Sinn Féin TD Imelda Munster has welcomed the beginning of the PANCR Phase 1, and the much-needed homes that it will bring, but has expressed concerns over how phases 2&3 will be funded, when they will begin and exactly what social amenities will be provided.
“When the Taoiseach and Minister showed up to turn the sod last week, I truly believed the only reason they would be there, after refusing government funding for this road so many times, would be to announce that the government will fully fund Phases 2&3” Deputy Munster said.
“Unfortunately, that is not the case, and we are again looking at private developers and local authorities trying to formulate a plan to ensure this road is completed.
“Now that Phase 1 has started in earnest and houses are already being completed in that area, I have asked Louth County Council for a map showing how the area around Phase 1 will look on completion, including parks, the promised sportsgrounds, and schools but there is no updated map, only the early 2000s Masterplan that was part of the old North Drogheda Local Area Plan(LAP).
“Louth County Council have said this might be reviewed when the new LAP for Drogheda is developed later this year. But the LAP is significantly delayed due to a high court injunction on Meath County Council two weeks ago in relation to zoning of lands in South Drogheda. It’s now on hold until MCC revisits their development plan.
“But house building continues without certainty around the delivery of amenities. For example, there’s a housing development off the Termonfeckin Road that was not supposed to start until the PANCR was completed but Louth County Council accepted a new planning application taking out that stipulation and allowing house building to proceed. They also allowed the developer to remove a much-needed playground from the original planning” Deputy Munster said.
She added that it is examples such as this are why she is particularly concerned about the delivery of amenities for the area, especially the delivery of new schools.
“Ballymakenny College is already full and has a waiting list of hundreds and that is before these thousands of new homes are built” she added.
“We’ll have delighted new families moving into their beautiful new homes but then there’ll be a realisation that there’s no schools to send their children to or other social amenities to use” she predicted.
“This is the biggest thing to happen for Drogheda in a generation and we can’t just wait and see what happens or wait for private developers to make provisions for our town” she warned.
“The Government needs to do its job and ensure that we have enough schools to cater for the increase in population and council need to ensure lands are zoned for the sports campus along with sufficient green areas for recreation.”
