Agenda and minutes

Proposed: Councillor Justin Warnock

Seconded: Seán Ó Conláin

There were no matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.

David McGlinchey from KPMG provided an update of the progress of the new Leitrim LECP.  In his presentation he outlined the new LECP has completed stage 2 of the LECP preparation process.  This involved the completion of a consultation process involving surveys, interviews, workshops and revision of the High-level Goals of Socio-Economic Statement. Mr. McGlinchey outlined the results of the consultation process in relation to demographics, provision of services, issues affecting Leitrim and key priorities for the new LECP.

He outlined that the six Emerging High-level Goals for the new LECP, have now been revised based on the findings of the consultation process.

1.     Leitrim will continue to develop as an inclusive, healthy, and equitable county that supports wellbeing and is celebrated as a great place to live.

2.     Leitrim will embrace climate action to increase the sustainability of its communities and unlock the benefits of the green economy.

3.     Leitrim’s towns and villages will continue to be revitalised and regenerated as attractive places to live, work and visit.

4.     Leitrim will be recognised for its educational attainment, life-long learning, and training opportunities.

5.     Leitrim will strengthen and diversify its innovative economy, create meaningful employment, and promote sustainable enterprise.

6.     Leitrim will champion its natural and cultural environment and support the development of the county as a tourism destination in a sustainable and balanced manner.

The LECP is now at stage 3 of the LECP preparation process, the next stage will involve the development of objectives, actions, outcomes and the identification of owners and KPIs. The new Leitrim LECP will be finalised in June 2023 before being adopted and implemented.

Cllr Sean McDermott thanked Mr. McGlinchey for this presentation and enquired what the time scales were for the implementation of the new plan.

Mr. McGlinchey confirmed that the new plan would be adopted by the first week in July.

Cllr Justin Warnock commended Mr McGlinchey on his presentation and acknowledged that it was a substantial piece of work. He referred to the Kinlough Plan that was completed recently and public engagement was undertaken as part of the plan. He queried the demographics that responded to the LECP consultation process and stated that youth engagement is critical but young people may not always respond to public consultations of this nature.

He commented that there is not enough to do for young people and all weather sports facilities would be welcome.

Cllr Warnock expressed his satisfaction at seeing feedback from young farmers as part of the consultation process as the sector is worth millions to the economy.

Cllr Warnock highlighted that the whole of North Leitrim should become a National Park as the LECP referred to only a section of North Leitrim. He compared the potential of a National Park in North Leitrim to Snowdonia and the Yorkshire Dales where people live and work in the while also conserving the ecological and natural heritage of the area.

Cllr Warnock expressed his dissatisfaction that there was no hotel in North Leitrim, an area  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

Ms Marian McGovern from the Community Development Department provided an overview of new PEACEPLUS programme.  Under the new programme, Leitrim County Council will develop and deliver PEACEPLUS co-designed Action Plans under Investment Area 1 – Building Peaceful and Thriving Communities. 

Leitrim County Council has received an allocation of €3.3m which will be used to fund projects under the following themes the new programme.

The Leitrim PEACEPLUS Partnership will oversee the design and implementation of a co-designed process in County Leitrim and will be responsible for the development of the PEACEPLUS Action Plan. The Partnership will consist of 18 members with representatives from elected members, statutory bodies, community representatives and social partners.

Ongoing PEACEPLUS consultations have engaged with community-based structures such as PPN, MDs, Town Teams, community networks & special interest groups to ensure an equal inclusion of professionals, peoples & communities incorporating the entire Council area.

Following the completion of the consultations will be one co-designed Action Plan that is fed by local geographic, community & interest group-based engagement and aligned with the local LECP.

Ms McGovern presented the timelines and key milestones for the new PEACEPLUS programme. An open call for applications under the new PEACEPLUS programme will take place in April 2023 and will be open for six months. Final decisions on successful projects will be made from November 2023 to January 2024.          

Cllr Sean McDermott commended Ms McGovern and the PEACEPLUS Partnership for the ongoing engagement across the county. He acknowledged that all themes fit well into the development of Leitrim as a border county and welcomed the dedication of themes to regeneration.

Cllr Justin Warnock praised the work of the PEACEPLUS programme in delivering funding for much needed projects in Co. Leitrim. Leitrim will be a better place as a result of the programme.

Ms McGovern paid tribute to the public in their engagement as part of the PEACEPLUS programme. She stated that they had received excellent feedback that will add value to the development of the plan. 

Terry McGovern, Senior Engineer and Emma Donohoe, Senior Executive Engineer provided an update on Active Travel Projects currently in development in Co. Leitrim.  Leitrim County Council has received a €2 million allocation from the National Transport Authority for active travel projects in 2023. 18 projects will be delivered under this funding across Co.  Leitrim with projects ranging in value from €20,000 to €300,000. Under the  National Transport Authority (NTA) funding will only be delivered in larger towns and urban areas and will be eligible in areas within 50 – 60 km/hr zones. Like for like footpath maintenance and recreational or leisure only routes will not be funded under the programme. Example of completed projects in County Leitrim include new footpaths, permeability links in residential areas and shared surfaces for walking and cycling.  A 246m new shared path is currently under construction at Melivn Fields in Kinlough.

