Cork County Council had received a detailed further information submission from the proposed developer of a large-scale residential housing estate in the Strawhall area of Fermoy.
A planning application by Into the Future Ltd was submitted in March, seeking to develop a further 55 houses on the site after approval was granted for 25 houses last year. The application also sought a change of house type of seven of the previously permitted houses.
Following the submission of the planning application earlier this year, nine observations were submitted to Cork County Council by residents in the area, highlighting concerns over the scale of the proposed development and the impact it would have on their privacy, the safety of those using the road and environmental issues.
In May, the Council issues a further information request seeking information on 15 points related to the proposed development.
In their response to the further information request this month, Into the Future Ltd submitted, among other items, a phasing plan for the proposed development, a revised Part V proposal, revised site layout and design drawings, and a revised Screening Assessment with regard to the potential for negative impacts on the Blackwater River Special Area of Conservation.
Into the Future Ltd said it proposes to build the development in three phases, each taking approximately one year to complete. The development, it said, is estimated to commence approximately three months following a final granting of permission, with an estimated completion date in early 2021.
Into the Future Ltd also provided details on the provision of a crèche facility within the proposed development; one house has been omitted from the planning application to cater for this addition within the estate.
As part of its Part V proposal (a mechanism through which local authorities can obtain a percentage of land zoned for housing development for the delivery of social and affordable housing), Into the Future Ltd provided details on the transfer of five houses to local authority use. No decision date on the planning application has yet been estimated by Cork County Council.
