The Legal Basis of the County Plan
This Draft Development Plan replaces the 1994 Kilkenny County Development Plan and was prepared in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government (Planning and Development) Acts 1963 to 1999. In the preparation of the Plan the Council has taken cognisance of the provisions of the Planning and Development Act 2000.

The Development Plan contains the written statement and accompanying maps. The Plan contains the Planning Authority’s Policies and Objectives for the promotion, planning and control of buildings and other development for urban and rural areas of the County. An assessment of the likely future development needs of the County has been made in order to plan investment and decide on policy and land use allocation in respect of private development. The Plan also sets out the Council’s case in seeking funding for necessary infrastructure.

The Plan consists of two volumes:

Volume 1 sets out County wide policies, objectives and development control standards for the county.

Volume 2 contains the Development Plans for the Scheduled Towns of Callan, Castlecomer, Graiguenamanagh, Thomastown, for the Waterford City Environs (including Bellview Area Action Plan and Kilmacow Village Plan) and the Environs of New Ross.

The format of the Development Plan is designed to enable the reader to understand the principal issues in County Kilkenny, regarding housing, infrastructure, transportation and waste, which need to be addressed in an integrated approach to environmental and development issues if growth is to be achieved in parallel with the preservation and improvement of, rather than in spite of environmental quality.

“Sustainable development is development, which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development).

There have been significant developments in the field of landuse planning, settlement policy and the regulations governing the planning system in Ireland over the last plan period. These changes arose for the most part from an acceptance of the principles of sustainable development and the adoption of Local Agenda 211 by the Irish Government. At the heart of sustainability is the need to achieve a balance between human activity, development and protection of the environment.

Kilkenny County Council confirms its commitment to the implementation of a Local Agenda 21 Plan and has prepared this Plan in accordance with the principles which underlie the Agenda 21 approach to economic, social and physical planning and development.

The benefits of the country’s rapid economic progress over the past number of years are evident in the reduction in many of the key social indicators such as unemployment and living standards. However not everyone has benefited proportionately from this economic prosperity. Promoting social inclusion is one of the key objectives of the National Development Plan 2000 – 2006. Achieving this objective will require a comprehensive, holistic approach, bringing together a range of Government Departments, the Council, state agencies and the Voluntary Sector.

The County Development Boards will have a pivotal role to play in co-ordinating local delivery of social inclusion measures and this has been endorsed in the National Development Plan. The primary task of the County Development Board is to prepare and oversee a County Strategy for Economic, Social and Cultural Development. When completed the County Development board strategy will provide a shared vision for the development of the County. The County Development Board will be required to proof its strategy against the National Anti-Poverty Strategy, the National Sustainable Development Strategy, equality and gender issues. The County Development Board will operate on the partnership principle with the Regional Assembly and has its members drawn from the Council, local development bodies (Area Based Partnership Companies, ADM supported groups, County Enterprise Board and Leader groups), the social partners including the community and voluntary sector and representatives of the relevant state agencies at local level.

It is the mission of Kilkenny County Council to promote sustainable development in the County, to optimise employment opportunities for the people of the County, to reduce social exclusion and ensure that its economy and society can develop to its full potential within a well-protected environment.

Within the National Development Plan 2000-2006, the Government’s objective for regional policy is to achieve more balanced regional development in order to
• Reduce the disparities between and within regions
• Develop the potential of the regions to contribute to the greatest possible extent to the continuing prosperity of the country.
In pursuance of these objectives it is proposed in the National Development Plan to prepare a National Spatial Strategy. The National Spatial Strategy will address the future spatial structure of Ireland in the context of sustainable development, and will take the form of a broad planning strategy for the Country as a whole. This will guide planning policy at regional and local level.

Kilkenny County, along with the counties of South Tipperary, Wexford, Carlow, Waterford and the County Borough of Waterford, constitutes the South East Region of Ireland. The Region has a well-balanced urban structure with a relatively large number of urban centres. The administrative town of each county has a population in excess of 14,000. It is advantageously situated in relation to mainland Europe, and has three major ports, New Ross, Rosslare and Belview (Port of Waterford).

