Town Renewal Scheme

Guidelines

July 1999

TOWN RENEWAL SCHEME GUIDELINES

CONTENTS

Ministers’ Foreword

1.Background

2.Aim and Objectives

3.Achieving the Objectives

4.Purpose of Guidelines

5. Criteria for Town Selection

6. Content of Town Renewal Plans

7.Objectives of the Town Renewal Plan

8.Selecting the Plan Area

9.Designation of Buildings and Areas

10.Design Considerations

11.Format of the Plan

Length

Maps and drawings

Proposed designations

Photographs

Consultants

Other works

12. Co-ordination, Partnership and Consultation

13. Implementation

APPENDIX I: TAX INCENTIVES

APPENDIX II: ESSENTIALS OF TOWNSCAPE

1ENJOYING TOWNSCAPE

2INFORMAL TOWNSCAPE AND HIDDEN QUALITY

3THE POWER OF SIMPLE ELEMENTS

4RELATIVE PRIORITY IN THE COMPONENTS OF TOWNSCAPE

5VIEWS AND VISUAL CONNECTIONS

APPENDIX III: TOWNS ELIGIBLE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SCHEME

A Message from the Ministers

Small is beautiful may be a much quoted aphorism but it captures the essence of what the new Town Renewal Scheme is about. We have seen over the past decade or so the spectacular progress that has been achieved in revitalising the inner core areas of our cities and major towns under the tax incentive based urban renewal schemes. Now it is the turn of the smaller town to benefit. The Town Renewal Scheme aims to build on and replicate the success achieved under the urban renewal schemes by extending the tried and tested tax incentive formula to the smaller town.

The Government is acutely aware of the dereliction and decay which has adversely affected the built fabric of some of our smaller towns. The scheme will enable us to give a major boost in revitalising our smaller towns, stemming the trend of people moving out to the outskirts and surrounding countryside, enhancing their environment, restoring many of the fine buildings which have fallen into dereliction and promoting commercial and social activities; in a word, putting the heart back into the smaller town.

The new scheme will run for 3 years and we would anticipate the scheme being applied after this period to other towns as has happened under the urban renewal programme. However, the Government must be mindful of the need to apply tax incentives in a judicious and balanced fashion and to ensure that they are targeted on areas of greatest need. Our overriding consideration was to devise a scheme which would effectively and efficiently deliver on the ambitious objectives which the Government have set.

The new scheme shouldn’t be seen in isolation. The Government has taken a number of other very important measures which will play a powerful complementary role to this new scheme. Recent legislation on the protection of our architectural heritage, the new scheme of conservation grants announced recently, the residential density guidelines and a greater focus on spatial planning in preparing the National Development Plan 2000-2006 will all assist in building a sustainable future for our towns. The proposed scheme also dovetails with the other current strategy in tackling the housing supply shortage. Many smaller towns have under-utilised infrastructural facilities and this fact combined with the availability of tax incentives should assist in increasing the supply of housing accommodation.

The guidelines are aimed at ensuring that all projects are carried out to the best standards of planning and in a manner that is sensitive to the existing built fabric and distinctive character of the Irish small town.

Like the current urban renewal scheme the Town Renewal Scheme will adopt a targeted, planned approach to tackling decay and dereliction in the towns to be designated. It will be based on Town Renewal Plans to be drawn up by county councils which will be assessed by the Advisory Panel with a view to having the new scheme up and running early next year.

This scheme is not about redesigning our existing townscapes; rather is it about consolidating the distinctive character of the Irish small town. Protecting and restoring the built heritage will also be a major focus of the new scheme; several Irish towns have designated heritage status and we see the new scheme as having a key role in the attainment of heritage objectives.

Ireland’s towns can look forward to the Millennium with new confidence based on successful economic performance and founded too on the imaginative tax incentive renewal schemes such as this which have had such a dramatic impact on urban Ireland.

Mr. Noel Dempsey, T.D.Mr. Robert Molloy, T.D.

Minister for the Environment and Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal

Local Government

1

1.BACKGROUND

1.1.An extensive period of urbanisation took place in Ireland in the late 18th/early 19th century, and continued throughout the latter century in the north-east. At that time the towns and villages were laid out; houses and shops intermingled; public buildings were placed in specially selected and strategic locations. The role of most Irish towns was to act as a service, administrative and social centres catering for their own population and that of the adjacent hinterland .

