Three schools in the Wicklow town of Greystones have put on hold plans by McDonald’s to build a new fast food outlet there.

Suneil Sharma is a businessman not known to the wider Limerick public. While Limerick has been very good to Mr Sharma, some, specifically Limerick City and County Council, Limerick Chamber of Commerce and the Limerick Business Association are beginning to question if Mr Sharma will be as good for Limerick.

A single farmer in Co Mayo has won the right to be buried on his own land.

An environmental group has secured leave to appeal against the rejection of its challenge to a grant of permission for a wind farm in Co Laois.

An “earth sheltered dwelling” at Reenbeg, a prominent headland overlooking Dingle harbour, has been refused planning permission by An Bord Pleanála.

Limerick City planners have been left red-faced over their objection to two neighbours restoring their roofs to their original red slate colour.

Wind turbines may be required to be a minimum of 700 metres from residential dwellings under proposals being considered by Environment Minister Alan Kelly.

The State’s best known marriage counselling service has put the brakes on plans to redevelop the €70m Garda regional headquarters site on Harcourt Street in Dublin.

Applications for licences to explore for gas using controversial fracking methods are unlikely to be considered for another two years, at least.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has defended the appointment of a pro-fracking company to lead a research study into the practice in Ireland.

A former bookshop in Cork City centre has permission to be changed to a cafe/restaurant, following a recent planning decision.

A multimillion bid to safeguard the future of one of the country’s busiest ports is due to be lodged with An Bord Pleanála.

The minister driving the €1bn re-invention of Cork Harbour as a tourism, research, and innovation hub says waste firm Indaver faces a “real challenge” to convince him and the public of the merits of an incinerator in the area.

Kildare Co Council gave the green light to plans by Intel for its latest $4bn (€3.5bn) extension to the manufacturing plant, known as Fab, in Leixlip — but the decision will likely be appealed.

The British and German owners of the Dundrum Town Centre - the largest shopping and leisure development in the country - are leading the opposition against plans by property investment company IPUT for a new retail and residential development at Carrickmines in south Dublin.

A former mayor of Kilkenny has said that opposition to the planned mosque and Islamic centre in the city was not an issue of religion, but one of traffic management.

A State fisheries body has succeeded in stopping the development of holiday homes on the Ring of Kerry over fears it could cause pollution to a local river.

THE presence of an important wetland habitat for migratory birds by the N25 road and a commuter rail line has generated the sales and marketing motto for Cork’s latest new homes development to launch this year: Harper’s Creek invites house hunters to “Come home to Glounthaune”.

Additional car and bus parking to cater for the large numbers of visitors to Muckross House, a protected area one of the southwest’s most popular tourist attractions in the 10,000-hectare Killarney National Park has been given the go-ahead.

The backers of a proposed new micro-distillery on the Ring of Kerry have suffered a setback after being hit with an even higher development levy after appealing the original sum.