Under the provisions of the Local Government Act, 1994, local authorities are empowered to provide, operate and maintain parks and open spaces for amenity and recreational purposes. It is a matter for each local authority to determine the extent to which resources ought to be applied to the provision of such parks and open spaces.
The provision of open spaces, recreational facilities and amenity areas in local authority housing schemes is also a matter for the individual housing authorities in the first instance. Appropriate limited facilities of this kind can be funded from my Department's capital allocations where the work is undertaken in conjunction with the provision of new local authority housing or the refurbishment of existing housing under the remedial works scheme.
Under Section 10 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000, a planning authority's development plan must set out an overall strategy for the proper planning and sustainable development of the area of that plan. It must also include objectives for the zoning of land for particular purposes, including for recreation or as open space, where the planning authority considers this to be appropriate. In addition, Section 48 of the Act provides for a new system for the levying of development contributions which, as a condition of the planning permission, are paid by the developer in respect of public infrastructure and facili ties which benefit the development and which are provided by the local authority. The type of public infrastructure and the facilities involved include the provision of community facilities. Furthermore, the Local Government Bill, 2000, allows for the establishment of a community fund to support local initiatives, including amenity and recreational facilities.
In light of these new provisions and the financial possibilities they provide for local authorities, the issue raised by the Deputy has been fully addressed by the Department. The onus now lies with local authorities to utilise fully the provisions of the legislation to which I referred to facilitate such developments.
