This article is from page 38 of the 2008-10-28 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 38 JPG
THE developers of the €200 mil- lion Westpark development in the Shannon Free Zone have told Clare County Council the zoning of its site is out-dated and fails to address the contemporary issues facing modern business campuses.
The site is currently zoned ‘com- mercial’ but the owners of the 38 acre parkland site have told the Council that the ‘commercial’ zon-
ing should be changed to ‘enterprise and employment’ which would allow for the development of a variety of industries and allow the campus to adapt quickly and appropriately to changing market demands.
There are currently 700 people em- ployed in the business campus and in a submission on the Council’s South Clare Development Plan, Westpark say the main premise of their sub- mission is to secure a more flexible, dynamic and all emcompassing zon-
ing policy for the area.
“It is our contention that the zon- ing objectives and land use policies are overly restrictive, stifle business developments and do not allow the area to adapt to changing economic and market demands quickly”, their submission states.
Westpark is also seeking that the zoning would allow the development of apart hotel suites on the site.
“The lands are currently being un- der utilised and are ill-equipped to
meet changing market demands in a timely and efficient manner due to the prescriptive planning policies that relate to the site as present.
“The current economic climate suggests that it is becoming increas- ingly difficult to attract foreign in- vestment into Ireland, as the global market becomes more competitive. With this in mind, it is essential that innovative and adaptable enterprise zones are promoted so that compe- titeness is not hampered.
“Westpark would benefit enor- mously from a policy approach that promoted ancillary and supporting business uses within the traditional enterprise zones, as is now common practice throughout modern business campuses”
The submission states that the ra- tionale for providing the apart-hotels is that they “would act as a major pull factor for companies looking to invest in Shannon as they could pro- vide high quality accommodation.”