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24 Jan 2026
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24 Jan 2026
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Ardee Railway Lands
A call has been made by the members of the Ardee Railway Memorial Park Committee, for Louth County Council to pause proposed works at the Railway Memorial Park in Ardee until the statutory planning process for the Ardee 2040 regeneration plan has been completed.
Public notices refer to the proposed removal and relocation of memorial trees and the development of a memorial garden at the site. Those proposals have raised concern locally, according to the committee, given that the overall regeneration scheme is still under consideration.
Correspondence has now been sent to An Coimisiún Pleanála and to the council’s Planning Enforcement Section seeking clarity on whether such works should proceed before a final determination has been issued.
Michael O’Dowd, a member of the Railway Memorial Park Committee, said the issue was not opposition to regeneration, but respect for due process.
Mr O'Dowd said that, “regeneration done properly can be transformative for a town like Ardee. But it must be done in the right order. When works involving memorial trees and commemorative spaces are proposed before the planning process has concluded, it is entirely reasonable to say: not so fast, Louth County Council.”
Dermot Maguire of the Memorial Park Committee said the park holds a unique place in the town’s collective memory.
Mr Maguire said that “the Railway Memorial Park is a place of remembrance for families across Ardee. Any proposal to relocate memorial trees or redesign the memorial setting needs to be approached with sensitivity, transparency and respect, and only after all proper approvals are in place.”
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Both stressed that their intervention is intended to protect public confidence in the planning system and to ensure that regeneration proceeds lawfully and with community trust.
Until a decision is issued by An Coimisiún Pleanála, they are calling for no irreversible works to proceed at the Railway Memorial Park.
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