Clonlara
Clonlara Location and Context Clonlara is situated within the Limerick-Shannon Metropolitan Area. The Metropolitan Area Strategic Plan aims to strengthen the role of the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area as an international location of scale, and a primary driver of economic growth in the Southern Region. Clonlara settlement owes its distinctive character to its position situated between the Headrace Canal and the disused Errina Canal and located near the crossroads of the Limerick/Killaloe Road R463 and the R471 to Shannon and Sixmilebridge. The crossroads at the centre of Clonlara form the core of the village, with the primary school, local shop and Church of Ireland located on nearby approach roads. Additional services and facilities are located to the southwest of the core and include a Catholic church, community/sports hall with large sports grounds and public houses and crèche. There are further recreational facilities outside the defined settlement boundary which play an important role in the provision of recreational facilities for local residents. The village contains three protected structures and one recorded monument. There are also a number of clusters of trees for preservation in the area. The village is served by Limerick City water supply with adequate capacity to accommodate future development. Clonlara is now connected to the Limerick Main Drainage sewerage system, which can meet the needs of the target population. Constraints to future development include traffic congestion at the narrow humpback bridge, located on the northwest approach from the R471, which is exacerbated by the location of the nearby school. Inadequate signage, traffic calming and a drop off/set down point for the school contribute further to the problem in this area. The village is also physically constrained by the water bodies located to the east and west, however these features provide natural boundary definition and an attractive setting. General Objectives •
To support the role of Clonlara within the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area in accordance with the Metropolitan Area Strategic Plan.
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To promote the consolidation of the village through brownfield reuse/redevelopment and to address vacancy and under utilisation of the existing building stock while also promoting compact growth within the identified land use zoning to support existing services and encourage the development of new services, whilst retaining its existing character and its historic core area.
__________________________________________________________________________________ Draft Clare County Development Plan 2023-2029
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