Planning refused for 12 houses on open space in Navan estate

Plans to build 12 houses on public open space in the Beaufort Place housing estate in Navan have been shot down by Meath County Council planners.

Elm Court Developments Ltd lodged a planning application seeking permission for 12 houses on a site of just over 0.57 hectares (1.4 acres) at Beech Lawn and Sycamore Avenue, Beaufort Place, Navan.

The proposal included two three-bed two-storey house of 135.5 sqm, eight four-bed two-storey houses of 128.6 sqm, and two four-bed two storey houses of 137.8 sqm as well as revisions of open space, associated roads, pavements, boundary treatment, landscaping, and a pickleball court, draining and site services.

A previous planning application for 14 houses on the site was refused two years ago as it was located on public open space lands.

Local residents strongly opposed the latest plans with 57 objections submitted on the plans. Points made included that it did not address the previous reasons for refusal, the loss of public open space, that it was an unsuitable development, that it would set an undesirable precedent, loss of habitat and biodiversity, traffic and safety concerns, impact on residential amenity, overlooking and loss of privacy, loss of property value and flood risk.

Meath County Council has refused planning permission with the planner finding that that the applicant had not overcome the previous reasons for refusal associated with the site. The planning report found that the proposal would contravene a condition imposed by Bord Pleanala, would reduce the provision of usable public space for the existing Beaufort Place residential area, and "therefore would seriously injure the amenities of the overall housing development at Beaufort Place by reason of loss of a significant leisure and recreational area which forms and integral part of the overall housing development" and would establish an undesirable precedent.

The planning authority also considered that the remaining usable public open space for Beaufort Place would fall below the required 15 per cent as per the Meath County Development Plan 2021 – 2027 and it therefore would contravene the plan. A third reason given for refusal was in relation to surface water drainage proposals.