This article is from page 14 of the 2006-01-24 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
ONE of the leading objectors to plans by the Whelan Group to extend its flagship operation is the County Kildare man jailed last week in connection with a sheep protest.
Percy Podger, of French Furze House near the Curragh, Co Kildare was one of a large number of objectors who last week failed to prevent Whelan Limestone Quarries from securing planning permission to extend the company’s quarry operation.
Clare County Council granted planning permission to the quarrying company for the majority of the lands sought for the extension, and the move is expected to safeguard the jobs of the 110 people employed at the site.
However, it has emerged this week that Mr Podger was one of the objectors centrally involved in opposing the Whelan plan.
Mr Podger was jailed last week after refusing to pay €850 his sheep and passing motorists in fines and expenses. are endangered by the failure of
His refusal to pay arises from Kildare County Council to inhis bid to highlight a serious stall a sheep grid near his farm. road safety issue, claiming that However, apart from his disDROMOLAND Castle has claimed that plans by its neighbouring Lynch Group-owned Clare Inn to construct a golf suite hotel are “ill conceived and driven by tax-incentive deadlines and economics rather than sustainable development principles”.
Last month, Clare County Council granted planning to develop a golf suite hotel on the grounds of the Clare Inn, in spite of opposition from the five-star castle hotel at Dromoland.
However, Managing Director of Dromoland Castle, Mark Nolan has now appealed the decision to An Bord Pleanala, throwing the scheme into doubt.
In the appeal lodged on Mr Nolan’s behalf, it stateds: “The area is already well served by accommodation to serve all market niches from the business visitor to the golfer to the family. The Clare Inn annually closes for a number of months of the year due to the lack of demand for the facility. Falling occupancy rates is a feature of the area in recent years.
“The development, if permitted, will have a negative impact on existing established facilities in the area. The development is driven by a tax incentive rather than local need.
“The fact that no market research quantifiying need was submitted to the planning office in making a case for the facility bears this out further, and the applicant reduced the scale of the development without trying to justify need.”
The statement continues, “The proposed development represents yet another ad-hoc development on the overall site of the Clare Inn Hotel. No attempt has been made to integrate this development with existing developments on site.
“The Clare Inn now represents a series of linear and haphazard extensions over time adding to its visual impact, with little attempt to landscape and integrate the development within the exposed landscape.
“The design is not sensitive to the landscape and will, if built, represent a prominent intrusion in the landscape, which necessitates significant landscape interference in terms of reduction in finished floor levels.
“It is clearly evident that pressure has been exerted on the council in reaching a decision in view of pending tax incentive deadlines. In the most recent correspondence to the council, a ‘quick response’ was requested by the agents in view of stringent timetable to which he must operate. Quick decisions do not represent proper planning and sustainable decisions,” the statement concluded.
A decision is due to be made by the appeals board in May of this year. pute with Kildare County Council, Mr Podger was involved in seeking to prevent the Whelan Group expanding its plans at Fountain, Ennis.
The Clare People has learned that Mr Podger was involved in establishing a company aimed at seeking to prevent the Whelan Group from proceeding with its plan.
The Certificate of Incorporation of Cairn Hill Environmental Protection Group Ltd show that the members of the company are made up of local people opposed to the Whelan plan.
However, the document shows that Mr Podger was involved in the processing of the certificate. The document shows that the Kildare man was a witness to the signature of the directors involved in the company. The solicitor involved in establishing the company is Greg Casey, who represented the Rossport Five.
In his objection against the Whelan proposal, Mr Podger claimed that the proposed was contrary to the EU Directive, EU policies and Irish legislation; that the plan was contrary to proper planning and sustainable development and that the proposal was a material contravention of County Development Plan.