Rezoned land linked to Garda probe sparks row

A ROW has broken out in west Waterford following a county council decision to controversially rezone a 200-acre site — reportedly linked to a Garda investigation.

A Fianna Fáil councillor branded Fine Gael TD John Deasy a “messenger boy” for making a complaint to gardaí over alleged planning irregularities.

Ignoring the advice of the county manager and planning officials, county councillors voted on Monday evening, by 13-8, to rezone a parcel of land, which is part of a Garda investigation into planning irregularities.

The site is at Ballygeoghean, about two kilometres west of Dungarvan.

Allegations surrounding the future development of the land sparked the inquiry.

County manager Ray O’Dwyer and the council’s planning director of services Denis McCarthy had recommended rezoning a different block of land adjacent to the N25 — an existing industrial area with all necessary services.

However, the site the councillors decided to rezone is surrounded by agricultural land and is not serviced.

“That’s one of the reasons why we were against it,” council official Mr McCarthy said yesterday.

Mr Deasy, meanwhile, confirmed it was he who contacted gardaí last year with information about alleged planning irregularities in Co Waterford.

However, Fianna Fáil whip on the council, Cllr James Tobin said yesterday that he, himself, would not have gone to the gardaí.

“I believe that if a third party had some evidence that something wrong was going on, he should have gone to the guards himself and not used a Dáil deputy as a messenger boy or whatever you’d like to call him.”

Mr Tobin said yesterday that if somebody came to him with planning allegations, he wouldn’t go to the gardaí.

“If he [the third party] couldn’t prove what was in the allegation, I don’t think I’d bother going to the guards.”

Fianna Fáil councillors, and half of the council’s Fine Gael contingent, voted in favour of rezoning the controversial 200 acres.

Mr Tobin said no sitting councillor or official was under investigation. “There is no investigation, as far as we’re concerned,” he said.

Gardaí yesterday did not comment on the council’s decision, but confirmed an investigation into planning matters in the county was continuing.

A source, however, suggested there was “surprise” among local gardaí following the council vote.

A consortium of businessmen and landowners last year applied for planning permission for an industrial development on the section of land in question, but were refused.

Now that it has been rezoned for industrial use, the land is likely to be the subject of a new planning application.