GREEN LIGHT FOR LIDL

Appeals board gives go-ahead for Claregalway store

AN Bord Pleanala has overturned a decision by Galway County Council and has given the green light for the construction of a Lidl supermarket in Claregalway village.

The discount supermarket was proposed some time ago for a site fronting the main road in the village.

The Council refused permission over a year ago, stating that the proposal could pose a flood risk and that the planned development could also cause a traffic hazard risk and endanger public safety.

The local authority planners also had concerns regarding the design of the building and how it would assimilate into the existing streetscape of the village. Several submissions and objections to the development were lodged with the local authority by residents.

Among the concerns raised were increased traffic congestion and traffic safety, flooding risk and its location in the village centre. Some residents felt that there was enough retail provision in Claregalway already and that there wasn’t sufficient population to support another supermarket in the village.

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