An application to build a small retail and office development next door to a listed 18th century church in the heart of the village of Oranmore has led to controversy in relation to Galway County Council's zoning policy.
The proposal to develop two shops with overhead offices and parking at the quarter-acre triangular space beside the Church of St Mary is being fought vigorously by Oranmore Community Development Association (OCDA).
The association is calling for a full investigation into why county councillors decided at the end of their last meeting in July to rezone the land, though the item was not on the agenda.
The triangular site was originally part of St Mary's graveyard but was sold by the diocese in the early 1990s to a Galway city developer, Mrs Patricia Kilraine who, with her husband, has been involved in several developments in Oranmore, east of Galway city.
The chairman of OCDA, Mr Ray Lavery, said the National Building Agency recommended the site be rezoned from "commercial" to "community and recreational", which recommendation was included in the final redraft of the plan that went on public display in December 1999.
He said the owner of the land chose not to make a submission against the rezone but applied for planning permission on the site before the rezoning was adopted into the county plan.
An original planning application for two shops and overhead apartments was granted last April by Galway County Council despite objections, and OCDA appealed the decision. An Bord Pleanala ruled in favour of the objectors on the grounds that the proposed development was next to a listed building, would severely damage the visual amenity of residents and was out of character with existing developments in the area.
A new application for shops and overhead offices has since been lodged, but the planning decision has been deferred until September.
The Oranmore Development Plan was due to be fully adopted into the County Development Plan at the council meeting on July 23rd last. However, the issue of the rezoning was raised, despite not being on the agenda, by a Fianna Fail TD, Mr Ulick Burke, who put down a motion that the quarter-acre should be rezoned back to commercial usage.
The motion was carried by the councillors on the grounds that compensation would have to be paid to the landowner to make up the difference between the amenity rate of the land and the commercial rate.
The move was strongly opposed by Senator Jarlath McDonagh (FG) and councillors Tim Rabbitte (FF) and Noel Grealish (PD), who pointed out that the zoning to community and amenity status had been passed last year.
The OCDA is now questioning the legality of the move and claims it has brought into question the validity of the council's system of operating.
Mr Lavery explained: "What has happened has completely usurped the whole planning process. We would welcome a full investigation of this matter and would be happy to co-operate in any such investigation."
He said the local people were deeply upset by the situation, as many had relatives and friends buried at St Mary's and there were two graves within the site itself. They want the land developed as a garden of remembrance or Rosary path.
The Oranmore plan is still on hold and has no legal status, though the county council is applying the objectives of the plan. It was due before the councillors again for adoption this month.
St Mary's Church was transformed, at a cost of £500,000, from a derelict building to a modern library much visited by locals and tourists.
