The new Planning and Development (Amendment) Act 2010 includes new provisions requiring the incorporation of “Core Strategies” in all Development Plans. This is a key element of the new Act and is intended to provide a clear evidence-based development framework for Development Plans, having particular regard to the National Spatial Strategy and Regional Planning Guidelines.
Section 7 of the Act requires the incorporation of Core Strategies into existing Development Plans as soon as practicable, within 1 year after any new Regional Planning Guidelines (RPGs) are made. There are 8 no. separate RPGs covering the state and these were all reviewed and adopted during 2010. The dates of adoption are as follows:
- Dublin Region Adopted June 2010
- Mid-East Region Adopted June 2010
- Midlands Region Adopted July 2010
- South-East Region Adopted July 2010
- South-West Region Adopted July 2010
- Mid-West Region Adopted September 2010
- Border Region Adopted September 2010
- West Region Adopted October 2010
The new Act requires the Variation of Development Plans to incorporate core strategies, unless the Plan is more than 4 years old, in which case the core strategy should be incorporated into the next Plan. There are also some Development Plans that have been adopted recently or are likely to be adopted shortly which have already incorporated a core strategy. Nevertheless, there are many Development Plans in the country that will require to be Varied during 2011 to incorporate core strategies in compliance with the new Act.
It is not clear at the present time how Councils will address the Core Strategy issue and, indeed, what the final Strategies will state. Core Strategies require to comply with the relevant RPGs, including population targets and settlement strategies. Councils may require to reassess the existing supply of development land, including for housing, and to consider likely future demand during the Development Plan period. This could ultimately require some changes to zonings and/or development phasing in some areas.
The Variation of Development Plans to incorporate Core Strategies follows a statutory process, which provides for public consultation prior to the decision of Councillors to Vary the Plan. Having regard to the time requirements of the new Act and the statutory process, it is likely that the public consultation phases for some Variations will commence shortly.