Coastal development plans turned down

YET another holiday home development earmarked for a coastal area of Kerry has been turned down by An Bord Pleanála.

The planning appeals board has refused planning permission for an extended 24-house development at Banna Beach, near Tralee, one of the most popular seaside areas in north Kerry.

Grounds for refusal included dissatisfaction with the effluent disposal system and a risk of flooding.

“The proposed development would, therefore, be prejudicial to public health,” said planning inspector Máiréad Kenny.

There’s growing concern about the saturation of scenic areas of Kerry with holiday homes and planning applications for holiday home schemes, in Caherdaniel and Caherciveen, were also rejected recently.

In some parts of Kerry, including Gaeltacht areas in the Dingle Peninsula, such as Dunquin and Ballydavid, holiday homes now outnumber permanent residences, leading to claims that ghost villages are being created in the county.

Banna also has a large number of holiday homes and caravan parks.

The latest development proposed for Banna also included a soccer pitch, tennis/basketball court, a recreation centre building and service road.

The site, which is close to an existing hotel and a number of holiday cottages, is within one kilometre of the main access point and car park at Banna beach.

Ms Kenny also noted that low-lying coastal landscape has been developed with one-off rural housing.

But, the inspector said that, given the location of the site close to existing holiday facilities, the development would have little or no impact on the open landscape and would not undermine the County Development Plan.

“The development would be ancillary to the existing holiday complex and is generally acceptable in principle,’ she added.

“Having regard to the position of the proposed houses and recreation building and the nature of the scheme as a holiday destination, the design and layout are acceptable.”

Bord Pleanála also concluded the site could not be drained properly because of the high water table and lay-out of the landscape.