Plans for scaled-down development at Dingle Distillery appealed to planning commission

While welcoming the revised plans, local residents said there was a lack of information regarding plans for the distillery's scaled-down expansion

A recent positive bid by Kerry County Council has now been appealed to the planning commission.

A scaled-down development of the Dingle Distillery has been appealed to the planning commission just over two years after initial plans aiming to create 50 jobs were also shot down.

The distillery, which produces gin, vodka and whiskey at Old Mill in Milltown, Co. Kerry, got the green light from the local council last month to retain its first-floor area and its production building, consisting of a staff kitchen, a shop with a tasting bar, and a visitor area.

The distillery also received permission from Kerry County Council to upgrade its external cladding and modify its internal layout across its lower and upper levels. 

In addition, the plans included a new retail area, two new steel grain storage silos, bicycle, car and bus parking on site and all associated site ancillary works.

However, the plans have now been appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála by local residents who, in their submission to Kerry County Council, outlined concerns regarding a lack of information about the new works, including how retail and visitor areas would work, the excessive amount of glass in the new plans, and how many new parking spaces would be created.

In their submission, neighbouring residents Peter Malone and Eileen O'Sullivan congratulated the architects for producing a design that is "far more true to the area than its predecessor."

However, they noted a lack of clarity on key issues regarding the development. 

"No landscaping plan is submitted by the developers," the residents said. "There is no lighting plan submitted."

"The planning proposal aims to introduce a retail area and extend the distillery's offering to visitors, though very little information has been submitted on what these are and how they would work. What hours would they be open, for example?"

In 2023, An Coimisiún Pleanála refused a major redevelopment plan of the distillery, which is located on the western side of the River Milltown outside the urban core of Dingle.

The plans, which were also backed by Fáilte Ireland, had been given the go-ahead by Kerry County Council over two years ago, which would have seen the distillery almost double its size. In its decision, the local authority ruled that the plans satisfied the council's tourism strategy and local plans.

However, in its 2023 decision, the commission said that it was not satisfied that "the proposed industrial development" would not severely impact on the adjacent residential development.

An Coimisiún Pleanála are due to decide on the new plans by July 14, 2026.