Development plan · Laois County Council
Laois County Development Plan 2021–2027
The council's development plan written statement: its strategy, policies, objectives and development standards.
Laois County Council · 2021–2027 · 317 pages
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- Chapter 6 Economic Development 139 | P a g e Table 6.5: Strategic Opportunity Sites Location Strategic Employment Opportunity sites Commentary Portlaoise J17 National Enterprise Park J17 Enterprise Park Master Plan Area This has been of major benefit to Portlaoise following on from supporting policies within the RSES in relation to continued development of the J17 National Enterprise Park. In recognition of this designation, the Council has been pro-active and has serviced and provided serviced sites at Togher, due south of the town centre and directly adjacent to the M7, for various enterprise and employment activities. The ability of this site to facilitate Foreign Direct Investment development opportunities will be maximised during the Plan period. Portarlington Former Avon Site This prime site is located in close proximity to the train station. The 5.18ha. brownfield site is currently vacant and fully serviced. Environmental considerations following previous uses of the site must be adhered to. The site is outside of Flood Zones A and B. There is an opportunity to provide a key landmark building/ enterprise campus. Suitable for a wide variety of enterprise and employment uses including low input and emission manufacturing, campus style offices, storage, wholesale and distribution etc. A high quality public realm will be required in any development. McMahons Site beside Train Station This site is strategically located directly adjacent to Portarlington Railway Station and car park. The 1.56ha. brownfield site was formerly used as timber and hardware retail outlet, the buildings have been cleared and the site is vacant. The site is fully serviced and outside of Flood Zones A and B.
- Chapter 6 Economic Development 140 | P a g e Location Strategic Employment Opportunity sites Commentary There is opportunity to intensify development to provide a key landmark or gateway building to signify the approach and entrance to the town from the south and railway station to create a sense of arrival. The building should address the extensive street frontage and be designed to an exceptional standard. A high quality public realm will be required in any development. Economic Development Policy Objectives ED 1 Build on the role of Portlaoise as the driver for the economic development of County Laois reflecting its designation as Key Town in the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy. ED 2 Support the development J17 - National Enterprise Park in line with RPO 4.73 of the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy (RSES) and the J17 National Enterprise Park Masterplan. ED 3 Provide a landing space for businesses who wish to establish a second site in a more competitively priced location. ED4 Support the development of the Cube in Portlaoise as a space for incubation of Low Carbon focused start ups and SME’s ED 5 Support entrepreneurship in County Laois and jobs-focused education and training programmes. ED 6 Support the implementation of LECP Economic Actions to market Laois for Inward Investment and for diversifying and strengthening a sustainable Laois economy, such as the preparation of a suite of opportunity site briefs suitable for large-scale enterprise/commercial uses and the promotion of Laois’ centrality, its transport connectivity and Portlaoise’s location along a Trans-European Core Network Corridor and its designation as a national transport node. ED 7 Work in partnership with agencies such as Enterprise Ireland, Connect Ireland and IDA Ireland to find suitable sites or premises for prospective enterprises considering locating in Laois. ED 8 Ensure the provision of enabling infrastructure (potable/waste water, electricity, gas) keeps apace with the needs of existing and prospective enterprises and protect lands reserved for enabling infrastructure development.
