20 January 2016
By Bryan Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
Sinn Féin General Election candidate Donncahdh Ó Laoghaire has called on City and County Hall planners to work together to develop a plan for Togher and Douglas as entire Districts.
The Sinn Fein Cllr is elected to Cork County Council for a large area that includes Togher and Douglas.
According to Cllr Ó Laoghaire, these two areas are anamalous, lying across two Local Authorities. He was proposing a motion which called on planners from both Local Authorities to draw up a supplementary plan for these areas, in the context of the forthcoming review of the Local area plans.
“Togher and Douglas are unusual in that they are split between City and County, with parts of each neighbourhood in each. Historically this has made it had to plan for these areas, and many have felt that this has been detrimental to a degree for these communities.
“The greater Douglas area, as well as the Togher neighbourhood and it’s surrounds are natural units, and deserve to be treated as such. Their needs in terms of Education, employment, leisure are divided across both – we should plan for them and for their land use as one.”
“Particularly given the likely changes in the way that Local Government is operated here in Cork. Whether we have a merger or an expanded City, Douglas or Togher are likely to be affected, and the current division is likely to come to an end. Why not begin preparation now?
“If this happens it will be the first time that a plan has been developed for the neighbourhoods as units, and I thinl that would be a hugely positive step for the communities in question.”
Cllr Ó Laoghaire also proposed that the County Councils planners would deal with the southern suburbs under it’s remit more specifically
“Currently all the urban areas just south of the City are treated as a single unit, an amorphous ‘City South Environs.” This is not a real community and doesn’t reflect the different neighbourhoods and needs in terms of services each areas has. I will be calling on planners not to treat it all as one, but to plan specifically in terms of Togher, Grange, Donnybrook, Rochestown, and so on.”
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