Fingal Development Plan 2023–2029 – Written Statement (Consolidated)

1. Page 271

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 271FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 MetroLink will also be served by Park and Ride destinations including one at Estuary (to the north of Swords). This network will therefore serve Dublin Airport, Irish Rail, DART, Dublin Bus and LUAS services and connect key destinations including Ballymun, the Mater Hospital, the Rotunda Hospital, Dublin City University and Trinity College Dublin. MetroLink is anticipated to carry up to 50 million passengers annually. The introduction of this transportation link will greatly improve accessibility for employment hubs all across Fingal along the Metro and Rail Economic Corridor and Dublin City Centre. The issue of skills matching is one for the long-term economic planning of the County. Future sustainability would be more easily secured if local skills and sectoral employment opportunities were more closely aligned. Engagement with higher education institutes, education and training boards, local stakeholders and industry sectoral interests will continue under the auspices of the Fingal Skills Strategy in order to address skills shortages and promote lifelong learning and continuous professional development in the County. Providing locally based affordable work facilities in the form of enterprise centres will improve employment opportunities for local communities and these will continue to be supported by the Council. The rise of new work practices, such as remote working hubs and co-working facilities will be supported by the Council as will the need to ensure that office and other commercial development is directed to town centres to avoid sprawl and to revitalise town and village centres. Depending on the size of the enterprise, office accommodation in a wide range of formats, sizes, arrangements and locations can be required. The Development Management standards outlined in Chapter 14 seek to achieve high quality design, visual continuity and pedestrian and cycle friendly environments whilst ensuring the efficient functioning of such business locations. Space extensive developments such as large warehousing units and data centres in most instances generate low intensity employment. While the Council recognises the growing demand for such facilities, especially data centres, it is mindful of the fact that these facilities should not be located on lands that are more suitable for employment intensive developments/facilities, which are close to public transport infrastructure and built-up areas where compact growth is encouraged. The need to support the transition to a low carbon economy has never been more pertinent. Reducing the need to travel excessive distances for employment, a reduction in the amount of congestion and a switch to more sustainable approaches in economic activity will be supported in this Plan. In addition, green and circular economic development are areas of significant interest and growth, with potential for notable enterprise and employment creation and improvement, contributing positively to climate change as a result. Policy EEP1 – Overarching Policy for Employment and Economic Development Support the economic development of Fingal in line with the policies and objectives stipulated in the National Planning Framework and the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy and utilise active land measures such as implementation of existing Local Area Plans and Masterplans and provision of new Local Area Plans, Masterplans and Framework Plans across the County as part of the development approach for Strategic Development Areas and Corridors and other economic development generating lands.

2. Page 272

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 272FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Objective EEO1 – Implementation of Land Use Management Plans Implement the existing Local Area Plans and Masterplans and prepare appropriate land use management plans within the lifetime of the Plan for strategically important General Employment, High Technology, Metro and Rail Economic Corridor, Warehouse and Distribution and Food Park zoned lands in collaboration with key stakeholders, relevant agencies and sectoral representatives. Policy EEP2 – General Employment Lands Maximise the potential of GE lands, ensuring that they are developed for intensive employment purposes, where appropriate, and which are highly accessible, well designed, permeable and legible. Policy EEP3 – Maximising Fingal’s Economic Potential Maximise the economic potential of Fingal’s unique strengths and advantageous position within the Eastern and Midlands region. Objective EEO2 – Dublin as Primary Gateway Ensure that Fingal plays a pivotal role in the promotion of Dublin as the primary Gateway in the Eastern and Midlands Region through engaging and collaborating with the other Dublin Local Authorities and the Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly. Policy EEP4 – Employment Intensive Land Uses Ensure employment intensive land use zonings are located adjacent to public transport networks and active travel links. Objective EEO3 – Quality Supporting Infrastructure and a Sequential Approach Require that proposals for economic development are served by quality supporting infrastructure with sufficient capacity. A sequential approach may be used for assessing economic developments to ensure their appropriate and sustainable delivery. Policy EEP5 – Land Extensive Uses Support the development of land extensive uses where appropriate, having regard to infrastructural, transport and environmental considerations and the need for orderly growth. Objective EEO4 – Space Extensive Uses Ensure that space extensive uses are located within appropriate locations which do not compromise labour intensive opportunities on zoned lands, adjacent to public transport nodes or within existing built-up compact growth areas. Objective EEO5 – Enterprise Start-up Hubs Support the establishment of Enterprise Start-up Hubs in Fingal to promote and support local enterprise.

