Council Archives

Development

Dev. Major Retail Centre gets go-ahead in Naas

Thu 15 Jan 2004
The Queally Group in Naas is behind the retail development on the corner of the Monread Road and the Dublin Road in the Maudlins area, which is expected to attract companies such as Woodies DIY, Wigoders, tile stores and other electrical appliance and white goods giants to the town s outskirts. The development will consist of an 12,599 square metre retail park, with nine retail warehouses, plus an ancillary garden centre, 481 associated car parking spaces and development of an amenity/open space area, according to the planning application. The units will range in size from 4,650 square metres to 700 square metres on a site of 3.79 hectares. Three separate objections to the original application had been lodged with An Bord Pleanala since Kildare County Council granted planning permission initially on August 5, 2003. The first two appeals, by Monread Developments and Hazelmark Developments respectively, were withdrawn on November 11 last. The final appeal, by Mr Thomas Finneran and others, was withdrawn on December 23 last, according to a spokesperson for An Bord Pleanala.

While Kildare County Council has jurisdiction over most of the lands on which the development will be located, Naas Town Council has jurisdiction over the entrance to those lands. Permission was granted subject to a total of 57 conditions, including one that called for the developers to examine the possibility of providing a bus stop adjacent to the site. Kildare County Council s Director of Planning and Services, Mr Tommy Skehan, recommended the development, saying it would make a significant contribution to the provision of retail and shopping infrastructure in the greater Naas area. Councillor Timmy Conway, who welcomed the development, hailed the news as a major breakthrough for Naas. He said the project, which he described as phenomenal, would bring a number of new jobs to the town and benefits the people of Naas. It will be a huge area with high class DIY stores and retail units. He also said the new super-market development being planned for the same area by Hazelmark Developments would also bring a lot of business to the area. Creating jobs for the people of Naas must be one of the Council s priorities over the coming months, Cllr Conway added. Kildare Nationalist