Bailieboro gets cheap Tesco fuel

Tesco Ireland has been given the green light to develop a new filling station and shop at Thomas Street, Bailieboro, by the planning appeals board. The decision comes almost a year after Tesco opened a supermarket in the town and overturns a decision last March by Cavan County Council refusing planning permission for the filling station because the local authority was not satisfied that it would not pose a threat to the retail functions of the town and villages in the vicinity. Welcoming the decision, Seamus Banim, the communications manager for Tesco Ireland, said it will be open in about six months and will create 15 new jobs. "This is good news for consumers as it will bring competitive pricing for petrol and diesel for Bailieboro and the surrounding areas," he said. However, responding to An Bord Pleanála's decision to grant planning permission, the Irish Petrol Retailers Association (IPRA) has said that the fight is not over. In its submission to the planning appeal, the IPRA said that a Tesco Filling Station threatened filling stations and smaller retail outlets such as convenience stores within a 25-kilometre radius, taking in Bailieboro, Kingscourt, Virginia and Shercock and villages such as Canningstown, Stradone and Mullagh. Tesco disputed this, stating that the larger towns had well developed retail bases and that fuel prices in the smaller towns or villages were already higher than in Bailieboro; that competition already existed and the outlets had not closed down. The IPRA spokesman David Blevings said: "Longer term, if past trends are anything to go by existing service stations in the surrounding area face a potential decline in business and possible closure. Supermarkets have the strength to cross promote their sales, which can be to the detriment of existing traders. This can have a devastating effect on service stations and other traders in the area. "We intend to take this matter up with the minister as there appears to be conflicting advice in the Retail Planning Guide, which limits petrol forecourt shops to less than 200 sq.m but appears to permit kiosks intrinsically linked to large supermarkets sometimes larger then 3000 sq.m. The local traders and service stations need the recognition of the invaluable service they provide to the whole community and support from the neighbourhood." Aidan Clarke, the chairman of the Bailieboro Traders Association, said it is behind the IPRA decision to challenge the decision to grant planning permission to Tesco for the filling station. "We're very disappointed (with the decision). There are already four filling stations in the town and we felt that was more than enough to service the area of Bailieboro." Describing the decision as "another blow to small retailers", Mr. Clarke said that the Tesco filling station could force other stations or small shops out of business because they could not compete with the international buying power of Tesco Ireland to offer cheap fuel to entice shoppers to its supermarket. There are three existing filling stations with convenience stores attached in Bailieboro and a fourth filling station about a mile outside the town. Twelve observers made submissions on the appeal file, among them RGDATA, the IPRA, the Kingscourt Traders Association, Shercock and Kilann Rural Development and filling station owners. In making its decision, An Bord Pleanála said that it could not consider the retail impact of the development because to do so would be going outside its remit. The Bord found that the development did not contravene the current County Development Plan and subject to 10 conditions would not seriously injure the amenities of the area or of property in the vicinity, would not cause a traffic hazard and would not be prejudicial to public health.