After 11 years at the helm of Irish planning, John O’Connor said the appeals board had rejected many such schemes, “often in the teeth of local and media criticism”, but it permitted some “which with hindsight it might have refused”.
Addressing the Irish Planning Institute’s annual conference a month before he is due to step down, he said: “Perhaps a few shopping developments that were too large or too remote from town [and] city centres got through.”
He said it was “undeniable that the centres of some of our cities and towns have been badly affected by the flight of retailing” to out-of-town centres. But the retail planning guidelines and decisions made by the board had “prevented a much worse situation”.
He described the new motorway network, much of it approved by the board despite considerable opposition, as one of the lasting benefits of the boom era and said the board had protected it against “piggyback” local development.
Mr O’Connor said many sections of Irish society were now in the process of “evaluating how things were done in the past and how matters can be improved for the future” and said planners “must participate fully in this national reappraisal”.
He said the choice of location for major public or private sector projects should have a much stronger planning input.
“Planners should be part of the site selection process and not seen as people to be brought in to make the planning application afterwards,” he said. He added that he found it extraordinary that developers and banks made significant decisions about land purchase and development without any apparent input by planners.
He said the greatest failures in Irish planning revolve around the zoning of land, which is “the issue that has brought the system most into disrepute”. The “excessive and unsustainable” zoning of land had contributed to the property bubble and its aftermath, he said.
He welcomed the 2010 Planning Act’s emphasis on the need for local authorities to have a “core strategy”, saying this “will avoid a repeat of the disorderly sprawl of inefficient and wasteful development and restore credibility to the planning system”.
He said he had never had an improper approach about planning, and that the board’s reputation for independence and integrity was ultimately its most important attribute.
He complained that councils took “widely different approaches in interpreting and applying” sustainable rural housing guidelines. In some cases, “undue pressure being brought on planners” and the “lack of transparency” could lead to “huge frustration”.
Referring to the proliferation of one-off houses, Mr O’Connor said the planning system had not done enough to protect the unique Irish landscape, “which is a cultural, environmental and economic asset of inestimable value: once destroyed, it cannot be restored.
“There is a theory that there is an element of chaos in the Irish character that makes us sceptical of regulation or planning – ‘rules are there to be broken if you can get away with it’. This may account for some of our very serious failings over the past decade.”
He said this may also explain why the Irish body politic has been reluctant to fully embrace spatial or land-use planning. Such planning would involve agreeing visions for development at the national, regional and local levels, involving difficult choices, he said.
The National Spatial Strategy “needs to be reviewed to take account of radically changed prospects” and this could allow for a serious debate about the future of development planning, he said.
Given Ireland’s “severely diminished level of resources”, planning “has a crucial part to play in national recovery – in terms of efficient and economic planning and use of infrastructure [and] protecting our environment and natural and built heritage,” he said.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Showing posts with label john o'connor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label john o'connor. Show all posts
Monday, 9 May 2011
Wednesday, 29 April 2009
Planning head urges key role for assets body
THE PROPOSED National Assets Management Agency (Nama) needs to be part of a different future for Irish planning, compared to the developer-led approach of the the boom years, according to John O’Connor, chairman of An Bord Pleanála.
In an outspoken address to the National Housing Conference in Sligo yesterday, he said Nama needed to be “more than a financial exercise” if it was to maximise benefits to the public, and this should include providing sites for schools, enterprise and amenities.
Mr O’Connor said the mooted property tax offered an opportunity to begin tackling the long-standing issue of the value of development land. The absence of such a tax had contributed to the bubble and militated against sustainable planning.
“Land value tax . . . would drive sustainable development, promote logical behaviour and stabilise the market,” he said. It would also reduce pressure on local authorities to grant planning permission to generate revenue for themselves.