The Safe Route to Schools is a programme delivered under the Active Travel Programme. In 2023, five schools will receive funding to improve safety and deliver better walking/cycling access to allow pupils and staff to walk or cycle to school safely and aims to increase numbers of students walking and cycling to school.

Safety measures will include Build outs, Pencil Bollards to restrict parking, coloured surfacing, Road Markings, raised tables, pedestrian crossing points, and gateway signage

Other projects in development under Active Travel include the Cycle Connect Project and a Bus Shelter programme, both of which will be rolled out in Co. Leitrim.

Cllr Sean McDermott thanked Mr McGovern and Ms Donahoe for their presentation. He acknowledged that Active Travel is making a huge difference and is great for the environment if more people can walk or cycle more. He hoped that funding would continue to increase for projects in Leitrim.

Seán Ó Conláin thanked Ms Donohoe for her presentation. He queried on how active travel projects can be integrated with other aspects of transport including Local Link where people can cycle to bus stops to avail of the local link bus. He questioned whether infrastructure has been put in place for people to safely store their bikes?

Seán also stated that greenways can be forms of active travel and would like to see a plan where they can be integrated as part of active travel.

Cllr Justin Warnock highlighted that Kinlough has been transformed via Active Travel projects, however, there has been no mention of a greenway to Bundoran. This would be 3km in length and needs to be addressed. The recent Kinlough Plan acknowledged the importance of a Kinlough to Bundoran greenway and this needs to be progressed as a priority.

Cllr Warnock also addressed his fears regarding the size of bus shelters and the amount of space they take up when placed on footpaths.

Gerry Creamer supported the idea of a greenway from Kinlough to Bundoran and questioned whether cross county initiatives can be supported under Active Travel?

Cllr Finola Armstrong Maguire queried bike safety. She questioned whether there are provisions  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Ms Emer Conolly, Senior Executive Officer Economic Development discussed with the members proposed changes to the grant application process for Festival and Events, Community and Arts funding. A review of the overall grant application process for all three funding streams took place with discussions on how the process could be improved upon. These discussions concluded that a stand-alone Community Festival grant should be established and that one call for applications should be made in respect of the three grants via one on-line application form and different criteria will apply in respect of each grant type. The applicant will be required to identify at application stage which grant scheme they wish to apply for.

Ms Connolly highlighted that the MD allocation of €15,000 will be used for Tourism festivals, with an additional budget of €5,000 being made available for the Community Festivals. The budget for the Arts Festival is €11,000 for 2023.

Cllr Finola Armstrong Maguire questioned whether insurance costs can fall under the umbrella of the scheme. She acknowledged that with the rising cost of insurance, the grant would be gone with insurance costs along. She also queried whether Leitrim County Council can get overall insurance for festivals?

Ms Connolly stated that the queries in relation to insurance fall outside of this grant programme but she would make enquiries to enable an appropriate response to be delivered.

Cllr Justin Warnock supported Cllr Armstrong Maguires statement that the biggest drawback for organising events is acquiring insurance.

Ms Connolly stated that the funding programme would open soon and would allow a three week window for applications, with a deadline date of the 31^st March 2023.

Nicola McManus, Broadband Officer for Leitrim County Council provided an update on broadband services throughout Co. Leitrim. 2023 is year four of the seven-year National Broadband Plan to develop high speed broadband for the whole of Ireland. Co. Leitrim has received €46 million for broadband investment across the county up until 2026.

The following targets have been set for the rollout of High-Speed Broadband across Leitrim

There are currently 11,469 premises in the intervention area in Co. Leitrim

Ms McManus outlined that 3,368 premises in Carrick on Shannon and surrounding townlands will soon be able to order broadband on the national broadband network. In advance of the fibre to home rollout the National Broadband Plan provides for the delivery of Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) nationwide. Leitrim currently have 12 BCP’s located in public and community facilities that deliver high speed broadband of 150mbps to its users.

There are currently nine Connected Hubs in Co. Leitrim that offer private offices, collaborative spaces, and hot desks. Under the Leitrim Digital Strategy, Leitrim’s Connected Hubs will continue to be supported through creating greater awareness of the hubs around the county and the promotion of the county as a remote working destination.

Seán Ó Conláin highlighted that there was a presentation on the Leitrim Digital Strategy two years ago. He commented that the most recent update on the LECP highlighted the importance of broadband but did not make reference to the Digital Strategy. He wishes for better integration between the Digital Strategy, the LECP and the Broadband Officer.

Cllr Justin Warnock stated that you had to pre-book a connection to get high speed broadband.

Ms McManus acknowledged that the applicant must pre-book and go through the application process in order for the provider to set them up with a connection.

Cllr Ita Reynolds Flynn stated that there were a number of schools that have poor broadband in Co. Leitrim.

Ms McManus confirmed that a number of schools have received high speed broadband and she confirmed she would check the process available to schools for the provision of high-speed broadband.

Cllr Sean McDermott stated that importance of the continued rollout of high speed broadband in Co. Leitrim to allow people to work remotely. This will promote more people to live in the county if a work from home option exists.

Cllr Enda McGloin requested further discussions take place on Casual Trading Bays and sought to include the issue on the agenda for an upcoming SPC meeting.

The next Planning, Economic Development and Infrastructure Strategic Policy Committee meeting will take place on Tuesday 18th April 2023 at 10am on MS Teams.