Legal Basis 1

Interpretation/Plan Area and Environs 1

Lough Lannagh and Environs Area Action Plan 1

1.0 STRATEGIC POLICIES AND OBJECTIVES 2

1.7 Housing

1.8 Shopping 3

1.16 Co-operation with Other Planning Authorities 5

Table 1 – Land Use Zoning matrix

2.3 Townscape And Amenity Objectives 9

2.5 Roads / Parking Objectives 10

3.1 Residential Development: Housing Estates 11

3.3 Commercial Development 13

Protected Structures

This Plan is being adopted in respect of the former Urban District Council area as

shown on Maps No 1 and 2. The Area that was the subject of the Boundary extension

approved in January 2002 will be addressed at a later stage.

The Development Plan is divided into 3 Chapters as follows:

1.0 Strategic Policies and Objectives

2.0 Land Use Zoning and Specific Objectives

3.0 Development Control Standards

The following Maps at a scale of 1:5000 are part of the Development Plan:

It is the policy of the Council to continue with the provision of Local Authority Housing where it has been established that the need for such housing exists. The assessment of the need for such houses shall be kept under continuous review.

It is the policy of the Council to co-operate with private developers, to meet the new housing needs generated by the town’s growth and in accordance with the Department of the Environment’s policies and objectives, and the Mayo Housing Strategy 2001-2006.

It is the policy of the Council to review from time to time the housing needs of the Travelling community indigenous to Castlebar, and in the context of the Traveller Accommodation Plan 2000-2004 adopted by Mayo County Council.

It is the policy of the Council to have regard to the Residential Density Guidelines for Planning Authorities issued by the DOE.

It is an objective of the Council to prevent the spread of urban sprawl and ribbon development into the countryside surrounding Castlebar.

It is an objective of the Council to provide housing in a central location for the elderly and disabled where there is an established need.

It is an objective of the Council to facilitate the provision of tourist accommodation such as Hotels, Holiday Homes and Hostels within Castlebar, subject to compliance to compatibility with the urban form and socio-economic character of Castlebar.

It is an objective of the Council to provide Halting Sites for the travelling community indigenous to Castlebar, should the need arise.

It is the policy of the Council to stimulate business and commercial activity in the town centre.

It is an objective of the Council to promote the efficient operation of commercial undertakings in the town by facilitating access and carparking to them and consolidating the town centre.

It is an objective of the Council to have regard to the DOE Retail Planning Guidelines and the Mayo County Council Retail Strategy in considering proposals for major shopping developments.

1.11 Open Space And Recreational Facilities

It is the policy of the Council to maintain, develop and extend the open spaces provision of the town and to provide new areas of open space to satisfy existing and projected demands.

It is the policy of the Council to continue to facilitate the provision of social and sporting activities as the need arises.

It is an objective of the Council to ensure that local open space at suitable standards is provided by developers of new residential areas.

It is an objective of the Council to encourage the improvement of the visual appearance of the approach roads to the town.

It is an objective of the Council to rationalise unused incidental open spaces throughout the town.

It is a an objective of the Council to ensure that social, cultural and sporting activities provide adequate off-street car parking.

It is an objective of the Council to ensure that the amenities of neighbouring properties are safeguarded in the provision of open space and recreational facilities.

It is an objective of the Council to encourage the promotion of traditional indigenous cultural activities.

It is an objective of the Council to make provision for open areas for sports and sports facilities.

It is the policy of the Council to maintain and conserve the architectural quality, character and scale of the town.

It is an objective of the Council to protect the town centre, in particular, from development incompatible with it’s character and visual amenity.

It is an objective of the Council to control the development of satellite dishes and roller shutters.

It is an objective of the Council to encourage appropriate use of established local building materials.

It is an objective of the Council to prohibit the use of plastic and neon lit shop signs.

It is an objective of the Council to encourage a high standard of architectural design in all developments.

It is an objective of the Council to require the use of traditional shopfront designs and materials and signs.

It is an objective of the Council where possible, that all services be laid underground and that provision be made for cable T.V.

It is an objective of the Council to prepare and implement design guidelines for development within the Urban District.

