Kildare County Development Plan 2023–2029 — Chapter 13: Landscape, Recreation and Amenity

1. Page 41

   Cite this pagePDF p. 41 (opens the publisher’s copy in a new tab)
   In developing green infrastructure, opportunities should be taken to develop and enhance networks for cycling, walking and other non-motorised transport. Green infrastructure includes parks, open spaces, playing fields, woodlands, allotments and private gardens. 13.7.4 Sports and Recreational Facilities The development of sport and recreation is important in encouraging a sense of wellbeing and social contact. Kildare County Council acknowledges the very important roles that open space and sporting, and social clubs play in enhancing the social and recreational life of Kildare’s communities. Facilities for both formal and informal recreation catering for the entire community of all abilities, are required. It is an objective of KCC to encourage the dual use of amenity facilities (See objectives in Section 10.12). 13.7.5 Children’s Play Facilities Children’s play is important to their development. It is through play that they learn to socialise and interact with the world. In supporting play, residential areas, parks and open spaces should be available and be safe and enjoyable for children of different ages. The vision of the ‘Kildare Play Strategy (2018-2028)’ is ‘to have Kildare recognised as a child-friendly county and a leader in public play & recreation provision” with the values of inclusiveness, Best Practice, Collaboration and Partnership and Integrity. New playgrounds have been provided in Kill, Sallins, Eadestown, Caragh, Timahoe and Castledermot. A new skatepark was provided in Newbridge in 2019 and a pilot scheme is underway in Celbridge for the development of an outdoor youth facility. This pilot scheme will inform the development of other play facilities in County Kildare. Policy It is the policy of the Council to: LR P5 Preserve, manage and maintain to a high standard the existing public parks, open spaces, amenities and recreation facilities throughout the county. Objectives It is an objective of the Council to: LR O80 Provide or facilitate the development of suitable sites of appropriate scale for recreational and amenity use, through this Plan and the Development Management process in accordance with the forthcoming National Outdoor Recreation Strategy, the Ready, Steady, Play! A National Play Policy (2004) and the TeenSpace: National Recreation Policy for Young People (2007). Such land shall be easily accessible to the public and located in or adjacent to areas of existing or proposed residential use, or close to centres of rural communities.479

2. Page 42

   Cite this pagePDF p. 42 (opens the publisher’s copy in a new tab)
   LR O81 Ensure that new developments are compatible with the availability and size of passive and active open space and recreational facilities, i) within 10 minutes’ walk from people’s homes; ii) accessible to all, regardless of age, physical mobility, disability or social disadvantage; iii) are in line with the Settlement Strategy and the ‘Sustainable Development in Urban Areas: Guidelines for Planning Authorities,’ (DEHLG, 2009); iv) include disabled parking bays, and v) include accessible play recreational facilities/equipment. LR O82 Require the provision of good quality, well located and functional open space in new residential developments, including landscaping with native species and scale appropriate natural play areas to cater for all age groups. LR O83 Ensure development proposals provide for hedgerow and woodland creation and augmentation within developments 7 at the start of the construction phase and encourage the block planting of woodland and the joining up of hedgerows and woodlands between developments in order to support habitat creation, in so far as possible. LR O84 Ensure that all development proposals include comprehensive landscaping schemes including trees, suitable to their environment and to require that the planting of same should either be carried out in full as part of Phase 1 for larger phased schemes or prior to the occupation of any units on the overall development site on all other schemes. LR O85 Facilitate additional non-mainstream facilities for the youth and sport facilities that lend themselves to lifelong participation for older persons through the provision of suitable facilities in all towns and villages. LR O86 Provide play facilities adjacent to other community and childcare facilities, in so far as is possible, and to ensure their proper management and maintenance. LR O87 Implement the Kildare Play Strategy (2018-2028) to address the play and recreational needs of children and young people growing up in County Kildare. LR O88 Avoid the loss of an existing amenity or recreational facility through any development proposal, unless: (i) The facility or amenity was established as an interim use pending the completion of an improved or satisfactory replacement facility; or (ii) The applicant can demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the Planning Authority that there is an insufficient local demand for the existing facility; or (iii) Satisfactory alternative provision can be made by the applicant that will be fully operational either prior to the commencement of development or prior to the occupation of any residential units 7 Including residential, industrial and retail developments.480

