Starting again: National spatial planning and the quest for compact growth in Ireland

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

In 2002, the Irish Government launched the National Spatial Strategy, aimed at achieving effective national spatial planning. A lack of political support and the primacy of localism in planning and development led to its demise in 2014. However, in 2018, the government launched the new National Planning Framework, which had compact growth at its core. It is supported politically by central government, is backed by legislation and must be adhered to by the regional and local layers of government. The National Planning Framework was accompanied by planning policies which sought to increase apartment development and to loosen restrictions on urban height, thereby creating the conditions for increasing residential densities. As the National Planning Framework sets out plans to 2040 and is subject to periodic revision, this article examines initial perceptions of its contents and the prospects for its implementation. Simultaneously, the ongoing housing crisis in Ireland impacts directly on planning policies, as the government introduces major market interventions to increase supply, which can conflict or undermine existing planning policies. This research is based on a critical reading of key compact growth planning policies and is augmented by semi-structured interviews with key players in policy implementation. These interviews analyse the viewpoints of senior built environment professionals who are involved in the implementation of compact growth policies in Dublin. The results indicate the complexity and difficulty of implementing compact growth policies where there has been a legacy of urban sprawl and where the attempts at centralisation lead to tensions with local planning. Starting again is not easy.