No planning permission for state-of-the-art equestrian centre in Limerick

A MASSIVE new equestrian centre on the doorstep of a popular Limerick forest park was built without its owners getting planning permission, the Limerick Leader has learned.

Land at Hollypark in Curraghchase, Kilcornan has been developed over the last three years into the state-of-the-art horse-training facility.

The area, near the Curraghchase Forest Park, has been described as being in “an historic landscape identified as being of some significance”.

Built on more than 17-acres, the centre is understood to have the capacity to host large-scale, national level equestrian competitions.

Before building work takes place anywhere in Ireland, permission normally has to be sought from the local council.

In this case, that authority was Limerick City and County Council, which confirmed it carried out an inspection on the site in May.

At that time, it issued the site owner with what is known as an enforcement notice.

This is a legally-binding document which directs the owner of a site to remedy any unauthorised development within a specific timeframe.

Following this, the owners of the land in Kilcornan formally sought permission from council to retain the buildings.

This is known as ‘retention permission’ and through this, site owners are seeking to hold onto the sand arenas on the land, an internal access road and fencing plus car and horse box parking areas.

On top of this, they're seeking to retain a portacabin coffee dock, an internal seating area, judges’ cabins, portaloo toilet facilities and an underground holding tank.

Ultimately, if the council rejects the bid to retain these structures and An Bord Pleanála upholds this decision, the landowners may be ordered to demolish them. 

Two local councillors have come out in support of the equestrian centre.

Fine Gael’s Stephen Keary, who was ‘nominated’ by the developer as a contact on the application said: “It's going to be a fantastic amenity for the local area from a tourism point of view as well as being of economic benefit to the owner.

“It’s in a location which has an underdeveloped tourism amenity. Everything should be encouraged around there that will add to the tourism product for this location.”

Fianna Fáil councillor Kevin Sheahan added: “Curraghchase is a tourist attraction in this locality that we all value. Now we will have another significant attraction.

“This isn’t a small development. I’ve not been on site yet, but I know the people in that business have travelled the length and breadth of the country to research such facilities. It will be a huge attraction for people all over this island to come to.”

However, there have been objections to the development.

In a detailed submission to the local authority, one person alleged events run at the facility between 8am and 8pm, and says there is “constant noise from the commentary and the timer”.

“The lights from this development are not only on the property, but on the surrounding residential properties which is causing light pollution in the rural countryside,” the objection continues.

The project, they add, has led to increased traffic congestion at the entrance to the site from the N69.

“The development given its size and location is out of scale and out of character in terms of its appearance compared with existing residential properties surrounded it,” they concluded.

The landowners did not respond to a request for comment from the Limerick Leader.

The retention planning application is being decided upon by the local authority.

A source with knowledge of the development, speaking on condition of anonymity, defended it.

“There are an awful lot of enterprises around Ireland as a whole that if they’d gone down the formal route, wouldn’t be where they are today.”

They pointed out that the equestrian centre will also be a big employer once it gets going, and will provide support to youngsters who have an interest in horses and ponies.

“If you look around anywhere, you'll see a lot of industries have added in bits and pieces.

“I don't know how official they all are as regards full planning approval. But these places are all fully licensed, they are fully up and running, they pay their rates and taxes and create jobs.

“If they had gone down the official route, they might have been given the thumbs down.

“What they did might not have fitted into the county development plan,” the source said.

Transport Infrastructure Ireland, a body which is responsible for providing and maintaining safe national roads across Ireland, warned the proposed development could affect the safety of the road network.

In a detailed submission to council, the group wrote not enough data has been given to demonstrate this development would not have a detrimental impact on the capacity, safety or operational efficiency of the road network within the site’s vicinity.

The planning application is currently deemed to be ‘on hold’ by Limerick City and County Council, which has sought further information from the developer.

It’s asked for the applicant to provide information on a number of items.

The planning authority is seeking justification for the proposal, an outline of all uses of the site, as well as highlighting the number of visitors the site will receive on a daily basis.

“Is the site open to members of the public throughout the year, or is it only available to those attending equestrian competitions,” a senior council planner asked in a letter to the developer.

Information has also been sought on the type of competitions to be held at the site, and the developer is also being asked to provide a traffic and transport assessment and a road safety audit.

“The applicant should note that the works have been undertaken in an historic landscape, identified as being of some significance through the Historic Gardens and Designed Landscapes Survey undertaken by the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage,” council planners said.

Due to this, it's asked the developer to provide a statement outlining the conservation philosophy it has applied, a statement of justification for the work, and a historical study of the lands and its location.

The applicant has just under six months to furnish the local authority with new information.

Once this information is provided, a date will then be set for a decision to be made on this retention permission.