RESIDENTS of a Letterkenny estate which sees frequent water outages have said they are “very concerned” after planning permission for the construction of 28 apartments in the area was given the green light.
Donegal County Council has granted permission to Lexus Projects Limited for the construction of two apartment blocks containing 28 apartments in Carnamuggagh Upper.
Vehicular and pedestrian access to site, car parking, bicycle parking and all associated site works and connection to existing public services are also part of the development.
Thirty two conditions are attached to the development go-ahead.
These include that prior to the commencement of development, the applicant must submit written certification from a suitably qualified chartered engineer confirming the current condition and full extent of all existing water, storm and sewer infrastructure serving the subject site.
Furthermore, the applicant must also provide evidence of an application/agreement being in place with Irish Water for connection to portable water supply and public sewer.
The dwellings subject of the permission are to be used as permanent houses and apartments only and shall not be used for the purposes of holiday homes.
Prior to the commencement of development, the developer shall provide adequate security to the planning authority for the provision and completion of all services required, including roads, sewers, water supply, footpaths, public lighting and open spaces.
A further stipulation is that hours of construction must only take place between 8am and 6pm on Monday to Friday and between 8.30am and 3pm on Saturday. No construction is permitted on Sundays or bank holidays/public holidays.
The Carnamuggagh Upper development is in close proximity to Gort na Gréine and Gleann Tain Manor estates.
The private estates were built well over a decade ago by another developer, but have still yet to be taken in charge by the local authority.
Some residents are paying a mortgage, while others are tenants paying rent to Donegal County Council or to private landlords.
The residents have long suffered extreme water outages and low water pressure, which they say have fundamentally compromised their health and safety and denied their human right of access to a clean running water supply on a daily basis.
One resident of Gort na Gréine said everyone in the area is very concerned following the latest planning approval for more units.
He told the Donegal News, “This will have an impact, it really will. We are all very concerned because we have water outages a lot and the new development could bring added pressure to the area. We’re worried.”
Last month residents of Gleann Tain Manor voiced their fears that they could be left with no water supply permanently because of the owed payment to their electricity supplier.
Residents told this newspaper that they, as an estate, don’t have the funds to meet the payment.
Between February and October, six direct debit mandates totaling €11,514.96 were collected by Panda Power for electrical supply to the water pump outside of Gleann Tain estate, paid out solely by Gleann Tain Manor and Gleann Tain Close owners, whilst serving the businesses and residences in the entire area.
Panda Power has now withdrawn from the market, with the residents’ account being passed to Electric Ireland.
In a statement issued to Donegal News last month, Donegal County Council said that whilst the council acknowledged the situation, they said the bill for the water pump station is “currently a matter for the management company in whose charge it is in and their current contract with their energy supplier”.
An application to take in charge of Gleann Tain was lodged with Donegal County Council in May 2015. The spokesperson said Donegal County Council is “exploring options to expedite the Taking in Charge process of the pump station by Irish Water in conjunction with the wider estate take over”.
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