Ok this subject is complicated as the information on www.wicklow.ie is not so clear to me .
My situation at the moment is I am looking to relocate from where I live in Dublin.
I want to build a house to suit myself possibly trying out green energy.(Heat pump ,wind turbine etc.)
So a site is what I need ,and one has great appeal to me in wicklow.
The only thing is the planning laws are different for different people.
braypeople.ie/news/are-our-l … 91137.html
The site in question has planning already. Now at the moment the agent is to get back to me but I would like advice from anyone who may have had dealings in the wicklow area.
My question is are there ways around these laws?
If the site has a Section 47 condition attached and you can not demonstrate a local need/agricultural connection with the area then you are wasting your time.
They are known to be very difficult for planning - I live in Wicklow and have friends and relatives who have built -it can take years to do -one friend had to change the whole orientation of the home, change roof tile colour etc. I know someone else who had a site with a derelict dwelling on it and were refused permission. I’m in west Wicklow so with the lakes etc they are notoriously hard on people building, But do check with the relevant authorities before committing to buy a site otherwise you may find yourself trying to sell a useless piece of land
Moved to Sell, Buy, Rent (and, ahem, Build)
I’d have zero faith that Wicklow County Council could do anything consistently or fairly or in a straight way. Their reputation on all things to do with planning, zoning and waste management is beyond appalling.
In Wicklow, there are ways around everything.
They are backward narrow minded insular scum of the highest order who have legalised discrimination of anyone who is not from the area.
pleanala.ie/publications/200 … reform.htm
This is in contrast to them allowing developers to throw up all kinds of crap. Again the little guy gets it in the neck from “government”.
Would you not consider saving yourself a lot of hassle and buying an existing house at a knockdown price and fitting solar panels, heat pumps and any more eco stuff you want. The irony of your current proposal is that the carbon footprint of BUILDING a new house will far exceed any saving you will make with your renewable energy infrastructure. Recycling houses saves energy! Buy second hand. Even better, buy an apartment.
and an apartment that’s close to public transport at that.
Look at my lovely eco house, and the jeep parked in the yard that I need to get here in Winter, and to get the kids to school, myself to work and even just to buy a simple pint of milk.
Blech.
I wouldnt touch a boom time apartment, carbon footprint or not Id rather not hear every detail of my neighbours lives and that goes for alot of townhouses too. Cant beat even a small bit of land separating properties - right now where im renting im fuckin poisoned with 2nd hand smoke because of the prevailing wind and 4 smokers next door combined with the fact that my bedroom window just above and next to their kitchen door where they smoke. Im determined that should i ever buy a property again I will never be in a position where this shite is possible again.
I also lived in 2 apartments - one where the neighbour above practiced drums - on a saturday and sunday morning. I did shift and night shifts meant no sleep these mornings. Were I 9-5 like I am now it would mean no lie ins at the weekend. This apartment was in Wicklow county and I learned that if i wanted to get my own place in Wicklow I would have to jump through hoops to avoid a housing estate or apartment block. I could hear footsteps and washing machines in both apartments I stayed in. Never again. Life is far too short for that shite.
And to all the eco warriors who rant against one off housing you`ll find that if oil ran out in the morning these people would do fine because of the land they have. Try feeding a horse concrete or putting up a wind turbine on the local football pitch to power your house.
I live in an apartment that was built in 2000 or thereabouts, never heard a peep out of any of my neighbours, but then I think I’m one of the lucky ones.
I do completely accept that apartments in this country or shitty, but building an ecohouse miles from any amenities is sheer lunacy.
All the insulation in the world doesn’t save you from the fact that you have to get in the car and drive to do anything or buy anything.
unless you live in the same area as work then your going to need a car bar you work in Dublin City Center. From Northside to south side or either to the Westside you generally need 2 buses and driving is quicker and your quality of life is much improved if your not hanging around waiting for crappy public transport.
Apartments can work but public transport much go hand in hand with it. Public transport is only going to go downhill over the next few years already bus timetables have been cut back CIE receives massive subsidies and still records a huge loss.
Lets not forget that a car is damn handy for doing shopping especially if you have a family and need to get lots of stuff regularly. There is no pay as you go car tax or insurance so if you run a car for the shopping you could run it to get to work.
Personally I am lucky enough to have the option to cycle to work and I do so regularly but I am damn lucky to be able to cycle along the canal away from fumes and traffic for 90% of my journey. But I also have access to a car for shopping.
Again lets not forget that Ireland is not very densely populated and that means we have the space to build houses like that do in Australia or the US or Canada - much larger and on small bits of land. I dont mean acres I man the quarter acre block design.
There is a long and marvellous discussion of one off housing here.
This is a separate thread on Wicklow’s myriad unique planning laws.
BTW, anyone interested in building in Wicklow could do a lot worse than head to a council meeting. You might change your mind…