He urged local authorities to be pro-active in giving concessions on development levies and making more use of compulsory purchase powers to promote good developments, even at a small-scale, in the right locations such as town centres. During the boom years, Mr O’Connor complained that councillors and local authority managers had succumbed to vested interests and the “any development is good development” syndrome.
“Developers and vested interests had undue influence on plan-making [and] little regard to statutory development plans in buying land and designing schemes,” Mr O’Connor said.
Banks had also ignored planning parameters in lending to developers. Local authorities had often failed to vindicate their own development plans or sent the wrong signals to developers. Land values were “subverted” and many bad planning decisions had to be overturned or amended by An Bord Pleanála on appeal.
He said the current recession was a time to reflect on lessons from the recent past, giving architects, planners and developers an opportunity to start laying the groundwork for a resurgence in the housing market – after it eventually stabilised.
“A ‘plan-led’ system is more efficient, equitable and publicly acceptable than a ‘developer-led’ system,” Mr O’Connor said. “Development plans must be externally and internally consistent: zoning should reflect policy objectives and avoid exceptions.”
Seán Ó Laoire, president of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland – which jointly organised the conference with the Department of the Environment, said one of the tasks we faced was to “clean up the mess” left by the boom.
The current recession meant “we now have a chance to ameliorate, remediate and recover”, he told some 200 participants.
He said “this time of crisis” should be used to set out a vision for the renewal and well-being of Irish society . . . “to openly interrogate our mistakes and system failures [and] articulate the economic and social dividends of good governance, planning and design”.
It was a cliche for politicians to talk about developing a smart economy when they didn’t have “a skeleton to put flesh on”. Instead, Ireland should focus on becoming a smart society, based on being collectively rather than merely individually creative.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
In an outspoken address to the National Housing Conference in Sligo yesterday, he said Nama needed to be “more than a financial exercise” if it was to maximise benefits to the public, and this should include providing sites for schools, enterprise and amenities.
Mr O’Connor said the mooted property tax offered an opportunity to begin tackling the long-standing issue of the value of development land. The absence of such a tax had contributed to the bubble and militated against sustainable planning.
“Land value tax . . . would drive sustainable development, promote logical behaviour and stabilise the market,” he said. It would also reduce pressure on local authorities to grant planning permission to generate revenue for themselves.
He urged local authorities to be pro-active in giving concessions on development levies and making more use of compulsory purchase powers to promote good developments, even at a small-scale, in the right locations such as town centres. During the boom years, Mr O’Connor complained that councillors and local authority managers had succumbed to vested interests and the “any development is good development” syndrome.
“Developers and vested interests had undue influence on plan-making [and] little regard to statutory development plans in buying land and designing schemes,” Mr O’Connor said.
Banks had also ignored planning parameters in lending to developers. Local authorities had often failed to vindicate their own development plans or sent the wrong signals to developers. Land values were “subverted” and many bad planning decisions had to be overturned or amended by An Bord Pleanála on appeal.
He said the current recession was a time to reflect on lessons from the recent past, giving architects, planners and developers an opportunity to start laying the groundwork for a resurgence in the housing market – after it eventually stabilised.
“A ‘plan-led’ system is more efficient, equitable and publicly acceptable than a ‘developer-led’ system,” Mr O’Connor said. “Development plans must be externally and internally consistent: zoning should reflect policy objectives and avoid exceptions.”
Seán Ó Laoire, president of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland – which jointly organised the conference with the Department of the Environment, said one of the tasks we faced was to “clean up the mess” left by the boom.
The current recession meant “we now have a chance to ameliorate, remediate and recover”, he told some 200 participants.
He said “this time of crisis” should be used to set out a vision for the renewal and well-being of Irish society . . . “to openly interrogate our mistakes and system failures [and] articulate the economic and social dividends of good governance, planning and design”.