It is the policy of this Plan to provide for the co-ordination of planning objectives and policies of common concern to Castlebar Town Council and Mayo County Council in respect of the Environs.

This Chapter of the Development Plan incorporates the Council’s Land Use Zoning and Specific Objectives. Map No. 1 indicates the Land Use Zoning Objectives and Map No. 2 indicates the Specific Objectives.

It is an objective of the Plan that uses, other than the primary use for which an area is zoned, may be permitted provided they do not conflict with the primary use zoning objectives.

Uses which conflict with the primary use will not be permitted.

A matrix table showing use classes related to use zones is provided in Table 1.

Table 1 shows uses which are:

This method allows for some flexibility and identifies uses which are permitted or not permitted under each use zoning objective.

In the Plan, provision has been made for eight land use zoning objectives and these are indicated on the Land Use Zoning Map (Map No. 1).

RESIDENTIAL (A)

It is the objective of the residential land use to protect, improve and develop residential areas and to provide for facilities and amenities incidental to those residential areas.

Residential areas are made up primarily of houses. Other related activities need to be accommodated close by, i.e. education, recreation, local shopping, public worship. Some of these uses are, therefore, either permitted in the residential zone or left open for consideration. Uses which would be detrimental to the residential amenities will not be permitted. These are uses such as industry, warehouses or repair garages.

In terms of density, residentially zoned areas are indicated on Map No. 1 as high, medium, low or very low, as follows:

High – 10 per acre

Medium – 6 per acre

Low – 4 per acre

Very Low – 2 per acre

INDUSTRIAL (B)

The objective of the industrial land use is to provide for industrial development.

Uses which require extensive but unserviced land will not be permitted. Uses such as warehousing, heavy commercial vehicle parks, which while not compatible with the most economical use of land and services in an industrial area, are often ancillary to an industrial activity and are open for consideration.

The objective of the Town Centre land use is to provide for and improve commercial and other town centre activities.

In the pursuit of this, a major consideration will be the protection of the character of the existing town centre. The town centre includes many land uses. These range from shops, offices, houses, to public open space and some industry. The objective governing the area delineated as town centre means that this land use mix will continue. Certain uses, because of their particular requirements, are best located outside of the town centre i.e. warehousing, general industry and agricultural machinery outlets.

The distinctive urban design character of Castlebar Town Centre will be protected and enhanced in the context of the implementation of this Plan.

It is an objective of the Development Plan that offices be discouraged on ground floor developments at Main Street.

It is an objective of the Council that single storey commercial premises be discouraged in the Town Centre.

RESIDENTIAL / COMMERCIAL (D)

The objective of the Residential / Commercial land use is to protect, improve and renew the existing activities of the area and to provide primarily for residential use and such offices and retail commercial uses as are consistent with the existing general mix in the area.

It an objective of the Council to provide for Council housing on lands acquired for that purpose.

It is an objective of the Council to investigate the feasibility of developing private sites on residential land in the Councils ownership over and above that necessary to meet immediate housing needs.

It is an objective of the Council to identify areas of particular landscape or townscape importance where new development will be restricted.

It is an objective of the Council to improve the street furniture, paving etc. throughout the town.

It is an objective of the Council to preserve the Buildings of Architectural and Historic Interest listed in Appendix I, and to ensure they are protected in their setting. (Map No. 2)

It is an objective of the Council to review the list of Buildings of Architectural and Historic Interest from time to time as need arises.

It is an objective of the Council to preserve Landscape Areas, as listed in Appendix II. (Map No. 2)

It is an objective of the Council to facilitate environmental improvements in the Urban Core. (Map No. 2)

It is an objective Council to preserve the Important Views and Prospects listed in Appendix III and to ensure they are protected from developments which would interfere with such Views and Prospects. (Map No. 2)

It is an objective of the Council to preserve the Trees and Groups of Trees listed in Appendix IV and to ensure they are protected in their setting. (Map No. 2)

It is an objective of the Council to increase the number of trees in Castlebar.

It is an objective of the Council to make Tree Preservation Orders in appropriate cases.

