'Louth needs extra land zoned for housing, but zoning alone is not enough'

Louth TD Paula Butterly has said that past mistakes of building housing in areas without sufficient schools, transport links, healthcare services, and community facilities, must not be repeated, and that any new residential zoning must be aligned with sustainable development principles.

Deputy Butterly was speaking today following Louth County Council’s announcement of a public consultation seeking proposals for lands to meet the County’s new housing growth requirements under the National Planning Framework (NPF) Implementation Guidelines.

The Fine Gael TS said the initiative is “a positive step toward addressing the urgent need for additional housing in County Louth,” but stressed that housing delivery must go hand‑in‑hand with proper infrastructure planning.

“While I welcome this consultation and the opportunity for communities and landowners to put forward suitable sites, we must be honest about the scale of the challenge,” Deputy Butterly said.

“Louth needs extra land zoned for housing, but zoning alone is not enough. We cannot repeat past mistakes by building estates without the schools, transport links, healthcare services, and community facilities that families rely on. We cannot turn our towns and villages into a concrete jungle.”

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Deputy Butterly emphasised that any new residential zoning must be aligned with sustainable development principles, including:

• Ensuring water, wastewater, and transport infrastructure can support new homes
• Prioritising infill, brownfield, and derelict sites to revitalise existing communities
• Delivering social infrastructure such as schools, childcare, parks, and community spaces
• Avoiding over‑development in areas already under pressure

She added that the consultation provides an important opportunity for the public to shape the future of housing in the county, but infrastructure investment must match population growth.

“People want homes, but they also want quality of life. If we are serious about balanced, sustainable growth, then infrastructure cannot be an afterthought. It must be the foundation.”

Deputy Butterly encouraged residents, community groups, and landowners to put forward proposals that support both housing delivery and long‑term community wellbeing.

A non-statutory public consultation will run from will run from Wednesday 18th March 2026 until Wednesday 8th April 2026 whereby members of the public can make proposals for lands that could be zoned for residential development. Submissions should be concise and should be no longer than 3-4 A4 pages inclusive of maps.

Submissions can be made online via the consultation portal https://consult.louthcoco.ie/ or by post to the Forward Planning Section, Louth County Council, Town Hall, Crowe Street, Dundalk.

There is no guarantee that any land included in submissions made in response to this consultation will be zoned for residential purposes. Landowners should be aware that any lands zoned for residential use may be liable for an annual Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) based on the value of the site.

Any queries relating to this consultation should be emailed to louthcdp@louthcoco.ie

All details in relation to this consultation are available to view on the LCC Consultation Portal: https://consult.louthcoco.ie/ from Wednesday 18th March.