Plans for 84 new Kildare homes and retirement village axed by An Coimisiún Pleanála

Plans for 84 new houses and eight apartments at Curragh Road, Athgarvan, Newbridge have been turned down by An Coimisiún Pleanála.

ARC Villages Limited also wanted to build a retirement village. 

The Commission said that despite the inclusion of the retirement facility, the proposed development would not provide sufficient community facilities, which is what the land is zoned for.  

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In deciding not to accept the Inspector's recommendation to grant permission, the Commission did agree with the inspector's view that the proposed large open space area to the east of the development would provide a significant amount of high quality usable public open space both for the retirement village and a public amenity for the community, and that the proposed layout would not pose a traffic or pedestrian hazard.

However, it did not agree with the inspector's assertion that a retirement home, in itself, was a community amenity. The Commission considered that while a retirement village is open for consideration under the E zoning, the fact that it was constructed over the entirety of the E-zoned land and because it had not been demonstrated by the applicant that the proposed recreational building would be sufficiently available to the public, the Commission shared the opinion of Kildare County Council and decided that the proposed development would materially contravene the zoning of the site.