Giant mast planned beside Cloughjordan school refused

AN Bord Pleanála’s decision to refuse planning permission for the erection of a telecommunications mast of almost 50 feet beside a school of over 130 children and a creche of 70 infants in Cloughjordan has been welcomed by the school authority, which had raised fears about health and visual impacts posed by such a “towering” structure.

Eircom Ltd (t/a Eir) had sought to provide a mast of 15 metres in height at the existing Eir exchange compound beside the school, along with  antennas, dishes and associated telecommunications equipment.

Had the development not been rejected by An Bord Pleanála, staff and children would be looking out at a mast that would have been “towering over the school”, and causing concerns in relation to potential health risks and visual impact given its central location in the main street of the village, Bawney Hayes, the Chairman of the Board of Management of Saint Michael’s National School, told The Guardian.

Mr Hayes said he and other members of the school board were extremely relieved that its appeal against planning permission for the mast, originally granted by Tipperary County Council, had been overturned by the planning board.

“The most disappointing part of it all was that Tipperary County Council had granted planning permission for the mast in the first instance,” said Mr Hayes.

“To be honest, some people were not very hopeful in relation to the appeal after our own local planning authority had granted permission. But, thank God, An Bord Pleanála saw the light as far as we are concerned.”

Mr Hayes said the school board was of the view that the site for the mast was totally inappropriate.

“It was in an awful position to where the kids were walking into their classrooms every day, just a few metres from the boundary fence of the school.”

Mr Hayes added: “It was something that was going to be 50 feet high towering over the school, and we are all still very concerned about what’s coming off those masts and antennas – nobody really knows.”

Had the erection of the mast been allowed to proceed it would “not have been good” for the overall visual impact on the village or enrolment in the school, or for the adjacent creche of 70 young children that was currently “bursting at the seams”.

Mr Hayes added that what was “amazing” about the planning board’s decision was that its inspector assigned to the case recommended that the mast be refused on grounds of the negative impact it would have on residents of nearby housing, and not the school and creche.

Eir had sought permission to build the proposed mast and antenna on a site enclosed in security fencing. The purpose of the development was to allow the applicant to significantly improve its 4G service in Cloughjordan and to facilitate site sharing with other telecoms operators.

Tipperary Co Council granted conditional planning permission for the development in November 2021. Despite receiving six objections, the council considered that there was an existing mast on the site and, given that there are no alternative sites available, it considered that the applicant had provided justification for the proposed development.

‘CONSTANT SHADOW’

The school had informed the council of its concern that the proposed monopole would stand “more than twice the height of the school, which in our opinion would be an eye-sore, not to mention a danger, and cast a constant shadow on our school”.

The school board pointed out that the proposed telecoms structure would have been only 3m from the walkway into the school and 7m from the gable end of the school. It could not be guaranteed not to give rise to health impacts. The school claimed that there were alternative sites for the Eir structure where it would not impact on houses, schools or creches.

In response, Eir stated that the subject site is zoned “social and public – to provide and improve social and public facilities”. The monopole design and minimal height accorded with the guidelines. The company submitted that the site was already developed for utilities.

Eir said the structure would be “intermittently visible” and would not “terminate any views”. The shadow cast would be marginal. It pointed out that there are a number of street lamps of the same height along Main Street.

Eir also submitted that similar cases have been granted by An Bord Pleanála.

The structure would have to be located close to the population and the village. Using the existing exchange site would allow convergence of overhead mobile and broadband technology with underground fibre networks, which result in work efficiencies.

INSPECTOR'S REPORT

An Bord Pleanála's Inspector did not believe that the grounds of appeal in relation to the school should be upheld.

The inspector considered that the proposed pole would be “some distance” from the main entrance to the school and would not be “a very significant feature in the daily experience of staff and pupils at the school. Given its slimline design and location east of the school, any shadow cast would be very minor and only fall towards the school for a very limited period in the early morning.”

However, the Inspector also looked at the close proximity of the proposed mast to the adjacent houses to the north at MacDonagh Avenue.

“These are single-storey semi-detached houses with very open rear gardens. The mast would be little over 5m from the common boundary and about 25m from the rear elevation of the nearest house. It would, therefore, be a very prominent feature in relation to these houses and their gardens. While monopole in design, the mast would be a much more substantial structure than the existing poles on the site.”

ruling

It was for this reason that the board ordered a refusal of planning permission for the development. It ruled that the height, scale and location of the proposed mast in close proximity to an area that is predominantly residential in character would be “visually obtrusive and would seriously injure the amenities of the area and of property in the vicinity.

“The proposed development would, therefore, be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.”

The decision has stalled the development of the mast for now but it remains to be seen whether Eir will seek a judicial review of the ruling.