It was a cliche for politicians to talk about developing a smart economy when they didn’t have “a skeleton to put flesh on”. Instead, Ireland should focus on becoming a smart society, based on being collectively rather than merely individually creative.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Planning head urges key role for assets body
THE PROPOSED National Assets Management Agency (Nama) needs to be part of a different future for Irish planning, compared to the developer-led approach of the the boom years, according to John O’Connor, chairman of An Bord Pleanála.
In an outspoken address to the National Housing Conference in Sligo yesterday, he said Nama needed to be “more than a financial exercise” if it was to maximise benefits to the public, and this should include providing sites for schools, enterprise and amenities.
Mr O’Connor said the mooted property tax offered an opportunity to begin tackling the long-standing issue of the value of development land. The absence of such a tax had contributed to the bubble and militated against sustainable planning.
“Land value tax . . . would drive sustainable development, promote logical behaviour and stabilise the market,” he said. It would also reduce pressure on local authorities to grant planning permission to generate revenue for themselves.
He urged local authorities to be pro-active in giving concessions on development levies and making more use of compulsory purchase powers to promote good developments, even at a small-scale, in the right locations such as town centres. During the boom years, Mr O’Connor complained that councillors and local authority managers had succumbed to vested interests and the “any development is good development” syndrome.
“Developers and vested interests had undue influence on plan-making [and] little regard to statutory development plans in buying land and designing schemes,” Mr O’Connor said.
Banks had also ignored planning parameters in lending to developers. Local authorities had often failed to vindicate their own development plans or sent the wrong signals to developers. Land values were “subverted” and many bad planning decisions had to be overturned or amended by An Bord Pleanála on appeal.
He said the current recession was a time to reflect on lessons from the recent past, giving architects, planners and developers an opportunity to start laying the groundwork for a resurgence in the housing market – after it eventually stabilised.
“A ‘plan-led’ system is more efficient, equitable and publicly acceptable than a ‘developer-led’ system,” Mr O’Connor said. “Development plans must be externally and internally consistent: zoning should reflect policy objectives and avoid exceptions.”
Seán Ó Laoire, president of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland – which jointly organised the conference with the Department of the Environment, said one of the tasks we faced was to “clean up the mess” left by the boom.
The current recession meant “we now have a chance to ameliorate, remediate and recover”, he told some 200 participants.
He said “this time of crisis” should be used to set out a vision for the renewal and well-being of Irish society . . . “to openly interrogate our mistakes and system failures [and] articulate the economic and social dividends of good governance, planning and design”.
It was a cliche for politicians to talk about developing a smart economy when they didn’t have “a skeleton to put flesh on”. Instead, Ireland should focus on becoming a smart society, based on being collectively rather than merely individually creative.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
In an outspoken address to the National Housing Conference in Sligo yesterday, he said Nama needed to be “more than a financial exercise” if it was to maximise benefits to the public, and this should include providing sites for schools, enterprise and amenities.
Mr O’Connor said the mooted property tax offered an opportunity to begin tackling the long-standing issue of the value of development land. The absence of such a tax had contributed to the bubble and militated against sustainable planning.
“Land value tax . . . would drive sustainable development, promote logical behaviour and stabilise the market,” he said. It would also reduce pressure on local authorities to grant planning permission to generate revenue for themselves.
He urged local authorities to be pro-active in giving concessions on development levies and making more use of compulsory purchase powers to promote good developments, even at a small-scale, in the right locations such as town centres. During the boom years, Mr O’Connor complained that councillors and local authority managers had succumbed to vested interests and the “any development is good development” syndrome.
“Developers and vested interests had undue influence on plan-making [and] little regard to statutory development plans in buying land and designing schemes,” Mr O’Connor said.
Banks had also ignored planning parameters in lending to developers. Local authorities had often failed to vindicate their own development plans or sent the wrong signals to developers. Land values were “subverted” and many bad planning decisions had to be overturned or amended by An Bord Pleanála on appeal.
He said the current recession was a time to reflect on lessons from the recent past, giving architects, planners and developers an opportunity to start laying the groundwork for a resurgence in the housing market – after it eventually stabilised.
