Planning application could deliver €1bn to GDP

A planning application lodged with Longford County Council could deliver €1bn to Ireland’s gross domestic product (GDP) over the next 20 years.

Center Parcs has formally submitted a planning application to Longford County Council, seeking approval to develop the €233m Center Parcs Longford Forest on a 395-acre site at Newcastle Wood, near Ballymahon.

The planning application outlines the transformative impact that Center Parcs Longford Forest could have at a county, regional and national level.

Centre Parcs’ submission promises to create 1,000 permanent jobs, across all skill levels, at the village once operational and around 750 jobs during construction. Centre Parcs plans to invest €400,000 in pre-opening training for employees and a further €140,000 per year once the village is open. It estimates a further 300 jobs in the wider economy once the village is operational. The holiday village plans to boost visitor numbers fivefold to 250,000 in Co Longford annually.

In April this year, Center Parcs announced it had selected Longford as the location for its first holiday Village in Ireland, where it will provide forest breaks in a secluded and natural Irish woodland setting.

Longford County Council will now undertake a five-week period of consultation, during which time the Center Parcs plans will be on public display at the Council office. Subject to receiving satisfactory planning permission, the €233 million Center Parcs Longford Forest could open to guests in 2019.