Ministerial guidelines
Retail Planning: Guidelines for Planning Authorities
The retail hierarchy, the sequential approach that puts town centres first, and caps on the size of shops and retail warehouses.
Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government · April 2012 · 73 pages
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- Guidelines for Planning Authorities Retail Planning Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government April 2012No.22
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- Page Ministers Foreword 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Aim of the Guidelines 2 1.2 Status of the Guidelines 3 1.3 Importance of the Retail Sector 3 1.4 Trends in Retail Development 3 1.5 Retail Planning: Public Consultation 4 1.6 Policy Context for Retail Planning 5 2. Retail Policy Context 9 2.1 Introduction 9 2.2 Retailing and the Settlement Hierarchy 9 2.3 Enhancing Vitality and Viability of City and Town Centres 12 2.4 National Policy on Retail Caps 12 2.5 Policy Objectives 14 3. Retailing and Spatial Planning 19 3.1 Introduction 20 3.2 Regional Planning Guidelines and Retailing 20 3.3 Development Plans and Retailing 20 3.4 Development Plans and District Centres 21 3.5 Joint or Multi-Authority Retail Strategies 22 3.6 Retail Floorspace Projections 23 3.7 Development Plans outside Joint or Multi-Authority Retail Strategies 24 3.8 Development Plans and Retail Warehousing 24 4 Retailing and Development Management 27 4.1 Introduction 28 4.2 Pre-Application Consultations 28 4.3 Consistency with the Development Plan 29 4.4 Sequential Approach to the Location of Retail Development 29 4.5 Application of the Sequential Approach 31 4.6 Sequential Approach and Extension – Change of Use Applications 32 4.7 Edge-of-Centre Retailing 32 4.8 Out-of-Centre Retailing 32 4.9 Retail Impact Assessment 33 4.10 Transport Impact Assessment 34 4.11 Assessment of Specific Categories of Retail Development 35 5 Retailing and Design Quality 43 5.1 Introduction 44 5.2 Forward Planning and Quality Design 44 5.3 Development Management and Quality Design 47 5.4 Retail Design Manual 49 Annexes 51 1 Glossary of Terms 52 2 Assessing the Vitality and Viability of City and Town Centres 56 3 Preparation of Joint or Multi-Authority Retail Strategies 62 4 Assessment of Retail Floorspace Requirements 64 5 Assessment of Retail Impact 66 Image Credits: See Retail Design Manual Appendix 3 Table of Contents
- Ministers’ ForewordThe retail sector is an essential part of the Irish economy and a strong retail sector is a key element of the vitality and competitiveness of cities, towns and villages throughout the country and indeed the country as a whole. It is very important that the planning process provides a clear framework for the continued development of the retail sector in a way that provides certainty for retailers and communities in the relevant policy framework, in the assessment of development proposals, in ensuring good vitality of the places retailing activity takes place within and ultimately in ensuring competitiveness, nationally, regionally and locally. Ireland has undergone profound changes in recent years and faces continued challenges in the years ahead as we rebuild our economy and society. While many of our cities and towns witnessed major investment in and upgrading of key central retail areas, there has also been a proliferation of retailing in some locations where there has been poor demand, unaligned with existing transport links and/or adverse impacts on the vitality of nearby city and town centres. Experience also indicates that a strong and competitive retail sector demands a proactive approach in planning, listening carefully to the messages from both the retail sector and communities and responding appropriately in managing and reshaping our cities and towns in response. How we approach the retail sector into the future from a planning perspective must learn from this context. Therefore, planning for the retail sector must now be more focused on: the creation of vibrant, quality places, accessible by sustainable transport including• for pedestrians and cyclists and within which retailing is an important activity; demonstrating clear evidence of need in identifying strategic requirements;• planning for retail catchments that invariably straddle and transcend administrative• boundaries; usage of clear and concise definitions and methodologies; and• a general presumption against large retail centres located adjacent or close to• existing, new or planned national roads / motorways. The Guidelines take into account the recommendations of a Forfás Study Review of the Economic Impact of the Retail Cap (April 2011) prepared for the Departments of Enterprise, Jobs and Innovation, and Environment, Community and Local Government. This Study was undertaken as part of the terms of the EU-IMF programme for Financial Support for Ireland in 2010. The Forfás report concluded that careful usage of caps on the size of certain retail outlets was appropriate in promoting both competitiveness and vitality in the retail sector and that a substantial increase in, or removal of the retail caps would produce mixed results including: more vigorous competition in the largest population centres which can support a1. range of large stores; while in smaller population centres, allowing larger superstores could lead to too great a2. concentration and consequent loss of choice and competition.
