Council gives green light for controversial Clonmore apartment complex

Westmeath County Council has granted planning permission for a controversial new development in Clonmore.

The successful application by Peadar Conlon includes details for the demolition of the former Clonmore Shopping Centre and the construction of four retail units, six first floor apartments and 17 two-bed units over three storeys on the site.

Westmeath County Council's planning department received over 20 submissions from local residents objecting to the development, which was given the green light after a further information (FI) request.

The submissions from householders in Clonmore Heights and Newbrook cited a number of areas of concern, including the density and height of the proposed development. A number of objectors also expressed concerns that apartment balconies and the building's rooftop garden will, in the words of the Newbrook and Clonmore Road Residents Association, “have a hugely negative impact” on their privacy.

In its submission, the residents association said that while it was pleased that “there is finally a proposal for a development of the eyesore that is the site of the derelict former Clonmore Shopping Centre”, it has “strong objections to the current proposal”.

The association said that the plan for 17 apartments is “just too dense to be adequately accommodated within the very limited size of this site” and that the “proposed three-storey building is completely incompatible with the surrounding bungalows on either side and two-storey houses to the rear of the development”.

In its report the council's planning department said that concerns about the visual impact of the development were “satisfactorily addressed” by a revised design in response to the FI request.

On the issue of “neighbour impact”, the report stated that the privacy of neighbours from the roof terrace “may require the provision of higher barriers”. The council's Environment section commented that the development's terrace is “not likely to give rise to any significant increase in the level of noise associated with normal residential activity at ground level”.

The application was the subject of a representation from Cllr Ken Glynn, a resident of Clonmore, who also made a submission in which he raised a number of concerns.

In his representation on behalf of Clonmore residents, Cllr Glynn said that the FI “does not change the original view of residents nor does it address any of the major concerns addressed in their individual submissions”.

He asked that the council “take into account the overwhelming view of residents that three storeys is not in keeping with the area and a much lower density is required”.