“A ‘plan-led’ system is more efficient, equitable and publicly acceptable than a ‘developer-led’ system,” Mr O’Connor said. “Development plans must be externally and internally consistent: zoning should reflect policy objectives and avoid exceptions.”
Seán Ó Laoire, president of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland – which jointly organised the conference with the Department of the Environment, said one of the tasks we faced was to “clean up the mess” left by the boom.
The current recession meant “we now have a chance to ameliorate, remediate and recover”, he told some 200 participants.
He said “this time of crisis” should be used to set out a vision for the renewal and well-being of Irish society . . . “to openly interrogate our mistakes and system failures [and] articulate the economic and social dividends of good governance, planning and design”.
It was a cliche for politicians to talk about developing a smart economy when they didn’t have “a skeleton to put flesh on”. Instead, Ireland should focus on becoming a smart society, based on being collectively rather than merely individually creative.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Saturday, 10 November 2007
One-off housing suffers blow over pollution claims
FAMILIES hoping to build one-off houses in country areas have been dealt a severe blow after top planning officials blamed rural toilets for polluting drinking water sources.
An Bord Pleanála said up to 17,000 one-off homes were built in the countryside each year and the proliferation of septic tanks caused concern given Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) studies that showed 57% of groundwater was already contaminated by excrement.
“The 15,000-17,000 rural houses being built every year are adding to pressure on groundwater resources and must be accounting for some of the decline in standards reported by the EPA,” said board chairman John O’Connor.
He said a third of permissions for rural houses overturned by the board were refused because of a risk of pollution and criticised local authorities for granting permission without adequate checks.
Applicants should not even be given outline permission until they proved the site could provide safe drainage, he said.
His remarks prompted an angry reaction from the Irish Rural Dwellers’ Association (IRDA), which labelled the board “anti-rural”. “IRDA members and all rural people have to put in high quality modern treatment plants at their own expense without one penny’s input from the exchequer while providing one-third of the tax money going to upgrade treatment plants in urban areas,” said the association’s acting secretary, Jim Connolly.
“If some equity is to be brought into the system, grants should be made available for upgrading plants and percolation areas in the countryside.”
An IRDA delegation will meet with An Bord Pleanála officials next week to discuss the issue.
Meanwhile, the board confirmed that a decision on the controversial Poolbeg incinerator would be made next week or the week after. Mr O’Connor rejected suggestions the board would be influenced by comments from Environment Minister John Gormley who is opposed to the project. Such decisions were based on legislation, EU
directives and national policy, not politicians’ remarks, he said.
Irish Examiner
www.buckplanning.ie
An Bord Pleanála said up to 17,000 one-off homes were built in the countryside each year and the proliferation of septic tanks caused concern given Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) studies that showed 57% of groundwater was already contaminated by excrement.
“The 15,000-17,000 rural houses being built every year are adding to pressure on groundwater resources and must be accounting for some of the decline in standards reported by the EPA,” said board chairman John O’Connor.
He said a third of permissions for rural houses overturned by the board were refused because of a risk of pollution and criticised local authorities for granting permission without adequate checks.
Applicants should not even be given outline permission until they proved the site could provide safe drainage, he said.
His remarks prompted an angry reaction from the Irish Rural Dwellers’ Association (IRDA), which labelled the board “anti-rural”. “IRDA members and all rural people have to put in high quality modern treatment plants at their own expense without one penny’s input from the exchequer while providing one-third of the tax money going to upgrade treatment plants in urban areas,” said the association’s acting secretary, Jim Connolly.
“If some equity is to be brought into the system, grants should be made available for upgrading plants and percolation areas in the countryside.”
An IRDA delegation will meet with An Bord Pleanála officials next week to discuss the issue.
