It became part of the Presentation convent school and was renovated for use as a restaurant and offices in the mid-1990s.

The scheme has be en dubbed Palace Centre @ Tuam and will have 29,540 square metres of floor space, including just under 950 basement and surface parking spaces.

It will be developed by Joe and Helen O’Toole, who own the SuperValu in the town.

‘‘This development will reinvigorate the centre of Tuam and contribute significantly to the ongoing development of Tuam as a key arterial town in Co Galway,” said Joe O’Toole.

John Mannion of letting agent DNG John Mannion said ‘‘that the proposal will create a vibrant retail identity for Tuam and will provide the local population with the type of shopping facilities they deserve’’.

The planning application seeks permission for a supermarket of just under 2,900 square metres, a department store of 1,300 metres and a 3,000 square metre household store.

The development includes some of the proposed inner relief road and will also feature an open landscaped plaza around the Bishop’s Palace.

It was designed by OKM Architects in Galway.

Tuam is 30 minute drive north of Galway and has a population of about 6,000 people.

Sunday Business Post