Further information has being provided to Laois County Council for a planning application for the construction of over forty houses on the Ballymorris Road in Portarlington.
An application was originally submitted seeking permission from the local authority to build 44 new houses, 12 of which will be 4 bed houses, while the other 32 will be three bed houses.
The application was submitted by Liam McMahon, with the council seeking additional information from him on April 12.
Submissions and observations can be made on the proposed development within the next fortnight.
The proposed development has already received 23 separate submissions from local residents objecting to the development.
“As residents we bought the houses over the past years on the ethos of the original plans of 50 houses,” a letter on behalf of the residents outlines.
“We all knew at some point down the line that our estate would be finished. However the original 27 house build took six to seven years to finish,” the letter adds.
The residents say that the green area was only fenced two years ago, and the tarmac was only poured at the same time. Since then, they say they have experienced lighting and pathway issues.
“We are a small community as it stands at only 27 houses and everyone knows each other and looks out for each other. We have had our problems with crime in the area and all rallied together with the help of the local guards to help deter intruders accessing us from the road and over the railway line,” outlined the residents.
They also contend that car parking spaces at the green are not practical, and there are no pedestrian crossings.
There are issues with traffic speed and the residents are calling for a Traffic Impact Assessment to be carried out, as there are also developments proposed at Lansdowne and a new primary school on the Avon grounds.
Speed
“When we are trying to exit our properties we are taking our lives in our hands every time due to the speed at which cars drive into the estate,” they say in the letter.
They outline concerns over car parking and turning bays in the new proposal.
The residents also do not want the trees lining the boundary of the site to be removed, as they say they drown out noise from the nearby busy train tracks.
They also raised concerns that the amount of three-bed houses proposed indicates these are starter families, with on average two adults per house and two or more children, which might indicate another 80 cars and 80+ children using the green area.
There are also concerns over the water pressure in the area and the residents say that sewage gets blocked and backs up.
The residents also claim a separate entrance is required for construction and heavy goods vehicles associated with the new development
The letter concludes that they are not opposed to the development of the estate, as per the original plans.
Further information was received on the development on June 22. No date has been set for a decision on the planning application.
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