Meanwhile, the board confirmed that a decision on the controversial Poolbeg incinerator would be made next week or the week after. Mr O’Connor rejected suggestions the board would be influenced by comments from Environment Minister John Gormley who is opposed to the project. Such decisions were based on legislation, EU
directives and national policy, not politicians’ remarks, he said.
Irish Examiner
www.buckplanning.ie
Councils accused of 'unjustified zonings'
An Bord Pleanala has accused some local authorities of engaging in "unjustifiable zoning", particularly by rezoning excessively large tracts of rural land outside small towns and villages.
Board chairman John O'Connor warned that just because councillors have given the green light for building on a piece of land, it does not mean that the board will approve the development.
He added that it would not be deterred from refusing permission simply because the local authority could be at risk of having to pay millions of euro in compensation to developers.
Local authorities also came in for criticism for granting permission for high-rise developments on an "ad hoc basis" and without fully debating the issue.
The lack of a clear policy was leading to tension between developers and their architects on one side and councillors who were reflecting local opposition on the other. Planners and local authority managers were being caught in the middle, said Mr O'Connor.
He also expressed concern about the effect the rising number of septic tanks was having on water quality in the countryside. Up to 17,000 houses are being built in rural areas each year and this is leading to falling water standards.
Last year, more than one-third of refusals for rural houses by the board were made because of the risk of polluting groundwater. In its most recent report, the Environmental Protection Agency found 57pc of groundwater samples were contaminated by faecal coliforms.
And while the housing market may be cooling, the board is set to handle a record number of appeals -- up 14pc so far this year. An Bord Pleanala believes that developers, who have already invested in sites, are preparing the ground by lodging planning applications in anticipation of the market improving in the year ahead.
Launching its 2006 annual report yesterday, Mr O'Connor, said the board was "somewhat surprised" that the number of appeals remained so high. If the present level of activity continued, 2007 was set to be a record year, with almost 7,000 appeals lodged, up by 1,000 from a year earlier.
"Obviously people may be expecting the market to pick up soon. Certainly the planning and appeals process is very busy," he said.
But as the number of appeals rises, so too does the time it takes to reach a determination. Mr O'Connor admitted that they had "slipped back considerably over the past few years" with less than half now decided within the 18-week statutory time objective.
Breda Heffernan
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Board chairman John O'Connor warned that just because councillors have given the green light for building on a piece of land, it does not mean that the board will approve the development.
He added that it would not be deterred from refusing permission simply because the local authority could be at risk of having to pay millions of euro in compensation to developers.
Local authorities also came in for criticism for granting permission for high-rise developments on an "ad hoc basis" and without fully debating the issue.
The lack of a clear policy was leading to tension between developers and their architects on one side and councillors who were reflecting local opposition on the other. Planners and local authority managers were being caught in the middle, said Mr O'Connor.
He also expressed concern about the effect the rising number of septic tanks was having on water quality in the countryside. Up to 17,000 houses are being built in rural areas each year and this is leading to falling water standards.
Last year, more than one-third of refusals for rural houses by the board were made because of the risk of polluting groundwater. In its most recent report, the Environmental Protection Agency found 57pc of groundwater samples were contaminated by faecal coliforms.
And while the housing market may be cooling, the board is set to handle a record number of appeals -- up 14pc so far this year. An Bord Pleanala believes that developers, who have already invested in sites, are preparing the ground by lodging planning applications in anticipation of the market improving in the year ahead.
Launching its 2006 annual report yesterday, Mr O'Connor, said the board was "somewhat surprised" that the number of appeals remained so high. If the present level of activity continued, 2007 was set to be a record year, with almost 7,000 appeals lodged, up by 1,000 from a year earlier.
"Obviously people may be expecting the market to pick up soon. Certainly the planning and appeals process is very busy," he said.
But as the number of appeals rises, so too does the time it takes to reach a determination. Mr O'Connor admitted that they had "slipped back considerably over the past few years" with less than half now decided within the 18-week statutory time objective.
Breda Heffernan
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
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