It would be “unsustainable and unfair” to continue promoting residential development in Ballybane when the area’s population is growing faster than any other area of the city.
This is the view of Labour councillor Derek Nolan, who is calling on the Galway City Council to implement such a moratorium on future housing development in the new Galway City Development Plan.
At the last census, Ballybane registered the fifth highest increase in population out of the county’s electoral divisions, seeing a massive increase of 78.9 per cent.
“Ballybane has experienced dramatic population growth over the last decade,” said Cllr Nolan. “To its credit, the community has come together to further develop the area. But it would be both unsustainable and unfair to continue to promote residential development in the area.”
Cllr Nolan has singled out a proposal to build infill housing on recreational land between Castle Park, Rian Luachra, and Rocklands Avenue.
“This is the type of development we should be avoiding,” he said. “It consumes valuable recreational space and a new housing development in the middle of mature housing estates doesn’t make sense.”
Cllr Nolan said it is “time to give Ballybane a break” by giving it an opportunity to “develop and catch up with the dramatic change” it has undergone.