- Chapter 6 Economic Development 141 | P a g e Economic Development Policy Objectives ED 9 Encourage the clustering of mutually supportive land uses to maximise synergistic business relationships and develop specialist labour skills in particular in the clean technology sector and enterprises that locally-produced commodities as inputs. ED 10 Ensure a sufficient quantum and range of serviced employment lands is zoned and available to accommodate appropriate enterprise development. ED 11 Support direct labour intensive enterprises to town centre/edge of centre locations and brownfield sites and favour brownfield sites over greenfield sites for general enterprise development in the interests of sustainability and orderly development. ED 12 Work in partnership with agencies such as Enterprise Ireland, LEO Laois, Laois Partnership Company, the Portlaoise Enterprise Centre and the Portarlington Enterprise Centre to provide enterprise incubator spaces and support enterprise formation and scaling, subject to the Development Management Standards contained in this section. ED 13 Support home-based economic activities subject to environmental, traffic and residential amenity considerations and not undermining the land use zoning objectives of employment lands. ED 14 Foster the cultivation of entrepreneurship among children, the provision of jobsfocused further education programmes and entrepreneur-focused training and mentoring to business owners in partnership with the Laois and Offaly Education and Training Board, LEO Laois, Laois Partnership Company, Department of Social Protection and Laois library network. ED 15 Support and facilitate the development of remote working / co working space opportunities in a range of locations throughout the county such as Portlaoise, Portarlington, Mountmellick, Mountrath, Rathdowney and other apprioprate locations subject to proper planning and development. ED 16 Seek to provide opportunities for highly-skilled outbound commuters to work locally through local employment opportunities, tourism opportunities, the development of an e-working centre or working-from-home arrangements facilitated by high-speed broadband in the interests of sustainable economic development, smarter travel and quality of life considerations. ED 17 Support community initiatives to foster stronger engagement between commuters and their local towns and villages. ED 18 Support the Core Strategy settlement patterns to ensure that economic priorities and job creation is reflective of this and aligns accordingly as indicated in Table 6.4. ED 19 Establish a formalised framework of key stakeholders to collectively plan and collaborate to ensure facilities are in place to achieve the main pillars of the National Remote Working Strategy.
- Chapter 6 Economic Development 142 | P a g e Economic Development Management Standards DM ED 1 INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITIES Where proposed industrial facilities, waste disposal facilities, mineral extraction developments, or other developments that may have a significant impact on surface water quality, ground water quality, or on the water table, the developer will be required (whether as part of an EIAR or an Environmental Report) to: 1) submit an assessment of the impact of the development on water quality and the water table; mitigation and monitoring measures should also be included, as appropriate; Development proposals that could cause pollution, a reduction in biological or chemical water quality or changes in the water table will not be accepted unless appropriate mitigatory measures are proposed, such as settlement ponds, oil and chemical interceptors, bunding of storage tanks and refuelling areas, capping where ground water is exposed as a result of extraction etc. DM ED 2 COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT - WAREHOUSES AND INDUSTRIAL USES/BUSINESS CAMPUSES (for shopping and office development see Chapter 7) The criteria for assessment of such developments will include: 1) The nature/activities/processes of the proposed development and site location factors; 2) The compatibility and impact with/on adjoining uses; 3) The traffic implications and alternative access, servicing and sustainable mobility plans / commuting arrangements; 4) The quality of building design; 5) The site layout including car parking arrangements; 6) Landscaping plans; 7) The energy efficiency and overall sustainability of the proposed developments; 8) Details in relation to surface water/stormwater management systems; 9) Details in relation to climate resilience measure DM ED 3 HOME BASED ECONOMIC ACTIVITY Home based economic activity is defined as ‘working from home’. In dealing with applications for such developments the Planning Authority will have regard to the following: 1) The nature and extent of the work and the justification for the proposed location; 2) The effects on the amenities of adjoining properties particularly as regards hours of operation, noise and general disturbance; 3) The anticipated levels of traffic generation (a traffic and car parking statement shall accompany any application for such a change of use); 4) The details concerning the generation, storage and collection of waste; 5) Quality signage proposals – plastics and neon signage on buildings will not
- Chapter 6 Economic Development 143 | P a g e be permitted. Permissions for such partial change of use will be restricted to use by the applicant and may be temporary, for a temporary period, in order to enable the Planning Authority to monitor the impact of the development. Permission will not normally be granted for such changes of use in apartments.
