Chapter 9 Economic Development

9.0 Introduction
 

This chapter will set out the objectives of the County Development Plan for the sustainable development of Wicklow’s economy that are relevant to and implementable through a land-use plan.  Economic opportunity is identified as one of the over-arching and cross cutting themes that informs the County Development Plan. Economic development and employment is one of the key elements in delivering sustainable communities.  

In accordance with the National Planning Framework (NPF), the Eastern and Midland Region will accommodate around 320,000 additional people in employment by 2040. It is important that the objectives in the County Development Plan are sufficiently agile to accommodate new employment opportunities in the county thereby improving resilience and reducing the number of people undertaking daily long distance commutes. 

The land-use objectives of this plan aim to support the strategies of the Wicklow Local Economic and Community Plan and the Wicklow Local Enterprise Office, all of which have a wider remit than the County Development Plan in the area of economic development.  

Sustainable economic development requires balance in terms of location and diversity of economic activity, as well as the protection of the environment and people’s quality of life. In this regard, it is intended that this chapter will clearly articulate where the Council will promote and support proposals for new or expanded employment generating development, what type of development will be facilitated in various locations and what criteria will be used to evaluate such proposals. The Council’s requirements with respect to the design, layout, servicing etc of new or expanded developments are set out in the Development & Design Standards in the Appendix.   

9.1 Strategic Context  

9.1.1. National & Regional Policy 

Policy drivers with respect to economic development from the National Planning Framework (NPF) and the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy (RSES) are set out in detail in Chapter 2 of this plan. The national and regional strategies highlight the importance of aligning population growth with employment development to ensure the delivery of sustainable self-sustaining communities and to reduce reliance on unsustainable commuting. The legacy of rapid growth in commuter settlements needs to be addressed by facilitating jobs growth.  

In accordance with NPO 5 of the NPF it is important that we develop our key towns and self-sustaining growth towns that are of sufficient scale and quality to compete internationally and to be drivers of national and regional growth, investment and prosperity. The RSES sets out guiding principles for investment prioritisation. Among these is the need to consider the capacity of places having regard to implications of commuting on quality of life. 

The preferred Economic Strategy set out in the RSES promotes smart specialisation strategies based on identified strengths and competitive advantages, combined with cluster policies that promote economies of scale and network effects in certain locations. The Strategy should also support diversification of local economies and development of innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems for sustained national growth that can withstand external shocks.  

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