1.2.In more recent years, changes in communications and transport, principally growth in car ownership, has dramatically changed their economic and social status. Fairs and markets have ceased; the local shops are under pressure from the big supermarkets and shopping malls in the larger towns; uses such as cinemas and community halls are now less economic to run. Originally shop owners lived over the shop but, from the 1960s onwards as car ownership increased, they and other town centre residents tended to move out to new bungalows or houses on the outskirts or in the countryside. As a result, the historical centres of many of our small towns now function largely as daytime service centres and contain many vacant or under-used upper floors and indeed some derelict or vacant sites.

1.3.The urban renewal schemes of recent years have proved very successful at revitalising central areas of our cities and larger towns. This Town Renewal Scheme (TRS) aims to build on and replicate the success achieved under the urban renewal schemes by extending the tried and tested tax incentive formula to the smaller town.

1.4.The Guidelines for the 1999 Urban Renewal scheme pointed out that very few urban centres of less than 6000 population were likely to be able to meet the criteria for that scheme which assumes urban characteristics of a certain scale.. The Town Renewal Scheme is aimed at towns with populations (including census environs) of between 500 and 6000. However, towns which either benefited under the 1999 Urban Renewal scheme, the Seaside Resorts Scheme or which are in the area covered by the Rural Renewal Scheme are excluded, as are towns within the administrative counties of Fingal, South Dublin, and Dun Laoghaire Rathdown.

2.AIM AND OBJECTIVES

The central aim of the scheme is to bring about the restoration, consolidation and improvement of the built fabric of Irish towns, to promote sensitive infill and, in the course of this, to revitalise the centres of small towns. The intention would be to:

  • increase the attractiveness of the town as a place to live, stabilise its population and thus counteract the the current trend of people moving to the outskirts and countryside;
  • promote its position as a local commercial and social centre and thereby increase its sustainability as a place in which to live and work; and stem the loss of shopping and other facilities to the larger towns;
  • promote the town as a centre for culture and local heritage, including the further development of our designated heritage towns, and thus enhance the sense of identity not only physically but also socially,
  • enhance its environment and amenity in the interests of residents, businesses, visitors and the promotion of tourism; and
  • promote more sustainable development patterns.

3.ACHIEVING THE OBJECTIVES

3.1.Renewal of towns will be achieved primarily through the use of tax incentives with a strong emphasis on refurbishment incentives. Incentives will apply to buildings, groups of buildings and sub-areas which must be designated in the context of a Town Renewal Plan (TRP). The types of development for which incentives will be available are listed in Appendix 1. There will be separate incentive categories for “new build” and “refurbishment”. This will facilitate application of "refurbishment" incentives on their own where “new build” or a combination of “new build” and "refurbishment" incentives might not be justified. In line with Government Policy and having regard to the Government Action on House Prices initiative, “Residential Investor - New Build” will only be considered where it is shown to be absolutely necessary for the achievement of the objectives of the Plan.

3.2.The rates of incentives which will apply to residential development are also set out in Appendix 1. The type and rates of the incentives to apply to business development will be notified to local authorities as soon as possible.

3.3.Consideration will be given to providing for the application of incentives in appropriate cases in a way which limits qualifying works to those necessary to secure the improvement of the external appearance of one or more facades of buildings. This approach would be suitable to deal with cases where an inappropriate facade or shop-front detracts seriously from the value of a street.

3.4.The Local Government (Planning and Development) Act, 1999 in relation to the protection of the architectural heritage can assist in achieving the objectives set out in Plans. The new grants scheme for protected buildings will assist where relevant buildings are included within the plan area. Planning authorities also now have wide powers to ensure that relevant structures are protected and are entitled to direct that works are undertaken to preserve or restore a protected structure.

3.5.The scheme requires relevant county councils, together with local community / business interests, particularly property owners, to identify areas which can benefit effectively from the scheme, to prepare a Town Renewal Plan for that area and, within that, to identify buildings, groups of buildings and key infill sites where effective improvement may be achieved with the aid of tax incentives. As this scheme is aimed at addressing dereliction in our small towns at local level County Councils will have a pivotal role, initially, in selecting areas for inclusion in Town Renewal Plans and subsequently in ensuring that they are successfully and pro-actively implemented.

3.6.Town Renewal Plans should be submitted to the Department by 31 October, 1999 with a view to starting the scheme early in the New Year. An expert advisory panel will assess the completed TRPs and advise the Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal in relation to proposals for designation having regard to these Guidelines.

