Sep 4 2005
North Tipperary county council has given the green light to Ireland's leading eco-village development company by awarding a decision to grant planning permission for Sustainable Projects Ireland Ltd's innovative plans in Cloughjordan.
The local authority's decision was expected given that last October county councillors unanimously rezoned the land adjoining the town of Cloughjordan, where the eco-housing project is sited, for sustainable community development. The notification is for full planning permission for the eco-development's infrastructure, and outline planning permission for individual members' homes, as applied for by Sustainable Projects Ireland Ltd.
The local authority are happy with the scale and density of the project, which is critical to the community's overall design, with just under a third of the 67-acres being used for building, a third for residents' allotments, and the final 20 acres for woodland and wildlife. The development, which is quite unlike any other in Ireland, includes the provision of 132 fully serviced sites suitable for a variety of housing, including apartments, terraced, semi-detached and detached. Members who buy sites will also co-own multi-use community buildings, private allotments and over fifty acres of land that's zoned for horticultural and woodland use.
Homes will be built to a very high eco-standard according to the company's ecological charter.
The international engineering consultants, Buro Happold, have also been consultants to the project, helping to design an innovative, eco-friendly wastewater treatment system.