Review of development plan to look at one-off housing in rural Cork areas

Cork City Council’s development plan is being reviewed to look at one-off housing in rural areas on the outskirts of the new city, as councillors said people are finding it impossible to build homes near their family farms.

Latest CSO data shows that from the start of 2018 to the end of 2024, there were 3,468 houses as part of a housing scheme granted planning permission in Cork city, 8,341 apartments, and only 290 one-off houses, representing just 2% of all permissions granted.

Independent councillor Albert Deasy proposed a motion on the topic at the most recent Cork City Council meeting, “prompted by the 2019 boundary extension, which incorporated additional rural areas and family farms, including parts of Ballincollig, Blarney, Glanmire, and Tower into the city council’s remit”.

He said: “The current city development plan imposes stringent criteria, such as a minimum 30-hectare landholding for farm viability and a prohibition on urban-generated housing, which may unduly restrict genuine rural housing needs on family farms. In contrast, Cork County Council’s development plan adopts a more flexible approach, supporting one-off housing for family farm successors and those with demonstrable economic or social need, without a fixed farm size threshold, to sustain rural communities.”

Fine Gael’s Damian Boylan also had a motion calling for a review of the development plan with regard to one-off housing, saying: “The current approach to one-off housing has made it unreasonably difficult for families and individuals with land and means to provide their own homes, effectively shutting down an important housing option during a crisis.”

He called for the council to acknowledge that in times of sufficient housing supply, restrictions on one-off housing may have merit, but that given the current shortage, policies “designed for another era are no longer fit for the circumstances we face today”.

He said: “Councillors are on the front lines of this crisis, dealing daily with individuals and families in need of housing… their role and experience should be respected and given appropriate weight in the shaping of housing policy.”

He called for a review of the development plan with a view to facilitating a controlled release of one-off housing permissions, subject to clear conditions, such as that homes must respect the character of local areas and connect to existing infrastructure and services where feasible. He said priority consideration should be given to applicants with a genuine local connection or family need.

Mr Deasy and Mr Boylan were told that the council’s planning and integrated development directorate is carrying out a review of the rural one-off housing policy as it is outlined in the Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028.

“This review will be undertaken in the context of new and updated available data, including Census 2022 data, and the executive will revert to council with proposals in the coming months with the expectation that this review will culminate in an appropriate variation of the city development plan in respect of this matter,” said director of planning and integrated development Niall Ó Donnabháin.