NO WEST WICKLOW SITES ON REGISTER
THE newly published Vacant Sites Register, compiled by Wicklow County Council does not feature any sites from the Arklow or Baltinglass Municipal Districts.
The majority of the listed sites are situated in north east Wicklow and, according to Baltinglass Councillor and cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council Edward Timmins, the focus is currently on areas in the county with the biggest housing need.
He said that, for the moment, the focus is on the high pressure housing areas in the county and that some areas of west Wicklow have not yet been assessed as new houses cannot be built without an adequate sewage treatment plant.
Plans are under way for a new wastewater treatment plant in Blessington but, at present, no new builds can be approved without this.
‘ The Vacant Site Register is where there is a big housing need and there is an economic gain in someone developing the site. In Blessington, houses cant be built because there’s no sewage plant. The rest of the district would not have a sufficient economic return for development. The register is only new and it is starting where the highest housing pressures and highest house prices are, and that’s north Wicklow,’ he said.
It is expected that a planning application will be submitted for the Blessington plan, in the coming months and in the future, areas which are suitable for development will be assessed as per register criteria.