21 July 2003: North Kildare councillor Catherine Murphy has proposed that a planning application for an Aldi discount food store at Kilcock Road, Maynooth, be rejected.
In a letter to the Kildare County Council's Planning Department, Cllr Murphy says the application is premature, because consultants are currently working on Kildare County Retail Guidelines.
"One of the North Kildare Towns will be a designated area for retail development but this will not be to the exclusion of retail development in the other towns," she says. "In the absence of these guidelines the above planning application can best be described as premature. The availability of the guidelines would be of considerable assistance to the Council in determining the application."
Cllr Murphy says that the size of the population of Maynooth, which fluctuates around the College courses, would not be sufficient to warrant such a large amount of retail capacity (Tesco has also applied for a new store).
"Therefore it is clear the intention is to attract shoppers from neighbouring towns and villages. Neither Leixlip or Kilcock for example have major supermarkets yet the development plans for those towns point to such a need in order to minimise car dependence. It does seem quite extraordinary that all the retail facilities should be located in one town. While it adds to the choice for those living in Maynooth it also adds considerable extra traffic to a town with an existing traffic problem."
Cllr Murphy also says any such applications should not be considered until the results of the Land Use and Transport Study which together with the Retail Guidelines will be available later in the year.
