House plot sizes to be reduced; Cork City Council reviewing new guidelines

NEW planning guidelines have been sent from the Department of Housing to local authorities across the country, with Cork City Council confirming that they are reviewing how these new guidelines will supersede the ones they already have in place.

The guidelines, entitled ‘Sustainable Residential Development and Compact Settlements Guidelines for Planning Authorities’, suggest several changes to the way planning has been traditionally looked at.

To underpin regional balance, 50% of the projected population growth is to be targeted into the five cities of Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, and Waterford.

The new guidelines which plan for greater population density advise shrinking the size of outdoor spaces such as gardens or patios, the space between individual houses, and the houses themselves.

“To enable greater innovation, a graduated and flexible approach to the application of residential development standards is required across all housing types,” the department of housing document says.

“In particular, it is necessary to review and update standards in statutory development plans in relation to separation between dwellings, private, semi-private and public open space provision,” it continued, calling for “reduced plot sizes” and “a tighter arrangement of houses.”

The guidelines also suggest that bike parking should be prioritised over car parking, in a move to encourage active travel.

The guidelines also highlight the importance of active travel.

A Cork City Council spokesperson told The Echo when asked how these new guidelines will supersede their own: “We are currently reviewing these guidelines issued by the department and have nothing to add at this time.”

Fine Gael councillor Shane O’Callaghan said of the plans: “I recognise that efforts have to be made to tackle climate change, but there’s an element of putting the cart before the horse.

“They’re basically saying that people shouldn’t have cars, but the alternative infrastructure isn’t there yet,” he said, adding it hopefully will be in future years, when Bus Connects and other public transport schemes are completed.

“Also, what’s going to happen in reality, and is already happening is you can’t say ‘you can only live here if you don’t have a car’, so people are going to buy houses or apartments without parking and just park in adjoining estates, which is a major problem for people living in those estates.”