3. Page 273

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 273FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Policy EEP6 – Regeneration Of Employment Areas Utilise the measures and powers available to Fingal to encourage and promote the regeneration of employment areas in need of renewal, for instance in underperforming or outdated commercial and/ or industrial areas. Objective EEO6 – Regeneration of Obsolete/Underutilised Buildings and Lands Promote the regeneration of obsolete and/ or underutilised buildings and lands that could yield economic benefits, with appropriate uses and subject to the proper planning and development of the area. Policy EEP7 – Location Of Employment And Residential Developments Prioritise locating quality employment and residential developments in proximity to each other in order to reduce the need to travel and ensure that suitable local accommodation is available to meet the needs of workers in the County. Policy EEP8 – Promoting Major Urban Centres Support economic growth within the County through strengthening and promoting the strategic importance of major urban centres of Swords, Blanchardstown and Balbriggan and of key employment locations such as Dublin Airport and Dublin 15. Policy EEP9 – Fingal As An Engine For Economic Growth Promote enterprise and employment throughout the County, including along the Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor, the Metro and Rail Economic Corridor, Swords, Blanchardstown and Balbriggan and work with the other Local Authorities to promote Fingal and the wider mid-eastern region as an engine for economic growth. Objective EEO7 – Dublin–Belfast Economic Corridor Engage and collaborate with adjoining Local Authorities and regional assemblies, as appropriate, to promote the continued economic development of the Dublin–Belfast Economic Corridor. Objective EEO8 – Dublin Enterprise Zone Support the continued investment in, and management and promotion of the Dublin15 Enterprise Zone in collaboration with key stakeholders, relevant agencies and sectoral representatives. Objective EEO9 – Economic Growth of Core Area Support economic growth within the Core Area through strengthening and promoting the importance of Balbriggan as the major urban centre and having regard to its strategic location on the Dublin–Belfast Economic Corridor and directing appropriately scaled growth opportunities into the other urban centres in the area.

4. Page 274

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 274FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Objective EEO10 – Economic Growth within the Core Area Ensure that towns, villages and other locations within the Core Area follow policies of directional development to ensure that the required economies of scale are achieved in specific centres such as Balbriggan, and that other lower tier towns and villages perform to their economic strengths and competitive advantages such as Skerries and Rush for tourism and marine activities. Objective EEO11 – Economic Growth of Metropolitan Area Ensure that towns, villages and other locations within the Metropolitan Area pursue development policies of consolidation, and maximise their economic strengths and competitive advantages such as tourism and marine sectoral activities in Malahide and Howth, while the lands within the southern part of the County maximise their economic potential through the strong functional linkages to the M50 and the lands to the north of the County maximise their economic potential through strong links to the M1 and the wider regional and national road network. Policy EEP10 – Quantum of Employment Lands Ensure there are sufficient quantum’s and appropriate types of lands zoned for commercial, enterprise and/ or industrial uses in urban and rural located centres in accordance with the Settlement Hierarchy. Objective EEO12 – Supporting Existing Clusters Support existing successful clusters in Fingal, such as those in the ICT, pharmaceutical, aviation and agri-food sectors, and promote new and emerging clustering opportunities across all economic sectors within the County. Policy EEP11 – Variety of Employment Lands Consider the allocation of various sizes of land parcels for commercial, office, industrial uses in order to cater for a wide range of employment and enterprise formats. Objective EEO13 – High Technology Lands Encourage the development of corporate offices and knowledge based enterprise in the County on High Technology zoned lands and work with key stakeholders, relevant agencies and sectoral representatives to achieve such development. Objective EEO14 – Permeability in General Employment Lands Encourage high quality sustainable design, permeability and pedestrian and/ or cyclist friendly environments within general employment zoned areas. Objective EEO15 – Metro and Rail Economic Corridor Lands Protect the integrity of the Metro and Rail Economic Corridor from inappropriate forms of development and optimise development potential in a sustainable and phased manner.