For the purposes of the National Development Plan, County Kilkenny forms part of the South and East Region. One of the key objectives of the National Development Plan is to foster balanced regional development. To translate this broad approach to balanced regional development the Government has mandated the Department of the Environment and Local Government to prepare a National Spatial Strategy. The strategy will set out a broader and more strategic framework that will structure the long-term strategic development of the State.

a) Kilkenny County Council will facilitate and support the development of the National Spatial Strategy and the mechanisms identified through which the broad policies and specific actions will be implemented.
b) The Planning Authority will take up all appropriate opportunities to liaise with other Planning Authorities in the South East regarding the planning and development of the Region and will assist and co operate with the Regional Authority in the carrying out of its functions as a Regional Authority.
c) The Council will have regard to any regional guidelines which may be made by the Regional Authority and will review its Development Plan and consider whether any variation is required in order to achieve the objectives of the regional planning guidelines.

The aim of the Planning Authority is to ensure that the opportunity of a productive life in congenial surroundings is available to the maximum possible number of citizens of the County, to encourage the proper use of the County’s natural resources, and to preserve its natural and historic endowment for both the present and future generations.

The County Council sees its role as responding to the needs of the people to ensure that a human settlement strategy can be fostered which will embrace inclusiveness and balanced growth.

The County has an area of 796 sq. miles (509,432 acres). Kilkenny County is an inland county with direct access to the sea via Belview Port on the Suir estuary and via New Ross on the Barrow River. The County consists of a highly fertile central plain with uplands in the north east, the north west and in the south. The land is well drained by its extensive river network. The River Nore bisects the County on a north/south axis. The Rivers Barrow and Suir are natural boundaries to the east and the south of the County respectively, and their estuaries converge at the extreme south east of the County.

In the north, rock formations are mainly sandstones and shales of the upper carboniferous series with coal seams; in the north west and central Kilkenny limestone, and in the south sandstones and conglomerates predominate. Small areas of granite extend westward from the main Leinster granite to Graiguenamanagh and Mullinavat. Workable deposits include zinc, lead, limestone, slate, fireclay, gravel, dolomite and some anthracite.

Over half the land in the county is class 1 or class 2 soil. These highly fertile soils have historically provided the basis for the County’s prosperity valleys are all areas of rich and fertile soil and the central plain from Goresbridge to Callan is known as the ‘golden vein’
The river valley network provides the most spectacular of the County’s landscapes. Approximately 6% of the county is wooded; considerable further potential exists for afforestation. The Barrow, Nore and Suir are historically renowned as the premier salmon and coarse fishing rivers of Ireland and fishing remains as an important and natural resource.

County Kilkenny has been continuously settled for at least the past 5,000 years and is richly endowed with remains from all periods.

It has an extensive road network with five National Primary Routes and three National Secondary Routes traversing the county. Regional and county roads are also quite extensive and of vital importance to the functioning of the regional and local economy and agriculture.
The railway network makes a significant contribution to the economic activity of the county. The two main lines which influence the county are the -

1. Waterford-Kilkenny-Kildare-Dublin, and
2. Rosslare Harbour-Waterford-Limerick Junction Line.

There is also a rail line running through County Kilkenny from Waterford City to New Ross.

Kilkenny in 1996 had a total population of 75,336 persons. Of that 34, 213 (45.4%) were classified as living within towns. The largest urban area Kilkenny City & Environs contained 18,696 persons or 54.6 % of the urban population. The remainder of the urban population is distributed among the four scheduled towns of Callan, Castlecomer, Graiguenamanagh, Thomastown, the environs of New Ross and Waterford City and the 17 villages. With the exception of Kilkenny City all towns within the County have less than 2,000 persons.

This shows a weak urban structure within the County - a reflection of the presence of some large towns, close to the County boundary such as Waterford City, New Ross and Carrick–on–Suir. It also highlights the fact that a substantial portion of the population live in rural areas of the County.

a) It is the policy of the Council to facilitate the development of the existing towns villages and smaller settlements of the County by providing services, and amenities in order to consolidate and strengthen the population base within those settlements and facilitate the maximum economic use of its physical and social infrastructure.

The Council also recognises the fact that a substantial portion of the population of the County live in rural areas.

b) It is the policy of the Council to retain the rural population of the County and to support the sustainable development of rural communities and their services (such as schools, small shops etc.) in order to maintain the vitality of such communities.