Protect East Meath has recently lodged an appeal to An Bord Pleanála against the decision of Meath County Council to grant planning permission for a development of 95 units (49 houses and 46 apartments) at Colp. A second appeal from Grange Rath Management Company has also been lodged, the two appeals will be handled together.
We took this appeal for a number of reasons based on planning and environmental concerns:
- This would be a car dependent development because the site is remote from Drogheda and other services and can’t be accessed on foot, bicycle or by public transport. Our community, particularly children need to be able to travel in the area independently on foot or bicycle. The development is therefore inconsistent with national policy such as Smarter Travel.
- A Joint Urban Plan for Drogheda and a Transport Study for the town are needed to inform the future development of the town, this proposal is premature and would undermine these plans
- Traffic from this location is causing huge congestion in Julianstown because the R132 road lacks capacity. Not only are there 20 minute tailbacks morning and evening, the traffic congestion is having a ruinous effect on the quality of life in the village because of noise and air pollution.
- The Colp proposal is part of a larger development which requires an environmental assessment that was not carried out. A larger development in this area would make the environmental and planning issues worse.
- Meath County Council has identified this location as one that cannot be immediately developed because of lack of services, development here would therefore breach the National Planning Framework.
We have included a copy of our appeal below.