Courtown and Riverchapel Local Area Plan The Courtown and Riverchapel Local Area Plan was made by Wexford County Council on the 2nd February 2015 and came into effect on the 2nd March 2015. This Plan should be read in conjunction with the Wexford County Development Plan, in particular the Section on Development Management Standards which will be applied to any proposal within the Local Area Plan boundary. Courtown and Riverchapel Local Area Plan 2015 -2021 Table of Contents Table of Contents Section 1 Introduction ................................................................. 8 1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 8 1.2 Location and Background ...................................................................................... 2 1.3 Legal Status ........................................................................................................... 5 1.4 Purpose of the Local Area Plan ............................................................................. 5 1.5 Plan Area ............................................................................................................... 6 1.6 Courtown and Riverchapel in the context of the County Settlement Strategy ........ 6 1.7 Relationship with Other Plans ................................................................................ 8 1.7.1 National Spatial Strategy 2002-2020 .......................................................... 8 1.7.2 Regional Planning Guidelines for the South-East Region 2010-2022 ........ 8 1.7.3 National Planning Guidelines ..................................................................... 9 1.8 Strategic Environmental Assessment .................................................................. 10 1.9 Appropriate Assessment ...................................................................................... 10 1.10 Implementation of the Local Area Plan .............................................................. 12 Section 2 Population and Socio-Economic Profile ................. 13 2.1 Population ........................................................................................................ 13 2.2 Age Profile........................................................................................................ 13 2.3 Employment ..................................................................................................... 14 2.4 Travel Patterns ................................................................................................. 15 Section 3 Physical Functions and Character of the Area ....... 17 3.1 Settlement Function ............................................................................................. 17 3.2 Physical Setting and Appreciation ....................................................................... 17 3.3 Historical Development ........................................................................................ 18 3.4 Settlement Character Assessment ...................................................................... 19 3.5 Character Areas ................................................................................................... 20 3.5.1 Character Area 1: Courtown and Riverchapel Village Centre .................. 22 3.5.2 Character Area 2: Residential .................................................................. 24 3.5.3 Character Area 3: Burrow and Pollshone ................................................. 26 3.5.4 Character Area 4: Open Space Amenity/Recreation ................................ 27 Table of Contents Section 4 Development Strategy for the Plan Area .............. 29 4.1 Background ......................................................................................................... 29 4.2 Development Strategy for the Plan Area ............................................................. 29 Section 5 Economic Development in the Plan Area ................ 32 5.1 Background ......................................................................................................... 32 5.2 Economic Development Strategy for the Plan Area ............................................. 32 5.3 Retail and Commercial Development .................................................................. 33 5.4 Economic Development Objectives ..................................................................... 34 Section 6 Tourism and Economic Activity ............................... 36 6.1 Background ......................................................................................................... 36 6.2 Tourism Strategy ................................................................................................. 36 6.3 General Tourism Objectives ................................................................................ 37 6.4 Tourist Accommodation ....................................................................................... 39 6.4.1 Caravan and Mobile Home Parks ............................................................ 39 6.4.2 Touring Caravan Sites ............................................................................. 39 6.4.3 Holiday Homes ......................................................................................... 39 6.4.4 Camping and Glamping ........................................................................... 40 6.4.5 Hotels, Guesthouses and B&Bs ............................................................... 40 6.4.6 Tourist Accommodation in the Burrow and Pollshone Area ..................... 41 6.5 Tourist Accommodation Objectives ..................................................................... 44 Section 7: Village Centre, Public Realm and Urban Design ... 48 7.1 The Village Centre ............................................................................................... 48 7.2 The Public Realm ................................................................................................ 49 7.3 Urban Design ....................................................................................................... 49 7.4 Village Centre, Urban and Public Realm Objectives ............................................ 50 Section 8 Community Facilities ................................................ 51 8.1 Community Facilities ............................................................................................ 51 8.2 Education Facilities .............................................................................................. 52 8.3 Childcare Facilities ............................................................................................... 53 Section 9 Recreation, Amenity and Open Space ..................... 55 9.1 Background ......................................................................................................... 55 9.2 Recreation Facilities ............................................................................................ 55 Table of Contents 9.2.1 Recreational Facilities for Children and Teenagers .................................. 55 9.2.1.1 Recreational Facilities for Children ........................................................ 56 9.2.1.2 Recreation Facilities for Teenagers and Young Adults ......................... 57 9.2.2 Recreation Facilities for Older People ...................................................... 58 9.3 Open Space and Natural Amenities ..................................................................... 58 9.4 The Coastal Path ................................................................................................. 58 9.5 Public Rights of Way ............................................................................................ 59 9.6 Allotments/Community Gardens .......................................................................... 59 9.7 Recreation, Amenity and Open Space Objectives ............................................... 59 Section 10 Access and Movement ............................................ 61 10.1 Background........................................................................................................ 61 10.2 Roads ................................................................................................................ 62 10.3 Footpaths and Linkages .................................................................................... 62 10.4 Cycling ............................................................................................................... 66 10.5 Car Parking ........................................................................................................ 66 10.6 Public Transport ................................................................................................. 67 10.7 Access and Movement Objectives ..................................................................... 67 Section 11 Housing .................................................................... 69 11.1 Background........................................................................................................ 69 11.2 Population Target for the Plan Area ................................................................... 69 11.3 Housing Land Requirements ............................................................................. 70 11.4 Future Residential Development ........................................................................ 71 11.5 Apartments .......................................................................................................