Major service station site is 'a ghetto in our town'

A site which was earmarked for a major service station development is a “ghetto in our town.”

Cllr Bill Clear was referring to the failure of Applegreen to develop the former Cemex plant on the Dublin side of the town.

“It is a horrible looking site,” the Naas Mayor told a Naas Municipal District meeting.

He said the condition of the site was holding Naas back from winning the Tidy Towns competition and no amount of flower bulb or shrub planting could alter this.

He noted that people are living there, adding “it's in a horrendous state.”

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He also said that the site is not secure.

According to Kildare County Council a planning application relating to the site has not been received.

The original plan - for which planning permission was granted ten years ago - sought the demolition of the empty buildings there and construct a three storey training hub, a logistics and food research facility,  loading bays, a two storey motorways services area and ten fuel pumps.

It also envisaged a children’s play area, 24 hour drivers lounge, restaurant/cafe, a drive-thru coffee facility and a shop.

The development was to  have parking spaces for 324 vehicles - though a quarter of these were designated for people visiting the logistics and office buildings - in addition to spaces for 38 heavy goods vehicles, 16 coaches and as many motorcycles.