- Having given very careful consideration to the Forfás report, and to the results of public consultation and general endorsement of the approach taken in the draft guidelines, we have decided to follow the approach outlined in the draft guidelines while making some adjustments to reflect views from the public. Planning authorities now have a key role in implementing, with retailers and local communities, various elements of these Guidelines, refocusing towards plan-led development, addressing the needs of the retail sector by determining a proper evidence base of the need for retail development and ensuring a proactive approach in facilitating the meeting of those needs. Such a plan-led approach will also be underpinned and delivered through greater co-operation by planning authorities in the preparation of joint or multi-planning authority retail strategies. Furthermore we believe that apart from the direct and indirect employment generated by the retail sector, shops play a major role in attracting people to cities, towns and villages, thus contributing to the overall economic vitality of those centres and supporting their role as centres of social and business interaction in the community. Retailing also supports the considerable investment by the public and private sectors in urban renewal, by providing shopping facilities to residents and by adding to the vitality and attractiveness of inner areas of cities and towns. Smaller towns and villages serve their surrounding rural areas by providing a range of facilities and services. The Guidelines have also been developed with input from the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and we thank the staff of that Department and Minister Jimmy Deenihan for its input, especially in developing the accompanying Retail Design Manual which contains further advice and technical detail on how best to implement the statutory guidelines in this document and has been developed under the Government Policy on Architecture 2009-2015. Finally, we wish to thank the members of the public and the various stakeholders who made a valuable contribution through extensive and well considered submissions which have been carefully considered in finalising the Guidelines. Mr Phil Hogan T.D. Ms Jan O’Sullivan, T.D. Minister of Environment, Community & Local Government Minister of State for Housing and Planning
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- 2 1 Key Messages These guidelines are aimed at ensuring that the planning system continues• to play its role in supporting competitiveness and choice in the retail sector commensurate with promoting the vitality and viability of city and town centres. The retail sector is a key element of the national economy in terms of• employment, economic activity and the vitality of Ireland’s cities and towns. The planning system has facilitated a major expansion of retail development and• activity; however more work needs to be done to ensure that such development takes place in city and town centres. Public consultation carried out as part of the preparation of these guidelines• supported the general approach of the consultation draft of these guidelines and the need for a continued focus on and investment in, city and town centres allied to effective interventions to support private sector investment. Planning for retail development must also take account of the wider policy• context in relation to relevant planning guidelines, smarter travel, climate change and architecture. 1.1 Aim of the Guidelines The aim of the Guidelines is to ensure that the planning system continues to play a key role in supporting competitiveness in the retail sector for the benefit of the consumer in accordance with proper planning and sustainable development. In addition, the planning system must promote and support the vitality and viability of city and town centres thereby contributing to a high standard of urban design and encouraging a greater use of sustainable transport. Previous iterations of these guidelines in 1998 and 2005 have made a positive contribution to planning and urban development in Ireland by establishing and progressively developing a policy framework that enabled the expansion of the retail sector while also encouraging a new focus on managing city and town centres and driving their proper planning and sustainable development. As a result, many city and town centres have witnessed renewal and investment in their retailing functions in recent years but more needs to be done to consolidate this process. Therefore, building on previous guidelines now superseded, the purpose of these Retail Planning Guidelines is to provide an updated and comprehensive retail planning and development framework to guide: regional authorities in preparing retail policy objectives in regional planningguidelines; planning authorities in preparing and implementing development plans;- planning authorities and An Bord Pleanála in assessing planning applications orplanning appeals; and retailers and developers in formulating development proposals.- The Guidelines have five key policy objectives: Ensuring that retail development is plan-led;- Introduction
