Planning refusals ‘the next thing to a death in the family’

Neill O'Neill

‘GROUNDHOG Day’ was how the planning debate at the monthly meeting of the West Mayo Municipal District was described yesterday, with councillors once again enraged at a planning application that was presented to them with a recommendation to refuse.
The application in question was made by a local couple in Louisburgh, wishing to build on a section of family land, but planning officer Brendan Munnelly said it was being recommended for refusal owing to the elevated nature of the site.  
At practically every monthly meeting of the district there is a file being recommended for refusal, and this has caused clear agitation with councillors, but in particular with Cllr Paul McNamara from Achill, Cllr Michael Holmes from Tiernaur and Cllr Gerry Coyle from Belmullet, as the refusals most regularly relate to planning applications in rural areas.
Councillor Holmes was familiar with this particular application and challenged the decision, saying he and his colleagues were failing as councillors when it came to planning refusals and describing the effects of planning refusals as ‘the next thing to a death in a family’. He was backed up on this by Cllr Coyle, who becomes more exasperated by the planning system as each month passes. He said that it was ‘shame on the council’ if they allowed this to happen, and that if St Patrick was around himself he wouldn’t be allowed to build a church on Croagh Patrick. He warned that there will be nobody left in rural Ireland and that the County Development Plan is not working. Cllr Coyle suggested that the entire meeting adjourn to go and look at the site, such was his frustration with the planning system in Mayo. Cllrr Paul McNamara also proposed a site visit and asked why planning applications are even presented to councillors.
“We have been here debating this for 25 minutes and all seven councillors have given their opinion, but what is the point in bringing this to us every month when we have no say in it, we are not being listened to,” he fumed.
Cllr Christy Hyland wanted to know if the day of a person getting a job in Mayo and being able to buy a site from a local farmer to set up home with their family was over?

‘That day is gone’
He was told ‘yes that day is gone’ by Mr Munnelly, who added that this is not anything new, ‘it has been like this since 2008’ and is a rule that was ‘brought in by central government’.
Director of Services Tom Gilligan pointed out the number of planning applications that are approved by the local authority and said that he is uneasy about debating planning applications in open forums, as it is unfair on the applicant (who we are not naming), the staff and the councillors.
Cathaoirleach Brendan Mulroy disagreed with this, saying that it was important that councillors asked questions an behalf of the people who are affected by such refusals, and were seen to be doing so. He added that discussing such matters at a public meeting also ensured that elected members were aware of what was happening with planning applications and were informed before the refusal was finalised.