- 144 | P a g e CHAPTER 7 RETAIL AND TOWN / VILLAGE CENTRE MANAGEMENT Aim: Ensure that the town and village centres of co. Laois retain their vitality and viability and that all future retail development is plan led in line with the settlement strategy. 7.1 INTRODUCTION Towns and to a lesser extent villages are at the heart of trade, commerce and jobs in Laois. Towns and villages also have a strong community and social functions. They are a big part of a county’s identity and perceptions about quality of life. Towns are good locations for labour intensive companies involved in internally traded goods and services. An attractive and lively town centre can attract inward investment and can energise local entrepreneurship. Equally town or village centres blighted by vacancy and dereliction discourage investment and job creation. A flourishing town can function as a tourism hub as well as being a good place for local businesses. Retail uses are strongly associated with town centres where a range of convenience (food and goods for everyday needs) and comparison (durable) goods are available. The concentration of a wide mix of uses within a small area gives rise to a multiplier effect, where a local person or visitor makes multiple transactions with different traders during a short space of time. The rural-focused Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas (CEDRA) 2015 report emphasises the role of towns as economic drivers for their rural hinterlands. The CEDRA Report emphasises the importance of re-invigorating the relationship between urban and rural Ireland. Towns and villages in County Laois have much to offer in relation to their history, architecture, appearance and the community spirit of their residents. Towns like Abbeyleix and Durrow and villages like Ballacolla, Ballinakill, Castletown and Timahoe show local pride and care. Perceptions of a town as thriving or declining are informed by the appearance of its town centre and its public realm as well as the range and order of available retail and commercial services. Town Centres were adversely effected by the recession and some have been in decline over longer periods, careful town centre management is now required. An intensification of retail, commercial and residential uses in these town centres is needed, as well as the enhancement of their public realms and less tangibly an increased sense of connection and pride among local people to their towns. Looking at commercial/retail vacancy rates, Portarlington has high vacancy rates with over 18% (Geodirectory Q2/2019) vacant commercial/retail stock. Using this measure Mountmellick performed the best. The national vacancy rate is 13.5% (Geodirectory, June 2020) which means that Laois has more vacant commercial/retail stock than the national average. Looking at Retail Excellence Ireland’s review of towns in 2015 (based on customer/traders surveys in the town centre), Graiguecullen residents enjoyed the use of a strong town across the border in Carlow. Portlaoise and Mountmellick performed equally in the third quartile and Portarlington performed the poorest. Portlaoise, Portarlington and Mountmellick performed well in relation to people’s views of: • Safety and security in the town centre; • The family-friendliness of the town centre; • Town centre presentation and maintenance. The towns performed poorly in relation to:
- Chapter 7 Retail and Town / Village Centre Management 145 | P a g e • Things to do and see in the town centres; • Lots of events and promotions being run in the town centres. Portlaoise scored well in relation to the number of quality retail stores to choose from and the large number of quality restaurants and pubs to choose from and it performed poorly on the price of car parking. Portarlington scored poorly as a first-choice shopping destination and just over 50% of those surveyed thought the town has a unique and positive image. Around 75% of those surveyed thought Mountmellick has a unique and positive image, that there was abundant car parking available and that it is competitively priced. The retail, restaurant and pub choice in Mountmellick was considered poor. To address this issue, in 2017 Laois County Council commissioned Consultants to prepare a Public Realm Strategy and a vision for the Town Centre. Portlaoise 2040 and Beyond – A strategy for a better Town Centre was prepared which, following consultation, presented a number of actions to address town centre management such as improvements to the public realm , increasing the residential capacity within the town centre, transitioning to a low carbon town. In tandem with this, the establishment of Portlaosie Town Team was enabled to drive actions in relation to the strategy. Table 7.1: Assessment of Performance of Laois Towns ASSESSMENTS OF LAOIS TOWNS Source Area Pop (2016) DKM’s Q2 2019 Commercial Vacancy Rate (no. commercial address points) Portlaoise 22,050 15.1% Portarlington 8,368 18% Graiguecullen / Carlow 4,692 % Mountmellick 4,777 13.2% Abbeyleix 1,770 N/A Stradbally 1,350 N/A Mountrath 1,774 N/A Rathdowney 1,271 N/A Durrow 835 N/A Town/Village Centre Management Policy Objectives TC 1 Support the implementation of LECP Economic Actions and LECP Community Actions related to the maintaining and enhancing the vitality and vibrancy of Laois Town and Village Centres in particular focusing on Portlaoise. TC 2 Support and facilitate the development of town centre strategies / Public Realm Strategies, where appropriate, liaising closely with residents, visitors and other relevant stakeholders. TC 3 Enable the establishment of Town Teams to collaborate on and address the needs of town centre management which can be expanded to include “Collaborative Town
