Galway County Council has refused planning permission for the construction of a new Lidl supermarket in Claregalway.
Lidl sought approval to build a supermarket on a 0.75ha greenfield site in the village centre, on the eastern side of the N83.
Lidl had said that when completed, the supermarket would create 30 new jobs in the town, along with supporting 100 construction jobs when being built.
The county council refused planning permission for the new supermarket due to concerns about flooding, road safety, and the scale of the project.
The decision said that the council was not satisfied that the site is not at risk of flooding, and that potential flooding could pose a conservation hazard.
The proposed entrance onto the N83 was also raised as a potential traffic hazard, being on a “heavily trafficked route where the 50km/h speed limit applies”.
That proposed entrance also “significantly contravenes” an already approved planning application for the upgrading of the N83.
Lastly the council said that the supermarket “fails to adequately reflect or reinforce the existing urban form of the town centre” in Claregalway due to its design, scale, bulk, and layout.
