Louth TD Paula Butterly has welcomed Louth County Council’s announcement of a public consultation seeking proposals for lands to meet the county’s new housing growth requirements under the National Planning Framework (NPF) Implementation Guidelines.
The consultation will look for suggestions on land that could potentially be zoned for residential development as the county plans for future housing demand.
Speaking today, Deputy Butterly said the initiative is “a positive step toward addressing the urgent need for additional housing in County Louth,” but stressed that housing delivery must go hand in hand with proper infrastructure planning.
While I welcome this consultation and the opportunity for communities and landowners to put forward suitable sites, we must be honest about the scale of the challenge,” Deputy Butterly said. Louth needs extra land zoned for housing, but zoning alone is not enough. We cannot repeat past mistakes by building estates without the schools, transport links, healthcare services, and community facilities that families rely on. We cannot turn our towns and villages into a concrete jungle.
She said any new residential zoning must be aligned with sustainable development principles. These include ensuring that water, wastewater and transport infrastructure can support new homes, prioritising infill, brownfield and derelict sites to help revitalise existing communities, delivering social infrastructure such as schools, childcare, parks and community spaces, and avoiding over development in areas already under pressure.
Deputy Butterly said the consultation offers the public a chance to shape how housing develops in the county in the coming years.
People want homes, but they also want quality of life. If we are serious about balanced, sustainable growth, then infrastructure cannot be an afterthought. It must be the foundation.
She encouraged residents, community groups and landowners to put forward proposals that support both housing delivery and long term community wellbeing.
A non statutory public consultation will run from Wednesday 18th March 2026 until Wednesday 8th April 2026. During this time, members of the public can make proposals for lands that could be zoned for residential development. Submissions should be concise and should be no longer than three to four A4 pages, including maps.
Submissions can be made online through the consultation portal at https://consult.louthcoco.ie/ or by post to the Forward Planning Section, Louth County Council, Town Hall, Crowe Street, Dundalk.
There is no guarantee that any land included in submissions made in response to this consultation will be zoned for residential purposes. Landowners should also be aware that any lands zoned for residential use may be liable for an annual Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) based on the value of the site.
