Five year extension sought for completion of Tullamore private hospital
The developers of a private hospital on the Wellwood campus in Tullamore are seeking to extend the timescale for the completion of the development by another five years, to December 2031.
As part of a planning application which was received by Offaly County Council on December 18, the developers of the hospital, John Flanagan Developments Ltd (JFD) requested planners to extend the timeline for the completion of the development for another five years above that already permitted in the original grant of planning permission.
Supporting information which was prepared and submitted on behalf of John Flanagan Developments Ltd., by a Scottish-based agency, Scott Hobbs Planning (SHP), sets out the reason for seeking a timeline extension for completion of the project. The report states that “negotiation is ongoing” regarding the implementation of the hospital with the necessary providers and interested parties, and adds that it is “probable” that the development “will not be completed in the time period allowed in the extant permissions.” The report also points out that the negotiation process “takes time due to the complexities of the matter.”
Also being sought in the planning application currently before the Offaly local authority is permission to connect the hospital to a new pump station; to change built form at the location of the originally approved pump station, and to erect boundary treatment adjacent to properties in the Arden Vale estate.
No other changes are proposed to the development which already has planning permission.
Scott Hobbs Planning pointed out in their supporting information documentation that planning permission has been granted for two pump stations in the locality of the proposed development, both of which have the capacity to serve the wider area. “There is necessity for one pump station only” they state, adding that it would be “unsustainable” to require the construction of both stations.
As the pumping station associated with the residential permission will be “delivered and available” Scott Hobbs Planning state that it is “appropriate to now amend the hospital plans” to allow for the connection to the newly-constructed pump station, which includes new underground connecting pipework and landscaping changes at ground level.
John Flanagan Developments Ltd., was granted planning permission for a new 99-bed private hospital on a site known as the Wellwood Campus at the Arden Roundabout off the N52 bypass on the outskirts of Tullamore in February 2023. Later that same year, the company sought changes to the project to increase the overall floor space, reduce the in-patient bed space to 56 and increase the capacity for outpatient day spaces and elective procedures. They were given the go-ahead for the requested changed in May 2024.