Commercial development in Bridgend refused planning permission

Donegal County Council has refused planning permission for a commercial development in Bridgend.

Peter and Marie Carey had sought permission for a mixed use development that would’ve contained 16 retail units and 28 office units within four individual two and three-storey blocks at Carrowreagh, Bridgend.

The local authority, however, has turned down the proposals.

In its determination, the Council said that giving the green light would be ‘premature’ as a realignment of the N13 road has yet to be finalised. The Council said that grinding permission would contravene its own policy ‘and would thus be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area’.

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The Council also raised what it said were ‘serious concerns’ regarding the capacity of a new right-turning lane into the site of the proposed development from the N13 and believe it would not be sufficient to cater for the level of additional traffic that would be generated. It said that permission for the development ‘would give rise to an obstruction of the N13 national primary road and would endanger public safety by generation of a traffic hazard’.

Further, Donegal County Council said it was not satisfied that the development would not give rise to significant effects on the Lough Swilly Special Area of Conservation and the Lough Swilly Special Protection Area. Nor was the Council satisfied that there would be sufficient treatment capacity in the public wastewater infrastructure.

The Council added: “The proposed site layout design is considered to be excessively car centred where pedestrian movement would conflict strongly with vehicular traffic to an extent that would endanger public safety by generation of a traffic hazard. 

“In the absence of adequate and safe proposals to create a pedestrian friendly environment to grant permission for the proposed development would materially contravene said policy and would thus be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.”

The proposed development would have consisted of a two-storey building with four retail units on the ground floor and four offices on the first flood; two three-storey blocks consisting of five retail units on the ground floors and five offices on each of the second floors; and a three-storey building to include two retail units on the ground floor and two offices on each of the other floors.