Planning

Development Control

During 2004, a total of 1,543 planning applications were received by Sligo County Council which represents a 40% increase on the number received in 2003.

The majority of these applications were determined by the Council within 8 weeks of the receipt of application and the refusal rate was 13%.

The Planning and Development Regulations 2001, which commenced in March of 2002, introduced a stricter regime for the validation of planning applications. As a result of these new requirements, the number of invalid planning applications lodged increased substantially during 2002 and 2003. For example, of the 1,108 planning applications received by Sligo County Council in 2003, approximately 40% were found to be invalid. The requirements associated with processing invalid applications placed unnecessary demands on the resources and time of the planning department. In order to address this issue, the planning department invited all local agents to two separate seminars in 2004. The seminars sought to clarify some of the areas where difficulties had arisen and allowed for feedback from agents on issues they felt required explanation. As a result of these initiatives the rate of invalidation has halved in 2004.

Sligo and Environs Development Plan 2004 - 2010

Due to the phenomenal growth and development of Sligo in recent years, Sligo County and Borough Councils prepared a joint plan for the greater Sligo area. The Sligo and Environs Development Plan 2004 - 2010 was adopted in December 2003 and published in April 2004.  This visionary blueprint for the Gateway city was widely welcomed and has had a notable impact on Sligo’s principle settlement in its first year of implementation.   

Sligo Draft County Development PLan 2005 - 20011

Following extensive pre-draft consultation throughout 2003, the Draft County Development Plan was submitted to the elected members in March and put on public display from May-July 2004. The Plan sets out an overall strategy for the proper planning and sustainable development of the County and addresses a range of issues, including management of growth, sustaining rural communities, providing housing, supporting balanced economic development, strengthening rural coastal areas, conserving environmental quality and delivering improved infrastructure.

A high level of public interest was shown in the Draft Plan and the Development Planning Unit was invited to outline its key provisions at two locally-organised, public consultation meetings in July. The Draft Plan contains ‘miniplans’ (i.e. small land use plans for villages under development pressure) for Ballysadare, Collooney and Grange. The Mini-Plans attracted particular attention, giving rise to almost 40% of the written submissions lodged with the Council.

Being an integral part of the Development Plan, the Record of Protected Structures (RPS) has also been subject to review. An assessment of the built heritage of the County resulted in a much-extended list of structures proposed for protection. This list or ‘Draft RPS’ was contained in a separate illustrated document, which drew some 60 submissions during the July-October public display period.

By Christmas, the Members had fully considered the Manager’s Report on all issues raised in submissions and had agreed on the proposed Amendments to the Draft Plan. These amendments are subject to further public consultation in early 2005.

Sligo’s is one of the first county development plans drafted since the publication of the National Spatial Strategy 2002–2022. It has regard to the Regional Planning Guidelines for the Border Region, to which Sligo County Council contributed significantly, and its settlement/housing policies are consistent with the Draft Planning Guidelines on Sustainable Rural Housing. In terms of presentation, the design and layout of the Plan were done entirely by the Development Planning Unit - to professional publishing standards. Not surprisingly, the Department of the Environment, Heritage & Local Government is taking a special interest in this Plan, which may prove to be a model for others when adopted in mid-2005.

Local Area Plans and Mini-Plans

Over the coming years, population growth in Sligo’s pressurised Sub-Region will need careful management, while imbalances are addressed in the less populated south and west of the County. Central to the Council’s response to these challenges is the preparation of land use plans for towns and villages, in consultation with local communities and elected representatives.

Following on the completion of Strandhill Local Area Plan in 2003, the Enniscrone Local Area Plan was adopted in March 2004 and Hazelwood-Ballinode Local Area Plan in November 2004. Ballymote and Tobercurry are next in line for such plans and preparatory work commenced during the year on local area plans for these important ‘Key Support Towns’.

From now on, it is intended to prepare several ‘mini-plans’ each year for the County’s smaller settlements and to incorporate them into the new County Development Plan using the statutory ‘variation’ procedure. By December 2004, significant groundwork had been carried out on three further mini-plans and these are expected for completion and adoption during 2005.

Enforcement of Building Control

The main areas of focus of the enforcement section are as follows:

• Enforcement of planning control generally
• Building control
• Dangerous structures
• Taking in charge of housing estates
• Collection of financial contributions
• Ensuring that sufficient security is provided to ensure the satisfactory completion of housing developments.

Enforcement of Planning Control

During the past 12 months there was an increased number of random inspections and a substantial improvement in the response time for dealing with complaints from members of the public. Most developers were generally  compliant  with   the planning laws and regulations and in areas where difficulties did arise these were generally resolved by discussion and with the co-operation of the developers. This is in line with the Council’s policy in this area. Inspections are now carried out on all developments prior to commencement and this has resulted in potential difficulties being highlighted and resolved early in the construction process. The success of the enforcement section is clearly demonstrated by the payment of approximately €80,000 in respect of application fees for planning permission to retain unauthorised developments during 2004.

During 2004, the Council received complaints in respect of 222 developments. Of these cases, 315 warning letters were issued and in 169 cases the matter was resolved to the Council’s satisfaction. The enforcement section succeeded in achieving 100% response rate to all complaints within a period of six weeks.

Building Control

The objective of the building control section is to encourage good building practice, to ensure that buildings are constructed correctly and that access for disabled and elderly is provided for in building plans. Inspection rates of 15% are presently being achieved in this area. During 2004 particular attention was paid to compliance with Part M of the Building Regulations dealing with access for people with disabilities and a high level of compliance has been achieved in this area.

Dangerous Structures

One structure was identified by the Council as being dangerous during the past year. This structure was subsequently removed.

Taking in Charge of Housing Estates

A new policy & procedure for taking in charge of housing estates was adopted by the Council at its meeting of 1st March 2004. Many new housing estates are presently under construction and the activities of the enforcement section are geared towards ensuring that these estates are satisfactorily completed and taken in charge by the Council following their completion.

Financial Contributions

A system has been put in place to ensure that financial contributions are paid in accordance with the requirements of planning permissions granted. This system ensures that contributions are paid in all cases and where the contribution is not paid legal proceedings will be implemented.

Bonds & Security

The amount of security required by the Council in order to ensure that estates are completed to a satisfactory standard was substantially increased in 2003. This increase was applied on the basis of experience to date in relation to existing developments and in order to ensure that sufficient monies would be available in the event of the developer failing to complete an estate to the required standard.