3. Page 43

   Cite this pagePDF p. 43 (opens the publisher’s copy in a new tab)
   directly associated with the subject recreational facility. LR O89 Liaise with sporting organisations to ensure that where possible the needs of sports clubs and the communities are met in the provision of quality facilities in line with the vision and objectives of the National Sports Policy, 2018-2027. LR O90 Work with other government, non-government, sporting organisations and other relevant organisations to develop synergies in relation to the provision of recreational and amenity facilities. LR O91 Consider future needs in the provision of new or in the expansion of existing sport and recreational facilities, by encouraging the clustering of facilities, improving the range, quality, access and capacity of facilities and catering for all age-groups and abilities through initiatives in partnership with community groups and sporting organisations. LR O92 Support the Sports and Recreation Strategic Plan 2012 – 2016 (or any subsequent updates) for the county, in co-operation with Kildare Sports Partnership, during the lifetime of this Plan. LR O93 Prevent the development of areas zoned open space/amenity or areas which have been indicated in a previous planning application as being open space for uses other than open space and recreation related. LR O94 Identify potential sites for regional type parks in the Naas-Newbridge Allenwood, Celbridge-Maynooth-Leixlip and Athy areas, and to commence the process of delivery of same, as outlined in the Council’s Kildare Open Space Strategy, 2021. LR O95 Implement the recommendations of the Kildare Open Space Strategy 2021 and make provision for a hierarchy of public parks, open spaces and outdoor recreation areas within towns and villages so that the population can participate in a wide range of active and passive recreational pursuits within easy reach of their homes and places of work. LR O96 Support and facilitate the provision of a network of high quality, well connected and well located multifunctional public parks and open spaces throughout the county, while protecting and enhancing the environmental capacity and ecological function of these spaces, in order to aid the movement of biodiversity and people and to strengthen the overall Green Infrastructure network. LR O97 Investigate the feasibility of increasing linkages between the Park at Kerdiffstown, the proposed Sallins Amenity Lands and the Grand Canal Greenway in co-operation with Waterways Ireland. LR O98 Explore the feasibility of developing an Urban Neighbourhood Park by integrating the existing local park at Abbeyland and undeveloped strategic open space as a River Liffey Park in Clane. LR O99 Retain, where appropriate, areas adjacent to waterways as a linear park, particularly where these link into the wider open space network. LR O100 Support and facilitate, the establishment of a community run nursery to grow native plants, at an appropriate location.481

4. Page 44

   Cite this pagePDF p. 44 (opens the publisher’s copy in a new tab)
   LR O101 Ensure that residual land in developments can be used for the provision of green infrastructure including for community food programmes/ allotments and pollination. LR O102 Support and facilitate allotments/ community gardens on roofs of buildings where they do not pose a safety risk to the users of such spaces. Each proposal shall be assessed on its own merits. LR O103 Support and facilitate allotments/ community gardens on vacant, underutilised and derelict sites throughout the county. LR O104 Support and facilitate the development of allotments/community gardens that’s accessible to all and meet the following criteria: (i) The lands are of appropriate scale and at appropriate locations, situated within or immediately adjacent to the edge of towns/ villages; (ii) Proximate to public transport links and walking/cycling infrastructure; and (iii) Adequate water supply and adequate parking facilities can be provided. LR O105 Minimise the environmental impact of external lighting at sensitive locations within the Green Infrastructure network to mitigate adverse impacts on sensitive fauna and protected species, and to achieve a sustainable balance between the recreational needs of an area, the safety of walking and cycling routes and the protection of light sensitive species such as bats. Action It shall be an action of the Council to: LR A16 Identify public land for the planting of woodlands under the Woodland Creation on Public Lands scheme, as well as public land for community gardens, and other measures to improve biodiversity (including bee and insect houses), and parkland meadows within the county’s open spaces and parks to promote the development of multifunctional amenity areas with enhanced biodiversity value in every urban settlement, where possible. LR A17 Investigate the feasibility of developing the Donaghcumper lands as an amenity for local people and link the lands with Castletown, in cooperation with the National Historic Properties unit of the Office of Public Works and all other relevant stakeholders. LR A18 Refurbish the existing playground in the Leixlip Amenities Centre and all other playgrounds around the county as necessary. LR A19 Develop an outdoor youth facility in Celbridge as a pilot scheme to inform the development of other play facilities in County Kildare. LR A20 a) Develop a new playground at Allenwood during the lifetime of this Plan b) Support new and additional playgrounds/play facilities for communities in Brannockstown, Kildangan, Cutbush, Straffan,482

5. Page 45

   Cite this pagePDF p. 45 (opens the publisher’s copy in a new tab)
   Johnstownbridge, Carbury, Derrinturn, Donadea, Maynooth, Leixlip, Celbridge, Robertstown, Kilmeague, Two Mile House, Newbridge, Athgarvan, Kildare, The Curragh, Calverstown, Kilberry, Ballitore, Kilkea, Maganey and Ardclough and to deliver same, if deemed appropriate, during the lifetime of this Plan. c) Support the community to deliver a playground in Ballymore Eustace during the lifetime of this Plan. LR A21 Progress plans for the delivery of recreational and amenity facilities on the Sallins Amenity Lands in cooperation with the relevant stakeholders. LR A22 Progress plans for the development of Sports, Recreational & Water Hub facilities in Monasterevin in partnership with the Monasterevin Development Association, Waterways Ireland, the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary and all other relevant stakeholders. LR A23 Support sustainable management of our parks and residential areas which will include areas of reduced mowing. LR A24 Deliver Cherry Avenue Park in Kildare Town as a recreation and amenity centre to include (inter alia) dedicated facilities for the youth. LR A25 Prepare an integrated public amenity park and tourism destination at the Wonderful Barn and associated lands, to be informed by a detailed conservation and management plan. LR A26 Investigate the feasibility of an Allotment Pilot Programme to consider matters relating to site identification, administration, leases/rental and resources required to deliver an allotment in each Municipal District in association with District Engineers and the Parks Department.483

Source Kildare County Council: Kildare County Development Plan 2023–2029 — Chapter 13: Landscape, Recreation and Amenity (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.