EROC expansion plans bring ‘no gains to the town of Ballaghaderreen’

The deadline for submissions on the controversial proposed expansion at the refugee accommodation in Ballaghaderreen expired on Tuesday. A decision on the development is expected by February 25th.

In the planning application, submitted on December 23rd last, Next Week & Co Ltd is seeking planning permission for the construction of a two storey extension to the Abbeyfeld Hotel EROC to provide additional accommodation, with a single storey corridor link to the existing EROC. The application is also seeking an Astro turf pitch and a play area at the site.

According to the planning documents, the new accommodation would consist of 18 bedrooms and a general purpose room. The applicant also said that it believed that the proposed extension with the added on amenities of the Astro Turf and play area will have a positive impact on the residents who reside at the centre. The EROC has been in operation since 2017.

A number of submissions opposing the development have already been received by the council.

“When the EROC centre initially opened there were many promises of increased resource allocation none of which came to fruition,” said one resident. “This extension will lead to a substantial increase in the number of residents at the Abbeyfield EROC centre placing an even further demand on the finite and currently exhausted service resources in Ballaghaderreen town.

“With the extension there are no gains to the town of Ballaghaderreen, the only people gaining will be Next and Co as they are the only winners standing to increase their already significant financial gains.” They alleged that the owner had “not given any goodwill or resourcing back to the town of Ballaghaderreen”, citing issues regarding the centre’s pool.

“They do not care about the implications that the increased number of residents in the Abbeyfield EROC centre will have on the residents and citizens of Ballaghaderreen town and surrounds. At present it is difficult to get a GP appointment, schools are full up, significant waiting lists for local services such as dental, physiotherapy and speech and language therapy. The public health nurses are ran off their feet.

“The town of Ballaghaderreen embraced the opening of the EROC and continues to support the current residents but the town itself cannot from a resource allocation perspective support any further increases in resident numbers to the EROC centre. I do also feel that the inclusion of the playground and astro turf is a cynical addition to the planning application and is added to sugarcoat the extension to the residential building.” The bulk of the objections centre around the alleged overdevelopment on the site, poor quality of residential accommodation, as well as other reasons.

“The design of the residential accommodation raises significant concerns, particularly regarding the provision of adequate privacy for future occupants,” an objection said. “The proposal has failed to meet acceptable standards in terms of the distance between habitable rooms where people will be spending significant amounts of time because of the nature of the EROC centre and the potential for overlooking.” This objection concluded by saying that the “proposal is inadequate and would have a negative impact on the local environment, the quality of life of future residents and the visual amenity of the area”.