There was good news for the current and future pupils of Coosan NS this week as plans for their 16 classroom school, including a special needs unit, has been given the OK by planners at Westmeath County Council.
The two-storey building will consist of a 16 classroom national school with special needs unit with a proposed floor area of 3,166 sqm, new ballcourts and play areas, new car parking, new boundary walls, and other ancillary works.
Coosan NS was put on the School Building Programme late last year and after months of working with planners at Westmeath County Council it has been given the green light.
Permission was also granted to demolish the existing school building in two phases. Existing pre-fabricated classrooms will be relocated during the construction of the new school, and two new pre-fabricated classrooms will remain on site during the construction of the new school building, only. All pre-fabricated rooms will be removed from site on completion of the new school building.
Permission was granted on September 29, subject to 12 conditions.
Construction works will be restricted to between 8am-8pm, Monday to Friday and between 8am-6pm on Saturdays. No construction activity shall take place outside these hours or on Sundays or bank or public holidays.
Prior to the start of construction the applicant is required to submit a revised “traffic signs and road markings layout”.
Speaking to the Advertiser after the announcement, local TD Gabrielle McFadden said that she was thrilled to hear the good news, and paid tribute to her late sister Nicky who had worked hard on seeing the new Coosan school become a reality. “This is such a big deal. We got funding last year and now we have planning permission. So many people have put in hard work to make this happen. This was Nicky’s baby, it was one of the last things she worked on,” she added.
Members of the public have four weeks from September 29 to make appeals to An Bord Pleanala.
