Sligo County Development Plan 2017-2023 Consolidated Draft + Adopted Amendments – August 2017 Volume 1, Chapter 1 – Introduction
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Sligo County Development Plan 2017–2023 - Volume 1 Mullaghmore Cliffony Grange N15 Carney Drumcliff N16 Easky Rosses Point Ballincar Strandhill S Ransboro Dromore West N59 Ballysadare Enniscrone Collooney Ballygawley Ballintogher Coolaney N17 N4 Coolaney Riverstown Cloonacool Ballymote Geevagh Castlebaldwin Aclare Tourlestraun Tobercurry Banada Culfadda Ballinafad Curry Gorteen Bellag hy Monasteraden 28 August 2017 Sligo County Development Plan 2017–2023 . Volume 1 This Development Plan for County Sligo (CDP) has been prepared under Section 11 of the Planning and Development Act 2000-2015. It was adopted on 31 July 2017 and came into operation on 28 August 2017. The CDP consists of two volumes: Volume 1 contains the main written statement and Volume 2 contains 32 mini-plans. The Plan is accompanied by the following supporting documents: Landscape Character Assessment Map (A1 format) Housing Strategy County Retail Strategy Strategic Flood Risk Assessment Environmental Report (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Appropriate Assessment Screening Report The County Development Plan and associated documents are available for inspection or purchase at the Planning Office of Sligo County Council in the City Hall (Quay Street, Sligo) and at the Council’s Area Of- fices in Ballymote, Enniscrone and Tobercurry. The documents can also be viewed and downloaded from the Council’s website at www.sligococo.ie/cdp No A4, A3 or A1 maps pertaining to this publication may be copied, reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission of the copyright owners. © Ordnance Survey Ireland Prepared by the Development Planning Unit Licence number of Sligo County Council 28 August 2017 2010/20 CCMA/Sligo Local Authorities Contents of Volume 1 1. County Sligo today: the planning issues 2 1.1 Planning policy 2 1.2 Sligo – key development factors 3 1.3 Population change 5 1.4 Recent trends and implications for the CDP 10 2. Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) 13 and Appropriate Assessment (AA) 2.1 Legislative context 13 2.2 SEA stages 13 2.3 Environmental Report 13 2.4 Scoping the assessment 14 2.5 Alternative development scenarios 14 2.6 Evaluation of the CDP provisions 15 2.7 Appropriate Assessment 15 3. Core Strategy 17 3.1 Core Strategy basics 18 3.2 Settlement hierarchy 21 3.3 Rural settlement 24 3.4 Population and housing land 27 3.5 Local area plans 32 3.6 Miscellaneous zoning provisions 34 3.7 Implementation 36 4. Economic development 39 4.1 Approach to economic development 39 4.2 Industry and enterprise 42 4.3 Rural development and enterprise 45 4.4 Tourism development 50 4.5 Retail planning 59 5. Housing 67 5.1 Housing Strategy 67 5.2 Urban housing 72 5.3 Housing in rural areas 76 5.4 Social housing 80 5.5 Housing for persons with diverse needs 83 5.6 Miscellaneous housing provisions 85 i 6. Community facilities 89 6.1 LECP provisions 89 6.2 Delivering community facilities 91 6.3 Education 92 6.4 Arts and cultural facilities 94 6.5 Childcare facilities 95 6.6 Healthcare facilities 96 6.7 Outdoor recreation 97 6.8 Allotments 103 6.9 Burial grounds 104 7. Heritage 105 7.1 Natural heritage 106 7.2 Archaeological heritage 118 7.3 Architectural heritage 124 7.4 Landscape character 129 8. Transport and mobility 133 8.1 National and regional policy 133 8.2 Road network 137 8.3 Cycle and pedestrian movements 144 8.4 Public transport 147 8.5 Airports 149 8.6 Ports and harbours 149 9. Environmental infrastructure 151 9.1 Water, wastewater and drainage 151 9.2 Water supply 152 9.3 Wastewater treatment 156 9.4 Surface water drainage 162 9.5 Waste management 164 10. Environmental quality 171 10.1 Water quality 171 10.2 Air quality 176 10.3 Noise control 178 10.4 Coastal environment 179 10.5 Major Accidents Directive 185 10.6 Climate change 186 10.7 Flood risk management 190 11. Energy and telecommunications 195 11.1 Energy 195 11.2 Telecommunications 204 ii 12. Town and village design 207 12.1 Historic streetscapes 207 12.2 Shopfronts 208 12.3 Urban development and expansion 209 12.4 Public realm 211 12.5 Development of new residential areas 211 13. Development management standards 217 13.1 The planning process 217 13.2 General development standards 218 13.3 Residential development in urban areas 230 13.4 Residential development in rural areas 239 13.5 Retail development standards 246 13.6 Miscellaneous commercial developments 251 13.7 Advertising 254 13.8 Transportation, roads, parking 256 13.9 Miscellaneous development standards 263 Appendices Appendix A – Designated nature conservation sites Appendix B – Protected animal, bird and plant species in Co. Sligo Appendix C – Geological heritage sites Appendix D – Monuments in State care Appendix E – County landscape designations Appendix F – Urban design criteria Appendix G – Section 28 statement of compliance iii Sligo County Development Plan 2017-2023 