Council rejects Dempsey's plea on rezoning

Wicklow County Council has prepared a resounding rebuff to the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, over his concerns about proposed rezoning changes to the county development plan.

Mr Dempsey has twice asked the council to ensure the plan's compliance with the Strategic Planning Guidelines for the Greater Dublin Area. Last January, he wrote to the council requesting an early reply to his specific concerns with draft rezoning plans for Newtownmountkennedy (Newtown) and Kilcoole.

However, the council has effectively rejected the Minister's concerns and defended its rezoning proposals, which run contrary to the guidelines. It has also prepared a rebuff for the Minister which has been seen by The Irish Times. The move is an embarrassing blow for the Minister who earlier this year saw his hopes for the adoption of regional waste management plans dashed by councillors.

Meath County Council has already breached the guidelines in favour of a 250-acre industrial estate at Clonee.

Now Wicklow County Council has circulated a draft of its response to the Minister. The council maintains that Kilcoole and Newtown might serve people who work in the town of Bray, about eight miles away.

Articulating its case for large-scale rezoning around Kilcoole and Newtown, the council argues that it could rezone for 100 per cent of the projected population growth for the period 19962016, over the next five years to 2006. It then proposes a moratorium on development between 2006 and 2016.