LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2030 – DRAFT PLAN STRATEGY The Logo The mark includes the three Helping to suggest a sense FEBRUARY 2019 spires synonymous with of a new united region The Mid Ulster District the town of Magherafelt, which spans two counties, Council logo has been a castle, representing the the shield also portrays two designed to reflect the area ancient seat of the O’Neill’s oak leaves around the red by incorporating elements of and the Dungannon area’s hand of Ulster. The rolling the new Mid Ulster region. association with the old line in the centre of the The traditional shield shape kings of Ulster. A wheat shield acknowledges an recalls the intricate, heraldic bundle which featured in important local landmark, Council coat of arms but Cookstown’s crest refers the Sperrin mountains, and is interpreted in a clean, to the significance of the four waves represent the modern way helping to agriculture to the area, both waters of Lough Neagh. signify the beginning of in the past and present, a new era. and is a symbol of the rural landscape and community. 1 Mid Ulster District Council — Brand Identity Guidelines — March 2015 01 Foreword by Chair of Mid Ulster District Council, Councillor Sean McPeake The publication of the Local Development Plan 2030– Draft Plan Strategy is a significant milestone for Mid Ulster District Council. It follows the transfer of planning powers in April 2015 which provided us as a local authority – for the first time in decades - with the opportunity to truly tailor our plan to address the specific needs of the Mid Ulster District. The Draft Plan Strategy sets out our vision for planning land use up to 2030 and details the objectives, spatial planning framework and planning policies which we propose to use to deliver that vision. It supports the vision of the Mid Ulster Community Plan to create a region which is ‘a welcoming place where our people are content, healthy and safe; educated and skilled; where our economy is thriving; our environment and heritage are sustained; and where our public services excel’. Our Strategy aims to encourage growth in Cookstown, Dungannon and Magherafelt which are our main service centres and the most accessible places in the district, particularly for those without a car. At the same time, however, the plan seeks to balance the needs of our urban centres with those of our rural communities, which require vibrant local towns and villages to meet their daily needs. The Draft Plan therefore facilitates business, employment, housing, community and recreational facilities in our towns, while recognising the needs of people in the countryside, providing opportunities to build a house or start a rural enterprise in a sustainable manner. Improving our infrastructure and protecting our environment are also key themes in this Strategy, as the Council lobbies for a by-pass for Cookstown and Dungannon, improvements to the A29, as well as to the A4 and A5 transport corridors. We also recognise that we are custodians of some of the world’s most important wetlands, peatlands and mountain landscapes and we have taken measures to try to protect these in the plan development. This is the first formal stage in the preparation of our Local Development Plan 2030 and is the culmination of several years’ work after the publication of the Preferred Options Paper (POP) in November 2016. It has been compiled taking account of the public representations made in response to the POP and with the sustained input from Mid Ulster Councillors in the intervening period. We continue to engage too with our neighbouring councils through cross boundary working groups, the instigation of which has been led by this Council. We now invite the people of Mid Ulster and other interested parties to consider the Draft Plan Strategy and look forward to receiving their views in this first period of plan consultation. Councillor Sean McPeake Chair Mid Ulster District Council 2 5 CONTENTS Page 1.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 9 2.0 Mid Ulster Context and Key Issues .............................................................................. 23 3.0 Local Development Plan Vision and Objectives ......................................................... 29 4.0 Growth Strategy and Spatial Planning Framework ................................................... 33 5.0 Implementation of This Plan Strategy ........................................................................ 55 6.0 General Principles Planning Policy .............................................................................. 57 SOCIAL POLICIES – ACCOMMODATING GROWTH AND CREATING PLACES 7.0 Housing in Settlements… ............................................................................................ 63 8.0 Housing in the Countryside ......................................................................................... 77 9.0 Health Education and Community Uses… .................................................................. 93 10.0 Urban Design ................................................................................................................ 99 11.0 Open Space, Recreation and Leisure ........................................................................ 105 ECONOMIC POLICIES – CREATING JOBS AND PROSPERITY 12.0 Economic Development ............................................................................................. 115 13.0 Retailing, Offices and Town Centres ......................................................................... 123 14.0 Minerals… .................................................................................................................. 141 15.0 Tourism ....................................................................................................................... 153 16.0 Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing ............................................................................. 167 ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES – PROTECTING HERITAGE AND PROVIDING INFRASTRUCTURE 17.0 Historic Environment ................................................................................................. 173 18.0 Natural Heritage ........................................................................................................ 197 19.0 Flood Risk ................................................................................................................... 207 20.0 Waste Management ................................................................................................... 219 21.0 Telecommunications, Overhead Cables,High Structures and other Utilities .......... 227 22.0 Renewable Energy ..................................................................................................... 233 23.0 Transportation ............................................................................................................ 243 24.0 Monitoring of our Plan .............................................................................................. 249 6 GLOSSARY OF TERMS .......................................................................................................... 273 APPENDICES Appendix 1 .............................................................................................................................. 253 Housing Local Indicators and Economic Development Local Indicators over Plan Period 2015-2030 Appendix 2 .............................................................................................................................. 262 Guidance for Advertisements Appendix 3 .............................................................................................................................. 268 Landscape Design Considerations for Holiday Parks and Touring Caravan Sites Appendix 4 .............................................................................................................................. 270 Guidance for Submission of Flood Risk Assessment (FRA) and Drainage Assessment (DA) LIST OF MAPS WITHIN AND ACCOMPANYING THE PLAN STRATEGY Map 1.1 – Growth Strategy Map .............................................................................................. 34 Map 1.2 – Granville Economic Development Zones ................................................................ 47 Map 1.3 – Dungannon North Economic Development Zones ................................................ 48 Map 1.4 – Opportunity Site for Recreation with supporting economic mixed use development ............................................................................................................ 49 Map 1.5 – Rural Industrial Policy Area at Tullyvannon ........................................................... 50 Map 1.6 – Rural Industrial Policy Area at Desertcreat ............................................................ 51 Map 1.7 – Cookstown Primary Retail Core ............................................................................ 135 Map 1.8 – Dungannon Primary Retail Core ........................................................................... 136 Map 1.9 – Magherafelt Primary Retail Core .......................................................................... 137 Map 1.10 – Coalisland Primary Retail Core ............................................................................ 138 Map 1.11 – Maghera Primary Retail Core .............................................................................. 139 Map 1.12 – Mineral Reserve Policy Area –Cookstown