01. Newcasle West Local Area Plan ( pdf file - 3593 kb in size)

NEWCASTLE WEST Local Area Plan 2008Limerick County Development Plan 2005The County Development Plan classifies Newcastle West asa ‘Key Town’ within the County acting as the key servicecentre in West Limerick. As a ‘Key town’ Newcastle Westshould act as a driver of development and a significantprovider of services in West Limerick, as well ascomplimenting the development of the Limerick / Ennis /Shannon Gateway and acting as a base for high qualitytransport links to the core area of the region.The County Development Plan acknowledges the effects ofurban generated rural housing and indicates that smalltowns and villages have a key role for catering for much ofthis demand. The Plan therefore seeks to promote ruraltowns and villages as the most suitable locations forproposals for multiple dwellings.The Settlement Strategy for the County stresses that thedevelopment of settlements will be promoted in a plannedand sustainable manner. Urban sprawl on the edges oftowns and villages will be avoided and a clear characterdistinction between the built-up areas and the opencountryside maintained through the provision of Local AreaPlans in the main settlements and development boundarieselsewhere. The plan stresses that the strengthening of ruralcommunities can only be achieved in the long term throughmaking settlements more attractive places to live andproviding employment opportunities.The Development Plan sets out an important agenda onCommunity and Rural Development. It highlights thetradition of living in towns and villages and how the generaldecline of these settlements has been reflected in thechange in physical character of the areas. Traditionallycompact villages and towns have grown in a manner thathas tended to take the form of either ribbon development orloosely scattered development. The Plan recognises theimportance of the commercial and social aspects of townsand villages to their surrounding hinterland hence thesignificance of their development to ensure long-termviability.The LAP seeks to implement the strategic objectives of theDevelopment Plan by recognising the potential toaccommodate new development suitable in scale andcharacter to its position in the settlement hierarchy whileproviding for the planned expansion to facilitate that growth.urban fabric, supports local development groups’involvement in regeneration, and its commitment to apartnership approach to community issues.Mid West Planning GuidelinesThis document provides a regional framework for theformulation of the policies and strategy in the CountyDevelopment Plan and is intended to ensure the properbalance between the different settlements in the region withregard to development, population and services.It demonstrates that the region features a strong centralcore, embracing Limerick City and the nearby centres ofShannon and Ennis. Together they create an urbanagglomeration that is centrally located within the region andthat has the potential to be accessed from all its parts. Thisarea has also experienced considerable development andpopulation growth during the past twenty years, with newfacilities and services being provided during this period.The Regional Planning Guidelines set out the likelymaximum population growth that can be anticipated, with theMid West population potentially growing from 340,000 in2002 to almost 380,000 by 2020. However, the addedimpact of the National Spatial Strategy has suggested apopulation target for the Region of 400,000. Most of thegrowth would be accounted for by natural increase of birthsminus deaths, with some small level of in-migration.Future population distribution targets are proposed withseveral goals in mind - to ensure the creation of a regionalcore area with sufficient mass to act as a development node;facilitate the creation of other service centres; maintainsustainable rural communities; ensure environmental quality;and provide public transport links to the main centres.Newcastle West lies within Zone 5, which covers the WestLimerick area as defined in the Mid West Draft RegionalGuidelines. The current distribution of population within thiszone in 2002 was 32,000. The strategy states that there ispotential within the zone for the development of a largescaleindustrial centre as well as a high quality residentiallocation for those working in Limerick/Ennis/Shannon. Itrecognises a need, however, for settlements to expand theirrole as residential zones of high quality.This LAP further supports the Planning Authority’s strategythat encourages development into the existing settlements,promotes the redevelopment of derelict areas within theSection 1: INTRODUCTION3