Housing Minister Urged To Ease Planning Laws Further to Upgrade Wexford Tourism

A local councillor says planning laws should be relaxed to allow more motorhome parking facilities in the county.

A planned facility at Marshmeadows in New Ross has been delayed due to a necessary environmental impact report which will be carried out shortly.

It means the 23 bay unit won't be ready for this summer and it could be into next year before it can be used by the public.

Independent councillor Pat Barden says it's a shame because the area could use it right now:

"Wexford is crying out for for these works our planning system is just failing everybody so it's very disappointing in that respect.

"Hopefully this facility, where everything is already available, sewerage, water and electricity, it should go ahead in the not to distant future.

Wexford County Council is being urged to get with the times and modernise planning laws for these kinds of tourism facilities.

Councillor Barden says planners are overly cautious with schemes like this as they have been burned by developers in the past.

But he says we're letting opporunties pass us by and not allowing the county to grow:

"I've had a few people coming to me who want to do these motorhome bays and planning is the big problem. Sewerage and water is the big problem.

"The council need to move forward because technology has moved on and these plants are not what it used to be, they're way better.

"We need to move with the times and our planners need to take note of that."

The Housing Minister is being urged to speed up changes to planning laws to encourage more building in rural Ireland.

James Browne has previously promised to relax regulations around one off homes in the countryside and introduce measures around modular housing.

Councillor Barden says the delay around the Marshmeadows motorhome parking facility just shows the system is too slow.

He says the Minister and those in charge need to start providing answers now:

"We've asked questions in our monthly councils about building modular homes and log cabins.

"We still haven't got a direct answer from any department or any official in Wexford County Council about what's going to be allowed and what isn't.

"This is going on nearly a year or even two in some instances so it's very very slow which I suppose is typical of Ireland."

That report was funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.