Plain madness!
Construction begins on f lood-risk rezoned land despite residents’ fears
CONSTRUCTION began this week on a new housing development in Co. Meath – despite it being situated on a high-risk flood plain.
As parts of the country continue to battle devastating floods, Carroll Estates Ltd began digging foundations for 370 houses at the site in Bettystown.
Many residents on neighbouring estates already can’t get insurance for their homes, and are now calling on a halt to the new houses being built in Cois na Mara.
‘We want this development stopped now,’ said Sharon Redican, who lives in the adjoining Brabazon estate with her husband and four children. ‘It’s only going to make flooding worse in the area. Our estate is already on a flood plain, I can’t believe they’re doing it again.’
The land in question at Betaghstown Wood, Eastham Road, was rezoned at a meeting of the Fianna Fáilcontrolled county council in 2005, against the advice of planning officials who warned that any new properties would flood.
Speaking in favour of rezoning at the time, councillor Pat Boshell (FF) told the meeting that he did not accept advice from planners that the land was subject to flooding. ‘That is the poorest, pathetic excuse I have ever heard for land not being rezoned,’ he said.
Some councillors did warn of the consequences, including Sinn Féin’s Joe Reilly. ‘I recognise what the East Meath councillors are trying to do, but the price is too high. The issue is that building on a flood plain is not good planning,’ he said.
This week, Fine Gael councillor Paddy Meade said he would feel sorry for anyone who purchased a house in Cois na Mara.
‘I’m from this area so I know that growing up, you couldn’t grow potatoes on that land because it would flood and they would rot.
‘But many of the people who buy in Meath now are from Dublin and they don’t know the area. The danger is they see a house they can afford and they snap it up. Some people blame the developers but I don’t. The fault lies with the councillors who rezoned this land. If you look at the county development plan, you will see this land is zoned as a high-risk flood plain, but also that it is zoned for residential development. It’s ludicrous and there’s nothing we can do as councillors to overturn it. There was a tiny stream running along the actual site but now it’s four feet deep and the builders are pumping water off the construction site.’
However, the developer is insisting that the design of the estate takes into account concerns about flooding. As part of the its planning permission, Carroll Estates Ltd has undertaken the construction of two large underground tanks which will store run-off flood waters, including water from an adjoining stream. They are also elevating the foundations for the new houses.
In a statement to the Mail on Sunday, developer Bernard Carroll said: ‘We’ve constructed the development at Brabazon, adjoining our new site, with no issues. There is no problem with the new development Cois na Mara, and it will have no effect on existing housing.’
But Sharon Redican disagreed and said the small stream which used to run beside the new site has already been turned into a wide channel by the developers. ‘This week the end of our garden is saturated with water where there was none before. A neighbour rang up to get an insurance quote and they said they didn’t insure Brabazon.’
‘You couldn’t grow potatoes on that land’