Appeals board hears opposition to €40m private hospital plan

OPPONENTS of a planned €40 million private hospital on the outskirts of Ennis yesterday outlined their opposition to the project at an oral hearing.

Last year, Clare County councillors voted 28 to 3 in favour of the rezoning at Woodstock to give the developers, John Stack and Pat Bonner, approval for a 100-bed hospital plan.

The Bord Pleanála hearing is being held at the Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis,

An architect, Lourdes O’Donoghue, on behalf of objectors Matt and Bernadette Power, urged the appeals board to overturn Clare Co Council’s decision to approve the plan.

Ms O’Donoghue said yesterday that “the current proposal is for a large scale urban hospital development in an area zoned residential and bordering open countryside”.

She claimed the immense scale of the proposed hospital can only have a detrimental impact on the neighbouring countryside.

“While reduced in size, the density still does not respect the form of buildings and landscape around the site’s edges and the amenity enjoyed by neighbouring uses”.

Ms O’Donoghue also stated “the site is massively over developed and there is no room for future expansion”.

She pointed out the four-storey hospital “overlooks the private rear gardens of other existing residential dwellings to the west and the front gardens of a number of existing dwelling houses to the south and east”.

Geradline Donnelly told the hearing: “To permit this development not adequately zoned can only be justified if no other lands were suitably zoned, but this is clearly not the case.

“The proposed development is developer-led and goes against the principles of the Planning and Development Act 2010 which seeks to move towards a more sustainable, evidence based and plan-led approach to our planning system. It is our opinion the proper planning and sustainable development of the area was not adequately considered in granting this permission.”

Senior planner with Clare County Council, Gordon Daly, said the council’s planning assessment “concluded the proposal would accord with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area”.

He said the plan will not proceed until an upgrade of the Clonroadmore Treatment Plant in Ennis was completed.

Council colleague Eamon O’Dea told the hearing the plant was expected to be completed in the latter part of next year.

A decision will be made on the appeal later this year.