Housing estate on Browneshill Road, Carlow gets go-ahead

A 2.7-HECTARE greenfield site on Browneshill Road will be transformed into 83 new homes in the coming years, thanks to planning permission granted by Carlow Co Council in December 2025. The estate is to be built by Nesselside Builders, which is currently developing another estate of 72 houses on Hacketstown Road opposite Sandhills Shopping Centre.

Nesselside Builders is controlled by brothers Sean and Niall McLoughlin. The McLoughlin family, who opened Dinn Rí in 1995, previously developed the Cois Dara, Browneshill Wood, Sandhills and The Paddocks housing estates.

The new estate will include 66 two-storey houses, made up of two- and three-bed terraces and three-bed semi-detached units, five bungalow units and 12 two-bed apartment units. The company applied for permission to build the houses in March 2025.

A childcare report included in the planning application, which was dated from July 2025, notes that the development will generate a total of 227 new residents and generate demand for a further 14 crèche or pre-school places. The report said this is a ‘low figure’, that there were several childcare spaces available within 5km of the estate and applications for further facilities that could generate 43 new childcare spaces. It concluded that the developers would not need to include a space for childcare facilities or shops in the estate, as Sandhills shopping centre was only a short walk away.

The development will also involve creating vehicular access from Browneshill Road Lower, two new pedestrian access points at the Link Road and Browneshill Road Lower, 166 car parking spaces, a bicycle storage shelter and 11 bin storage areas.