4.PURPOSE OF THE GUIDELINES

These guidelines are intended to assist county councils

  • by providing criteria for selection of towns which might avail of the scheme and
  • in preparing Town Renewal Plans for submission to the Minister in support of proposed designations for identified sites within the selected towns

5.CRITERIA FOR TOWN SELECTION

5.1.Towns for which Plans are to be prepared for the purposes of the scheme must be selected from the list of relevant towns in Appendix 111; the number of towns selected should be in accordance with the terms outlined in Paragraph 5.3

5.2.Priority should be given to towns where the aim and objectives of the scheme can be achieved most effectively:

  • Account should be taken of the attractiveness of the town as a place to live. Those towns where building form and layout of spaces are generally good but where pieces are missing or minor interventions are required to restore the quality and attractiveness of the major resource, would be particularly suitable.
  • There should be scope to bring back residential use to town centres to meet demand for housing and reduce pressure for ribbon development. This would be indicated by factors such as the presence of vacant or under-occupied buildings, particularly vacant upper floors, and vacant or derelict sites that might be brought back into use, particularly into residential use.
  • Availability of opportunities within the town centre to enhance the commercial and social life of the town would indicate a town's suitability and potential to benefit from the scheme.
  • the further improvement of designated heritage towns should be considered;
  • Any town selected for preparation of a Town Renewal Plan will need to have the infrastructure to cope with likely development either in place already or planned and capable of being implemented. Normally the area would have an under utilised infrastructure which could be utilised more efficiently by development.

5.3.A full list of towns eligible for consideration under the scheme is listed in Appendix 111. During the first phase of the new scheme the number of towns of relevant size in each county which will be considered for designation are as follows:

Number of Towns in relevant population category in individual county as outlined in Appendix V / Maximum number of towns for which Town Renewal Plans can be submitted in the first phase of the scheme
Less than 6 eligible towns in County / 3
6 - 10 eligible towns in County / 4
11-20 eligible towns in County / 5
More than 20 eligible towns in County / 7

Designation for the towns approved for the purposes of the first phase of the scheme will apply of a period of three years. In subsequent phases the Minister may decide to apply the provisions of the scheme to other towns. It is recommended that county councils select towns to reflect different size categories of town from the list shown in Appendix 111.

6.CONTENT OF TOWN RENEWAL PLANS

6.1.The Town Renewal Plan will guide the improvement of the town within that portion of the town covered by the plan area; it will show how the objectives of the scheme can be achieved for the town as a whole, primarily through the use of incentives on designated areas identified within the plan area.

6.2.The Town Renewal Plan will identify and delineate the area of the town which, following careful analysis, is considered the appropriate subject area for the plan. The analysis should make it possible to target specific elements for conservation, for improvement or remedy, or for extension and these should form the basis of the plan.

6.3.In the selection and analysis of these areas, it is essential that the County Council provide/acquire the necessary expertise to ensure that all relevant aspects are addressed, including the less-obvious qualities of informal townscape, and to identify, with the local community, the range of works required to enhance these qualities.

7.OBJECTIVES OF TOWN RENEWAL PLANS

7.1.There should be a clear set of concise objectives set out in the plan which should relate to the aims and objectives of the scheme itself as set out in paragraph 2. The objectives should be sufficiently clear that, when detailed proposals are submitted to county councils for certification for incentives on the designated sites, such proposals can be assessed against these objectives. (It should be noted that detailed design proposals for individual designated sites are not required or appropriate at Town Renewal Plan stage see Paragraph 9.5.) Typical objectives would relate to

  • The restoration/improvement of the physical integrity of towns,
  • Securing the residential or other appropriate use of vacant or under-utilised buildings and/or
  • Securing the residential or other appropriate development of vacant or derelict sites.

7.2.The objectives must be set in the context of the proper planning and development of the area. In particular, the Town Renewal Plan will be expected to address areas within the established built up area which the statutory development plan has identified as obsolete, derelict or in need of rejuvenation. In exceptional cases, the preparation of a Town Renewal Plan may result in new policies or objectives which materially conflict with those of the Development Plan (e.g. a change of zoning may be called for); in such cases, a variation of the Development Plan will be necessary if the Town Renewal Plan is to be implemented in full.

8.SELECTING THE PLAN AREA

8.1.It is likely that the most appropriate area for a Town Renewal Plan will be based on or linked to the established built up area of the town i.e. in that part established, developed or laid out pre 1940. It should be shown that the area selected is an optimum area, in the context of the town, in which to concentrate such incentives for the benefit of the town as a whole.

8.2.While the size and extent of the area covered by a town renewal plan will be a matter for the County Council, the area should relate to an identifiable space, or sequence of spaces and to the buildings, structures or town-parts directly associated with these spaces. A plan which attempts to embrace too large an area may lose its impact or attractiveness, through loss of focus and identity.