- Chapter 7 Retail and Town / Village Centre Management 146 | P a g e Town/Village Centre Management Policy Objectives Centre Health Checks (and utilise CTCHC – the 15-step process from Phase 1, etc to inform future strategies)’. TC 4 Encourage the maintenance of town/village centre buildings and improve the quality of the public realm in town/village centres making them more attractive and safe to locals and visitors, as well as more pedestrian and cycle-friendly. TC 5 Assist in site assembly and facilitate appropriate new development in town/village centres by way of alterations and extensions, infill development as well as demolition and redevelopment subject to planning considerations such as architectural heritage and flood risk. TC 6 Maintain compact and permeable town/village centres, conserve any special architectural interest of town/village centres and foster active frontages at ground floor level to ensure bustling town and village centres. TC 7 Retain and foster a mix of uses in town/village centres including residential commercial, community-based, civic, educational, recreational, tourism and religious to bolster the central role of town/village centres in the day-to-day lives of Laois people. TC 8 Support the hosting of markets (including farmers markets), events or festivals in town/village centre locations and the running of town-based cultural/learning facilities such as the Dunamaise Theatre, the Stradbally Arthouse and Laois’ library network in the interests of vitality and vibrancy. TC 9 Provide for night-time economy in town centres including public houses, nightclubs, restaurants and takeaways, subject to considerations of undue concentration/proliferation, and mitigate any adverse effects of these uses and other uses on the residential amenity of town centre residents. TC 10 Encourage residential uses in town/village centres, such as at ground floor in certain instances or locations and in living over the shop arrangements through the flexible application of parking, amenity space and internal space standards where these standards cannot be practicably met on-site. TC 11 Recognise and support the role of town/village-based community groups including trader groups that make a significant contribution to town/village centre management. TC 12 Encourage start-up businesses and tourism businesses to set-up in town and village centre locations. TC 13 Provide short-stay parking in town centres to support business and tourism activities, balancing the need to encourage people into the town centre against sustainable transport and land-use efficiency considerations. TC 14 Develop a regeneration framework for settlements identified in Volume 2 Settlement Plans as regeneration areas to address vacancy and dereliction. Any framework may be subject to Appropriate Assessment to ensure there are no likely significant effects on the integrity of any Natura 2000 sites in the County. TC 15 In dealing with Planning applications for renovations, redevelopment or demolition of old buildings in town and village centres the Planning Authority will have regard to the following: • The avoidance of removal of swift nesting sites where possible, and where
- Chapter 7 Retail and Town / Village Centre Management 147 | P a g e Town/Village Centre Management Policy Objectives removal is unavoidable , the provision of new nesting sites - Planning applications of this type shall include a survey of existing numbers of swifts and swift nests and where swifts are shown to be present, location and details of proposed swift boxes during and after construction. Timing and methodology of works to shall be planned to ensure no damage to swift colonies during the breeding season” 7.2 RETAIL DEVELOPMENT A Retail Strategy has been prepared to coincide with the preparation of the County Development Plan 2021-2027. The retail Strategy has been reviewed in accordance with provisions set out in the Retail Planning: Guidelines for Planning Authorities (DECLG, 2012). The document is available at Annex 2 of this Plan. Retail is an important employment sector in Laois. More generally shopping is a lynchpin for the vitality of town and village centres. More than 75% of retail floorspace is located in Portlaoise and it is necessary to retain that primacy to reduce leakage to other counties. Proposals for retail development will be considered in the context of the retail hierarchy and sequential approach set out in the Laois Retail Strategy 2021-2027, the quantum of new convenience and comparison floorspace identified as appropriate therein, the Retail Planning Guidelines and the policies below. 