North Meath locals to get a say as village plans launched

Locals in several north Meath towns and villages are to be given a say on how their communities are to evolve over the next decade in the coming weeks. Local Area Plans (LAPs) for Oldcastle, Crossakiel, Carnaross, Moynalty, Drumcomrath, Kilmainhamwood, Carlanstown and Nobber were unveiled at Monday"s meeting of the Kells Area Council meeting, where senior Meath County Council planner Wendy Bagnall outlined a series information nights planned in each centre. These evenings will involve displaying the existing development plan and officials being present to speak to locals, who can fill out comment forms which could then be followed up on. Bernard Dee of GVA Planning said a draft for the public meeting in Oldcastle was almost ready and he welcomed the opportunity to engage with local groups and individuals to ensure they took ownership of the process. The town had spread along its approach roads with little in between, he said, making the consolidation of these areas a likely first step. Oldcastle was 'a surprisingly lively town with a great buzz but traffic is the killer thing', he added. Cllr Michael Lynch said Oldcastle people would co-operate with the process and some submissions were already in. Dereliction was a priority to tackle to ensure the town"s proper development, he said. Ms Bagnall told him Dromone was one of 30 designated graigs for which draft plans would be started in 2009. Cllr Brian Collins urged new internal roads to link around Oldcastle, while Cllr Lynch said one from the Stoney Road was a priority for the industrial area. Changed economic circumstances meant the LAPs for the villages might mean little for some years, said Cllr John Farrelly, who urged that 'realistic goals' be set. He criticised a recent Bord Pleanála 'precedent' in changing an Athboy housing planning permission, doubling the number of units. Cllr Bryan Reilly claimed the board had ridden roughshod over the council, putting into question its village LAPS. A developer who did not co-operate could overturn the plans of others in such cases, said Cllr Michael Gallagher. Ms Bagnall said the council was considering writing to Bord Pleanála about the case. Charlotte Sheridan, Sheridan Woods, Architects, said the public events in Crossakiel were set for Thursday 25th September in the Welcome Wagon and Monday 29th in the Carnaross Inn, both from 6pm-8pm. Crossakiel was formerly a graig but recent planning approvals meant a new boundary now has to be defined. The challenge for Carnaross was its extended layout from its crossroads to the residential and mart/football field areas. Crossakiel was 'fabulously sited', said Cllr Liz McCormack, while Cllr Farrelly and Cllr Eugene Cassidy said the priority for Carnaross was a sewerage scheme. Consultant David Cullivan said the Moynalty (Monday 22nd September), Drumconrath (Tuesday 23rd) and Kilmainhamwood (Wednesday 24th) meetings would have strategic issues papers on display. The three villages were not in the commuter belt and had 'fantastic built heritage, particularly Moynalty'. Cllr Cassidy told him both Drumconrath and Kilmainhamwood faced difficulties in finding housing for young couples, while Cllr Gallagher said dereliction and lack of development partly explained the census falls recorded in Kilmainhamwood and Drumconrath. Michael McDonagh of Declan Brazil & Associates said his firm looked forward to working with both Carlanstown and Nobber communities on their LAPS (the Nobber public event is tonight (Wednesday 17th September) in the village hall, from 6pm-8pm, while Carlanstown"s is tomorrow (Thursday) night in the national school, also from 6pm-8pm). Cllrs Cassidy and Reilly urged that the Deerpark amenity area be made a priority for rapidly-expanding Carlanstown, while Cllr Cassidy said his native Nobber had no industrial development since the zoned area 'is a bog'. All councillors wanted to see a by-pass for Carlanstown, given the large numbers of schoolchildren crossing the very busy N51. Tenders for Ráth Cairn and Gibbstown were set to be finalised within a week, added Ms Bagnall.