Tipperary Council gets green light to lease out 160 acres of land on Clonmel's outskirts

Tipperary County Council’s elected members have given the green light for 160 acres of council owned land on the outskirts of Clonmel to be leased out for a further five years, though there was an objection from an Independent councillor from the town.

The Council decided to extend the lease of the 64.7 hectares of land at Ballingarrane that is part of the council’s long term plans for business, science and technology park developments to Conor Cooney of Shanavine, Clonmel at its October meeting in Nenagh.

The Council land was formerly owned by the Watson family of Ballingarrane. Approval to lease the land bank at €40,000 per annum for five years to Mr Cooney was proposed by Fine Gael Cllr Marie Murphy and seconded by Fianna Fáil Cllr Roger Kennedy.

Clonmel Cllr Niall Dennehy objected to leasing it out again on the grounds that land was needed in the town’s environs for house building. He wanted the proposal to be put to a vote of the elected members.

The Independent noted the Section 183 proposal to dispose of the land by way of a lease was on the previous meeting’s agenda and wondered why it was back on the agenda for the October meeting.

He told Council management he objected to the continuing “sterilisation” of this land at a time when the construction industry says land is scarce and when the Council’s Housing Section says one of its main objectives is to buy land.

Council Meetings Administrator Ger Walsh said the Section 183 notice was re-issued as Cllr Dennehy had raised a number of issues about it at the September meeting.

He said it was a matter for the elected council whether the proposal to lease the land should be put to a vote. After the Section 183 notice was proposed and seconded, Cllr Dennehy said he wanted his objection to be noted.