Decision made on plans for new drive-thru in Limerick

LIMERICK City and County Council planners have made a decision on plans for a new drive-thru restaurant in Dooradoyle.

Maxol applied to the local authority to extend its filling station beside University Hospital Limerick to open the food outlet.

And while council has approved a new restaurant, it has decided to not allow the drive-thru.

In a determination letter, the developer has been instructed to submit a changed plan to remove this element from its plan.

Council said the refusal is in order to "protect the residential amenities of the area in the interest of proper planning and sustainable development."

The restaurant will also not be allowed to operate on a 24-hour-a-day basis, with the planning office stipulating that its opening hours can only be between 6.30am and 11.30pm.

Despite the council's decision, the option for Maxol to appeal against it to An Bord Pleanala remains.

It's unclear which company would operate the restaurant, with a spokesperson for Maxol previously telling Limerick Live it is "too early in the process" to provide that information.

But the proposal attracted an objection from the holding company of John Lyons, who runs a branch of the Hungry Lyons nearby.

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Agents for Watchford Ltd, for which Mr Lyons is a director along with his wife, put together a detailed document opposing the development.

“Take-away restaurants and drive-thru facilities operate late at night and the impact of same on residents due to noise and possible anti-social behaviour is not acceptable,” the agents wrote in the objection to council.

“The introduction of a take-away and drive-thru will be detrimental to the amenity of the existing residents and will create a nuisance.”

They also argued the extension to the service station, the drive-thru element and the additional seating this will bring does not comply with the Limerick development plan.

“The aim of the development plan is to promote and support Limerick city,” they stated.

In simple terms, the development plan is a document which governs what can be built in Limerick and where, and forms the basis of what planning applications are approved in areas.