The Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Mr Cullen, is likely to be asked to re-examine a decision by councillors in Louth to adopt an amended development plan for a village adjacent to the site of Battle of the Boyne against the advice of the county manager and a senior planner.
The original local area plan for Tullyallen village, which has a population of 600, focused on consolidating the village and not allowing further residential development.
However a submission from a local landowner to have a total of 3.5 hectares of land to the north and south of the village rezoned for residential and mixed village use initially got the support of all county councillors when the plan was first debated in January.
Because the change was substantial and significant, the plan was put back on public display and this week the councillors were told that 30 of the 31 submissions received on the amended plan were against the new zoning.
The only one in support came from the landowner herself, said senior planner Mr Gerry Duffy.
Before the vote was taken at this month's council meeting, the councillors were told that the view of the county manager, Ms Martina Maloney, and of the council's senior planner, Mr Gerry Duffy, was that the village requires a period of consolidation "rather than further expansion having regard to the amount of development already permitted and the deficiency in physical and social infrastructure that currently exists".
The county manager also considered submissions from the OPW and the Department of the Environment relating to "the historical and heritage perspective and that both agencies object to the proposed zoning of these lands". According to the Department of the Environment one of the parcels of land, at Candlestick Cross, may have been the site of the lines of the Williamite encampment during the 1690 battle.
However 15 of the 26 councillors voted in favour of the rezoning, saying there would be no visual impact of any development and that the council could impose planning conditions on any development.
Cllr Oliver Tully (FG) proposed that the amended plan be adopted and received the support of another 14 councillors while Cllr Ray Foley (FG) got the support of just four councillors for his proposal to adopt the original plan. Three councillors abstained and three others were absent.
Mr Barry Flood, of the Tullyallen Public Forum, said a public meeting would be held in the coming week and he expects a formal decision to be made to ask the Minister for the Environment to review the decision.
"This is an appalling decision and it stands local democracy on its head," he said.