It is an objective of the Development Plan that a Riverside Walk be developed from Newtown through the Church grounds to Linenhall Street.

Apart from the individual buildings listed, the town centre gains much of the essential townscape character from the alignment of the streets and the general scale and quality of the frontages.

Within the Town Centre Area, there are groups of buildings which while the individual buildings which make up the group do not require particular consideration, the group as a whole due to uniformity of design or contribution to a streetscape adds to the urban design character of Castlebar. Within these areas the Council will monitor closely any works to alter or demolish any structure.

It is an objective of the Council to carry out a detailed transportation study of the

town and its environs.

It is an objective of the Council to reserve the lines of the roads as shown on Maps No. 1 and 2 from any development which would interfere with the design and construction of those roads.

It is an objective of the Council to construct, or facilitate the construction of a new Ring Road. The routing of a new Ring Road as shown on Maps No. 1 and 2 is partly within the County Mayo administrative area and is of preliminary status, and subject to further study.

It is an objective of the Council to facilitate where possible pedestrian access from the rear of premises at Bridge Street to the car parks behind.

It is an objective of the Council to provide for a new road corridor between McDonalds and the Newport Road.

It is an objective of the Council that park and ride facilities be provided on the outskirts of the town.

It is an objective of the Council that the road at Newline be widened.

It is an objective of the Council to implement the Castlebar Environs Sewerage Scheme, and associated development.

This Chapter incorporates development control standards relating to various types of development. The standards are intended to provide guidance towards achieving a high quality of development. The Council will apply the standards with discretion and having regard to the particular circumstances of a particular site and development.

The standards as set out in the An Foras Forbartha publication "Recommendations for Site Development Works for Housing Areas" shall apply to the construction of new housing estates.

. Residential Density standards are indicated on Map No. 1 in terms of high, medium, low and very low. The control of density will depend on the design and layout of the scheme and local conditions such as the topographical features of the site and the infrastructural capacity of the area.

Higher densities may be permitted in specific instances. The following parameters will be considered in relation to densities for estates:

It is the intention of the Council to reduce the amount of storm water discharging to foul sewers and consequently being needlessly treated at great expense.

All housing estates shall have separate foul and storm water drainage systems. Storm water, including water from yards and roofs, must discharge into watercourses or into a surface water pipe which subsequently discharges into a watercourse. In certain cases, written permission will be required by the Council allowing the developer discharge surface water into watercourses as various landowners downstream may be affected.

Sewers shall be laid on roads and open spaces and wayleaves shall be supplied to the Council if they must cross private property. The Council may require the developer to provide sewers having a capacity in excess of that required, in order to facilitate further development.

All drainage works shall comply with "Recommendations for Site Development Works for Housing Estates" issued by An Foras Forbartha.

These shall be laid underground throughout the estate. Other ancillary installations such as transformers, sub-stations, etc. will be integrated into the development at design stage and appropriately located so that they are concealed and unobtrusive. In relation to street lighting, this shall be carried out in accordance with the Council and ESB requirements.

Developers will be required to provide security, by way of cash deposit or bond, for the satisfactory completion of roads, footpaths, watermains, sewers, drains, open spaces and other services required in connection with the development, coupled with an agreement empowering the said Council to apply such security or part thereof for the satisfactory completion as aforesaid of any part of the development.

It is an objective of the Development Plan that all developers requiring the Council to take over estates will in future be required to produce a Certificate of Compliance from a duly qualified and bonded Engineer/Architect stating the laying of all public services, i.e. roads, water, sewerage, electricity, phone and televisions cables were supervised by him or her and all were laid in strict compliance with all Building Regulations and in compliance with Planning Permission.

Applications for commercial development will be considered under the following headings:

Industry and warehousing schemes will be required to present a good quality appearance, helped by landscaping, careful placing of advertisement structures, the screening of open storage areas and unobtrusive loading and parking space. Individual buildings should exhibit a high quality of modern architectural design and finish (including use of colour).

Each industrial or warehouse unit should be provided with adequate space for the loading and unloading of goods (including fuels) in areas clear of the public road and preferably behind the building line.