5. Page 275

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 275FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Objective EEO16– Design Proposals on MRE Zoned Lands Ensure high quality urban design proposals within the Metro and Rail Economic Corridor Zoning, incorporating exemplary public spaces, contemporary architecture and sustainable places within a green landscape setting. Objective EEO17 – Warehouse and Distribution Lands Encourage large-scale distribution activities to locate within areas zoned WD. Objective EEO18 – Office Development Ensure that a broad range of office accommodation, in terms of size, scale, format and arrangements, is provided for to adequately respond to enterprise requirements in different economic sectors. Objective EEO19 – Office Development Standards Ensure that proposals for office development demonstrate regard to the relevant development standards. Objective EEO20 – Regeneration of Business Parks and Industrial Estates Identify business parks and industrial estates that are in need of regeneration and revitalisation in line with sustainable measures and engage with all relevant stakeholders and interested parties to encourage their regeneration and revitalisation. Objective EEO21 – Provision of Local Support Facilities Encourage the provision of Local Support Facilities to serve the needs of the employees within major employment areas. Policy EEP12 – Stakeholder Engagement Liaise and engage with all relevant public service providers to ensure that zoned lands are serviced in a timely fashion and future-proofed to facilitate opportunities for employment and enterprise creation. Policy EEP13 – Changing Work Practices Promote and facilitate different work practices that have developed recently and continue to support the existing co-working facilities, remote working hubs and enterprise centres throughout the County. Objective EEO22 – Home Based Economic Activity Support the provision of home-based economic activity that is subordinate to the main residential use of a dwelling and that does not cause injury to the amenities of the area. Objective EEO23 – Remote Working Support the Making Remote Work – National Remote Work Strategy and the provision of appropriate IT infrastructure and facilities that enable a better life-work balance enabling people to live near their place of work.

6. Page 276

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 276FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Policy EEP14 – Engagement with LCDC and LEO Liaise and coordinate with Fingal’s Local Community Development Committee and Local Enterprise Office to ensure that the appropriate objectives, measures and actions included in the Local Economic Community Plan are supported by policies and objectives in the Plan. Policy EEP15 – FDI and Indigenous Enterprises Actively seek and facilitate continued opportunities for investment in and development of FDI and indigenous enterprises at appropriate locations in the County. Policy EEP16 – Fingal Skills Strategy Have regard to the recommendations of the Fingal Skills Strategy and support the delivery of the actions therein. Objective EEO24 – Educational Investment and Third Level Institutions Support continued educational investment in the County and promote collaboration between third level institutions located within and outside of Fingal and a range of industrial sectors. Objective EEO25 – Synergies between Education, Technology and Indsutry Facilitate and promote synergies between education, technology and industry. Objective EEO26 – Craft Apprenticeship Schemes Promote and facilitate Council run craft apprenticeship schemes, working with SOLAS, for the main trades, including plumbing, electricians, painting/ decorating, stonecutting/stonemasonry, carpentry/joinery, brick and stone laying, pipefitting, plastering, scaffolding, in particular given the scarcity of skilled tradesmen and women employed by this Council. 7.5.1.1 Green Economy A sustainable economic development approach has been identified as an area of significant growth with potential for notable enterprise and employment creation. The sustainable or ‘green’ potential has been identified in sectors and/or activities such as research and development, innovation, energy efficiency, transportation, agriculture, food production, marine, tourism, and procurement. The proper management of resources is crucial to securing a better, more sustainable Ireland for future generations and is central to the national Climate Action Plan 2023 as c. 60% of greenhouse gas emissions come from the use of materials. The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has also provided further evidence of the limitations of our current economic model with its long and complex global supply chains. Fingal County Council will continue to support initiatives which provide opportunities for businesses to operate in more a more sustainable manner providing for resilience and for the mutual benefit of businesses and customers. Access to a well-developed broadband network will enable the further development of the green economy by supporting remote working and the creation of employment. The IDA strategy Driving Recovery and Sustainable Growth notes that new ways of working will introduce new locations as competitors for FDI

