Boyle people and businesses called on to support Aldi project as planning appealed

The people of Boyle and surrounding areas are being called upon to come out to show their support for a proposed Aldi development while local businesses are being asked to throw their full weight behind the project, which has been appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála by a third party.

Aldi has also appealed some of the planning conditions saying that while the company is pleased to have secured permission from Roscommon County Council, it is seeking to amend or remove certain conditions to ensure the project is “viable and constructible”.

A gathering, this Saturday, February 28th at 2 p.m. at The Crescent, is being organised by Boyle Matters “to give people the chance to show how much it means to the people and how vital it is for this progress to go ahead for Boyle to progress.” This follows an appeal by Brian O’Sullivan of Kilcormac, Co Offaly, against the planning permission granted by Roscommon County Council in January for a new Aldi Store in the town which hopes to create 30 new jobs. Boyle Town Team is also asking the appellant to withdraw the appeal while the six members of the local municipal district in a joint statement have said they are “disappointed” that the move has been made but are confident that permission will be upheld.

In an open letter on behalf of Boyle Town Team Chairman Ciaran Sheerin said that they “fully respect an individual’s right to object as this is the process in place” and they are entitled to exercise their right to do same.

However, the group asked the individual, “to please reflect on your decision, how this impacts our collective community and finally to please consider withdrawing your appeal. To all the people and businesses of Boyle we ask you to throw your full weight behind the project and leverage your connections to respectfully encourage the withdrawal of this appeal,” said Mr Sheerin.

“We were deeply disappointed to hear about the appeal, and we have concerns over this from a town development perspective.

“At best this will delay the progress of a most welcome development or at worst lead to this project not proceeding.

“In the case of Aldi, the appellant is based almost 100kms away from Boyle with no physical business assets or community involvement (in Boyle) known to the town team. Currently our planning process allows submissions and objections from any location nationally. We see this as an opportunity for improvement within the overall planning framework. We do appreciate it’s not as simple as banning out of county applications and the law is this way for many valid reasons. Nonetheless its constraints have resulted in the situation we are in,” the town team noted.

“The appeal unfortunately puts the following at risk: competition in the retail space in a town with a growing population; five housing units in a severe housing shortage; up to 30 permanent positions; construction phase employment and associated increases in local business; 96 badly needed town centre car parking spaces; 10 cycle parking spaces and shelter; the much-needed revitalisation of a derelict street row; delays to much needed Public Realm works in Patrick Street; delays to undergrounding of powerlines. (on Patrick Street); 1000s of government, business and volunteer hours already spent on this project; reputational damage- Most of the business community, local government, national government and volunteers dedicate their time to making Boyle an attractive location to invest, visit and live.

“The delay, along with the risk it poses to the project as a whole, is profoundly disappointing for the patient residents and businesses of Patrick Street, for the people of Boyle who aspire to a vibrant and prosperous town, and for the project promoters, volunteers, and local authorities who work tirelessly to showcase Boyle as a place that is open for business,” said Mr Sheerin.

“We thank the planning unit of Roscommon County Council for its work throughout the planning process and have every confidence that An Coimisiún Pleanála will diligently complete its work. We hope for a positive outcome for this project and the development of Boyle.

“The town team are now more energised than ever in the goal of realising the continued and future development of Boyle,” concluded Mr Sheerin. Meanwhile Boyle MD councillors said that they are still confident that the planned Aldi store for town will get the go-ahead. In a joint statement the six MD councillors - Cllr Sean Moylan (Chairperson); Cllr Valerie Byrne, Cllr Liam Callaghan, Cllr Tom Crosby, Cllr Leah Cull, Cllr Micheál Frain- stated: “As local councillors, we are extremely disappointed that the decision by Roscommon County Council to grant planning permission for an Aldi store and five residential houses in Boyle was appealed.

“The council’s decision followed a thorough and careful assessment of the application in line with all relevant planning policies and statutory requirements. The local positivity in regards to the decision made emphasised the value of this project. The housing need in Boyle is well documented, and the provision of five new homes would represent a strong contribution to addressing local demand. In addition, enhanced retail provision, particularly in the Patrick Street area would help to rebalance and revitalise the town, increase footfall, and provide greater choice for residents and visitors. Such investment would in our view, lift commercial activity across Boyle as a whole.

“As we continue striving to attract a hotelier, more food offerings, more public events, and further attractions to Boyle, we firmly believe this development would have supported that wider ambition and strengthened confidence in the town as a place to live, work, and invest.

“While we acknowledge the right to appeal within the planning process, we are concerned that this action prolongs uncertainty for residents and may cause hesitation among other potential investors considering Boyle as a base.

“We as a group are still confident that the original decision by Roscommon County Council will hold up. We stand with the people of Boyle.”

The appeal highlights a number of issues. It is argued that a development of this scale would be out of character with the area and not in compliance with the core town centre zoning policy.

Mr O’Sullivan further stated that “a modern discount store located within the curtilage of an Architectural Conservation Area is not respectful towards the historic buildings with special architectural merit along Patrick Street together the 18th century Georgian Frybrook House located in the southern side of the proposed site.”

It is further stated that “the width of the existing carriageway along Patrick Street is inadequate to accommodate the volume of additional traffic generated together with HGV deliveries to the store on a daily basis. The proposed car parking does not meet the stands of the development plan and therefore would contribute to further traffic congestion in this area.”

Finally he stated “the footpath along Patrick Street is inadequate to accommodate additional pedestrian traffic which would be generated by this development. Due to the proximity of the building line in relation to the carriageway along Patrick Street, particularly on the western side, sight lines at the junction of Patrick Street and the proposed entrance to the development are severely restricted,” Mr Sullivan outlined and asked that all these points be taken into account and that planning permission be refused for the development.