Planning permission has been granted for a development of 246 houses at Cloheen, north of Clonakilty town opposite the Park Hotel and cinema, writes Marian Roche.

The application was made in June, with an objection lodged by Transport Infrastructure Ireland which said the development was ‘premature’ in light of the issues on the N71 bypass.

However consultants disagreed, arguing that that a Traffic Assessment found that the current junction can cope with the anticipated traffic volumes.

The response also noted that there are no plans or proposals for the N71, and so to use this as a rationale was ‘misplaced and prejudicial’.

Uisce Éireann’s support for the development is conditional on the developer undertaking the costs for both extending and upgrading parts of the network.

Objections to the plans were made by members of the public, but many stated that they were not against the houses, but wanted the council to bear in mind the already-congested layout and the junctions, especially the traffic around Bóthar na Páirce and Lady’s Cross.

West Cork Senator Noel O’Donovan welcomed news of the development this week, particularly in light of a national housing crisis, but cautioned that the news needs to go hand-in-hand with appropriate infrastructure developments for Clonakilty.