7. Page 277

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 277FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 internationally and will present opportunities to advance local and regional development through the creation of jobs in areas that might previously have been overlooked in favour of more urban centres. Access to broadband will support remote working (and remote learning), helping to create jobs across all regions. Policy EEP17 – Dublin Rural LEADER Programme and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme Continue to support the Dublin Rural LEADER Programme and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme. Policy EEP18 – Green Economy Support the Green Economy as a means of future proofing the County’s economy and facilitate this through orderly growth. Objective EEO27– Sustainable Approach to Enterprise and Employment Ensure that a sustainable approach is taken to enterprise development and employment creation across all sectors of the Fingal economy in accordance with the Green Economy national frameworks relevant to each sector. Objective EEO28 – Collaboration on Green Approaches to Economic Development Engage with all relevant government stakeholders, enterprise agencies and sectoral representatives in pursuing ‘green’ approaches to economic development, and actively collaborate with key industry and educational bodies to promote Fingal based initiatives across the economic sectors. Objective EEO29 – Green Economy Initiatives Support and resource Green Economy initiatives, such as the Green Way project as a showcase that such initiatives are operational in the Fingal area. Objective EEO30 – The Green Economy Support the growth of the ‘green economy’ including renewable energy, retrofitting, and electric vehicles and charging infrastructure, supporting the transition towards a circular economy in compliance with national policy and legislation. Objective EEO31 – Green Economy Initiatives Support the growth of business in the green and circular economy and the initiatives within the IDA strategy Driving Recovery and Sustainable Growth, or any superseding document, including through the accelerated roll-out of the National Broadband Plan. Objective EEO32 – Dublin Regional Enterprise Plan Support the Dublin Regional Enterprise Plan 2024 in this Plan. Policy EEP19 – Evening-Night Time Economy Promote and encourage evening / Night-Time economy uses that contribute to the vitality of our rural towns and villages and that support the creation of a safe, balanced and socially inclusive evening/night-time economy.