- 3 Promoting city/town centre vitality through a sequential approach todevelopment; Securing competitiveness in the retail sector by actively enabling good qualitydevelopment proposals to come forward in suitable locations; Facilitating a shift towards increased access to retailing by public transport,- cycling and walking in accordance with the Smarter Travel strategy; and Delivering quality urban design outcomes.- 1.2 Status of the Guidelines The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government has issued these guidelines under section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended). Planning authorities and An Bord Pleanála are required to have regard to the guidelines in the performance of their functions under the Planning Acts. 1.3 Importance of the Retail Sector Employment in the combined retail and wholesale sector in 2010 was estimated by the Central Statistics Office at almost 270,000 people or about 14.7% of people employed in the State. Apart from direct and indirect employment, retailing plays a major role in attracting people to the centre of cities, towns and villages, thus contributing to the overall economic vitality of those centres and supporting their role as centres of social and business interaction in the community. It is important therefore that urban centres, which also tend to be at the hub of public transport services, retain retailing as a core function. Retailing also supports the considerable investment by the public and private sectors in urban renewal, by providing shopping facilities to residents and by adding to the vitality and attractiveness of inner areas of cities and towns which is important also in the context of the tourism sector. Smaller towns and villages serve their surrounding rural areas by providing a range of facilities and services. 1.4 Trends in Retail Development The nature and scale of retailing in Ireland has also undergone major changes, mainly driven by economic development but also by changes within the industry itself. To inform the preparation of these guidelines, Forfás undertook an analysis of the retail sector which is available at www.environ.ie.1 Key points from the Forfás analysis include the following: (1) The planning system has facilitated substantial expansion of the retail sector as evidenced by the facts that: The number of grocery units increased by 798 stores between 2004 and 2011- and between 2001 and 2011, there was a total increase of 86 per cent in the number of outlets operated by the largest grocery firms in Ireland; A number of new entrants have entered the Irish grocery retail market in recentyears and continue to grown their market share (Lidl 5.5 per cent and Aldi 3.6 per cent); Over the period 2001 to 2007, floorspace devoted to the retailing of groceriesincreased from 471,508 M2 to 835,647 M2. 1 Review of the Economic Impact of the Retail Cap Forfás 2011 1
- 4 (2) The size of grocery store permissible under previous planning guidelines has not been a major constraint in store development given that: The average size of grocery units (including hypermarkets, supermarkets anddiscount stores) in Ireland was 1,515 M2 in 2009, a decrease of 2.2 per cent since 2004; and The average size of supermarkets in 2009 was 1,701 M- 2; an increase of 3.7 per cent since 2004. The average size of discount stores in 2009 was 718 M2, a decrease of 8.4 per cent since 2004; (3) The retail market for convenience goods in Ireland is marked by the dominance of a small number of companies; Tesco has the largest share of the Irish retail market followed by Dunnes Storesand Supervalu. These three retailers account for 70.8 per cent of the Irish retail market; Superquinn, Lidl and Aldi had a combined share in 2011 of 15.5 per cent ofthe grocery market. This is 4.7 per cent less than Supervalu, the third largest retailer’s share of the market; ASDA and Sainsbury’s have a combined share of 1.7 per cent of the Irish market,- benefiting from cross-border shopping trade, although neither retailer has a physical presence in the State. The retail sector has therefore grown markedly in recent years with the emergence of new sectors such as discount stores. In addition to the above, the Forfás report also recognises that online shopping has become a feature of the Irish retail market. It is accepted that while there is a lack of robust eCommerce data in relation to Ireland, the proportion of sales made over the internet and mobile phones is increasing. Various retailers, trading a variety of convenience and comparison goods, are also increasingly availing of online services to reach a larger consumer market. In Ireland, evidence of this is to be found in both larger grocery stores and in catalogue-based shops, where customers can order online and have the goods delivered to their home or collected at a specific location. In parallel with the trends above, the consideration of retailing within the planning process has had to be updated recognising that while previous iterations of these Guidelines have facilitated considerable expansion of the retail sector enabling more choice and enhanced competition to the benefit of the consumer, more needs to be achieved in relation to securing such development in city and town centres. 1.5 Retail Planning: Public Consultation Analysis of retail trends and the publication of a pre consultation draft issues paper preceded the development of these guidelines. Subsequently the public were invited to comment on a consultation draft of the guidelines and 102 submissions were received. In aggregate terms, the analytical context and the outcomes of the public consultation exercises confirmed that: The planning system continues to play a vital role in the management of aneconomic activity which represents 14.7% of national employment; Rapid development of the retail sector in recent years needs to be consolidatedwith a renewed focus on the maintenance and renewal of attractive, competitive city and town centres; The use of retail caps is appropriate;- 1
Source Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government: Retail Planning: Guidelines for Planning Authorities (April 2012) · 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.