7.2.1 KEY OBJECTIVES OF THE RETAIL STRATEGY The Retail Strategy covers Portlaoise and the remaining County area. General policies and objectives for other towns and villages are included in the strategy. The key objectives of the retail strategy were heavily informed by the Retail Planning Guidelines. These key objectives are as follows: a. Define the retail hierarchy in the county and related retail core boundaries; b. Undertake a health check appraisal of the key retail centres in Laois, to ascertain the need for interventions in these areas; c. Identify the broad requirement for additional retail floorspace development in the county over the plan period, to support the established settlement hierarchy, and; d. Provide guidance on policy recommendations and criteria for the future assessment of retail development proposals over the Development Plan Period 2021-2027. e. retention and enhancement of the vitality and vibrancy of the town centre core areas as shopping destinations f. adhere to the sequential test approach principle in determining applications for retail development 7.2.2. STRATEGIC GUIDANCE Both the quantitative assessment (capacity assessment) of additional retail floorspace requirements for the county and the qualitative review (health checks) of the various retail centres in the county outline how the principal towns within Laois are performing at present. One of the functions of the strategy update is to review the broad quantum of additional retail floorspace that is required for the county over the period so as to maintain and enhance the positive economic performance of Portlaoise and the county. The Retail Strategy will indicate where the additional retail floorspace should be located. In this context, the location and extent of new retail development must have regard to the planning framework for the county and will be assessed against the criteria contained in the Retail Planning: Guidelines for Planning Authorities (DECLG, 2012) and the Development Management Standards hereafter.
- Chapter 7 Retail and Town / Village Centre Management 148 | P a g e Central to the provision of additional retail floorspace is the need to reinforce the Retail Hierarchy of the county, in existing town and village centres. Therefore, it is vital that Portlaoise, as the Key Town continues to develop its retail function to meet expanding shopping needs and to ensure a healthy and competitive retail environment. To achieve the key objectives of the strategy due cognisance must be taken of the strategic policy framework that underpins the updated specific policies and proposals in this document. This framework is set by: i. Portlaoise’s position in the national Retail Hierarchy; ii. Identifying the County Retail Hierarchy; iii. The spatial distribution of new retail development with the County Retail Hierarchy; iv. The core retail areas; v. The sequential approach; and vi. A consideration of need. 7.2.3 PORTLAOISE’S POSITION IN THE NATIONAL RETAIL HIERARCHY Portlaoise is the primary settlement and largest population centre within County Laois. Census 2016 records the population of Portlaoise at 22,050. Centrally located within the county, and having the advantage of excellent quality local, regional and national linkages, the town has become a settlement of regional importance. The value of the town and the support function which it provides to its residents as well as those of its hinterland has been recognised at both a national and regional context. The Retail Planning Guidelines, recognises that the town provides a regional important retailing function. The importance of the town within a local and regional context has also been recognised by the Midland Regional Planning Guidelines, which has defined the town as being a Principal Town, the term also adopted as part of the Core Strategy. 7.2.4 IDENTIFYING THE COUNTY RETAIL HIERARCHY The purpose of the Retail Hierarchy is to indicate the level and form of retailing activity appropriate to the various urban centres in the county. Taking a criteria-based approach enables the Council to protect each centre’s overall vitality and viability whilst allowing each centre to perform its overall function within the county’s settlement hierarchy. It is the core concept of the Retail Hierarchy that the Key Towns are supported by Self Sustaining Growth Towns and to a lesser extent local service towns and villages. The Retail Strategy focuses primarily on the upper levels of the hierarchy. It is important to note that this is not to deter or discourage smaller scale retail development and investment in the smaller villages. Rather, it is important to set a clear hierarchy which identifies where the distribution of new retail floorspace should be delivered and which is appropriate in scale and character to the hierarchical role of the centre. The Laois County Retail Hierarchy 2021-2027 is set out in table 7.2 as follows:
Source Laois County Council: Laois County Development Plan 2021–2027 (2021–2027) · 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.