8. Page 278

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 278FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Objective EEO33 – Evening/Night-Time Economy Support and facilitate evening / night-time economy uses that contribute to the vitality of towns and villages, ensuring the creation of a safe, balanced and socially inclusive evening / night-time economy. Objective EEO34 – Diversification of Evening/Night-Time Economy Support uses that would result in the diversification of the evening and night-time economy in towns and villages where there is no negative impact on the amenity of adjacent residential uses through noise disturbance or cumulative impact in terms of other night-time uses in the immediate area. 7.5.1.2 Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Manufacturing is an important industry for Fingal as many companies are established in proximity to Dublin Airport and the Dublin Enterprise Zone to leverage logistics and economies of scale in the area. Manufacturing has one of the highest job densities of any industries in Fingal, although with a high degree of variance. Many global pharmaceutical companies have chosen Fingal as their location for investment historically and there have been a number of significant recent investments of note. Bristol Myers Squibb is a long-standing pharmaceutical company operating in Fingal (previously in Swords and now in Cruiserath) who invested approximately $1 billion to establish their manufacturing facility in Cruiserath which was the first Bristol Myers Squibb biologics drug substance facility outside of the United States and at the time, the second largest ever foreign direct Life and Sciences investment in Ireland. More recently, MSD Biotech which has been operational since 1990 is currently investing and expanding their facility adjacent to Barrysparks is expected to provide around 350 additional jobs in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. Some of the other relevant pharmaceuticals operating in Fingal include Alexion and Mallinckrodt in Blanchardstown, SK Biotek, Newport and Kora Healthcare in Swords along with Astellas and Rottapharm in Mulhuddart. Healthcare is also strong in Fingal with various health centres and social infrastructure across the County along with nationally significant healthcare infrastructure. The Central Mental Hospital which was previously located in Dundrum has moved to a new site in Portrane, known as the National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS). This commenced operations in 2022. The new facility can provide care for up to 170 patients and it is located in the vicinity of the former St Ita’s Hospital. The clusters of forensic mental health care include Intensive Care Rehabilitation Unit (ICRU), Forensic Child and Adolescent Mental Health Facility (FCAMHS), Pre-discharge, female, mental health intellectual disability, high security and medium security units. There is also be a village centre, which will provide health, vocational, recreational and social opportunities for patients. Fingal needs to stimulate the opportunities in the manufacturing sector, thereby promoting the County as the location of choice for a range of manufacturing enterprises. In similarity with the other economic sectors, the aim is to provide create high quality-built environments offering a range of building sizes and formats, supported by the orderly provision of necessary infrastructure.

9. Page 279

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   EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 279FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029

10. Page 280

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    EMPlOyMENT AND ECONOMy 280FINGAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2023-2029 Policy EEP20 – Manufacturing Promote the growth of the manufacturing sector in Fingal by responding to the varying needs and requirements of the different components within the sector and by creating high quality built environments offering a range of building sizes and formats, supported by the targeted provision of necessary infrastructure. Objective EEO35 – Range of Industrial/Manufacturing Units Ensure that a range of industrial and/ or manufacturing units, in terms of size, scale, format and arrangements, is provided for to adequately respond to enterprise requirements in different economic sectors. Objective EEO36 – Needs of Enterprises and Bespoke Building Facilities Proactively respond to the needs of enterprises undertaking pharmaceutical, data centre, food production and logistics activities that require bespoke building facilities to meet their specific manufacturing requirements. Objective EEO37 – Development Standards for Industrial/Manufacturing Buildings Ensure that proposals for industrial and/ or manufacturing buildings demonstrate regard to the relevant development standards. 7.5.1.3 ICT and Financial Services 20.3% (18,397) of those who work in Fingal work within professional industries such as information and communication, financial, real estate, professional, administration and support service activities. The CMA attracts 51% of persons employed in these industries with 22.1% in Swords, and a further 21.5% outside of key settlements. Financial and insurance businesses are predominantly clustered within the CMA with 122 of the 206 business (59.2%). Of the remaining settlements the greatest clusters are in Swords (18%) and Malahide (8.7%). The ICT and financial sector specifically have the most consistently high employment density rates and may provide an opportunity for compact employment growth if provided with technical development supports. In July of 2020 Amazon announced creation of 1,000 jobs in Ireland over 2 years across sites in Cork and Dublin. The Dublin sites include Blanchardstown and North County Dublin and is expected to grow the sector significantly. These roles range from software and database engineers to data centre technicians and account managers. Objective EEO38 – ICT, Financial and Banking Sector Promote the growth of the ICT and financial and banking sector in Fingal by facilitating the conditions conducive to such development including the creation of high quality physical environments offering a range of building and office accommodation types, supported through the provision of the necessary services and public transport infrastructure.

Source Fingal County Council: Fingal Development Plan 2023–2029 – Written Statement (Consolidated) (2023–2029) · Licence the publisher's termsText read from the publisher’s PDF; tables, maps and drawings do not survive as text, and page numbers are the PDF’s (its first page is 1). Check the original before relying on a passage.