Consolidated Draft + Adopted Amendments – August 2017 Volume 1, Chapter 1 – Introduction County Development Plan: Introduction As the blueprint for development in County Sligo, the County Development Plan is the over-arching strategic framework document for sustainable development in spatial, economic, social and environmental terms. The development plan must offer clear guidance on sustainable development policies and objectives, addressing various issues such as settlement and the creation of sustainable communities, economic development, transport, energy, judicious use of natural resources and adaptation to climate change Sligo County Development Plan 2017-2023 (CDP) sets out an overall strategy for the proper planning and sustainable development of County Sligo, in accordance with the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended). As a result of the implementation of the Local Government Reform Act 2014 and consequent abolition of Sligo Borough Council, Sligo County Council has extended its jurisdiction over the Sligo and Environs area, for which two development plans were previously prepared jointly by the two planning authorities (in 2004 and in 2010) The Local Government Reform Act 2014 also established a Municipal District system of local administration. There are two such districts in County Sligo: the Municipal District of Sligo and the Municipal District of Ballymote-Tobercurry. This Plan builds on the review of the Sligo CDP 2011-2017, taking into account recent changes as well as national, regional and local policy developments. The CDP presents the Council’s outlook for the future development of County Sligo and its Gateway City for the period up to 2023, within a long-term perspective. The Plan provides a spatial planning framework designed to support the economic and social development of the County, as envisioned in the first Sligo Local Economic and Community Plan 2016-2021. 1 Sligo County Development Plan 2017-2023 Consolidated Draft + Adopted Amendments – August 2017 Volume 1, Chapter 1 – Introduction 1. County Sligo today: the planning issues Since the last development plan for Sligo was adopted in 2011, there have been important developments at national, regional and local level. The local government reform of 2014, changes in national and regional policy and recent demographic and economic trends gave rise to issues that must be addressed in the new County Development Plan. 1.1 Planning policy A variety of national, regional and local government policy documents have been reviewed in preparing this Development Plan. The Policy documents most relevant to the CDP are: at national level: the National Spatial Strategy 2002-2020 at regional level: the Border Regional Planning Guidelines 2010-2022 at local level: the Sligo Local Economic and Community Plan 2016-2022 (LECP) and the Sligo and Environs Development Plan 2010-2016 (SEDP) Key messages from these documents are outlined below. At national level: 1. The NSS, Ireland’s first national strategic planning framework, identified Sligo as an urban centre to be developed in an accelerated manner as a Gateway City to drive the overall development of the North-West. This County Development Plan, like its predecessors, promotes growth in the Gateway City of Sligo while seeking to achieve balanced development in County areas outside gateways. The NSS is due to be replaced by a statutory National Planning Framework (NPF) in 2017. It is expected that the NPF will retain the Gateway designations and will continue to promote balanced development of the national territory, taking into account the diverse characteristics of urban and rural areas. At regional level: 2. The Border RPGs 2010 aimed to support the development of the Gateways identified in the NSS within a more detailed framework that includes Hubs and other key towns outside the Gateways. The Guidelines established a broad framework for county development plans to ensure that the development of the Gateways under the NSS moved forward in tandem with a process of strengthening other urban areas and supporting a dynamic rural community. The RPGs also set minimum population targets and related housing land requirements for counties and major urban centres in the Border Region up to the year 2022. The Core Strategy of this County Development Plan takes full account of the RPG population targets. The Border Regional Planning Guidelines are due to be replaced in 2017 by a Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy prepared by the Northern and Western Regional Assembly. At local level: 3. The first Local Economic and Community Plan for County Sligo was prepared by Sligo County Council and the Local Community Development Committee during 2015 and adopted in January 2 Sligo County Development Plan 2017-2023 Consolidated Draft + Adopted Amendments – August 2017 Volume 1, Chapter 1 – Introduction 2016. The LECP sets a vision, goals, objectives and detailed actions designed to mobilise all stakeholders with an interest in a successful future for Sligo.