· To undertake a Public Realm Improvement Scheme in Mohill.
· To modify the curtilage/front boundary of St.Mary’s Church Wall.
Minutes:
Chief Executive’s Report issued to members in advance of the meeting (Appendix 1 to the Minutes of this meeting book).
Mr Gilhooly gave a detailed overview of the concept of the proposed scheme,
Councillor Mulligan thanked Mr Gilhooly for his presentation of the scheme. In his opinion this is the most important document for consideration for Mohill in quite a long time. It was unfortunate that it arrived alongside the pandemic. As a result of this the public are not entirely satisfied with the timeframe and the lack of opportunities to meet with both council officials and public representatives to discuss the document in detail. He stated that from this moment the amended document is now a public document. This plan is the only one available. It has been amended because of the number of submissions made by the people of Mohill. He thanked them for taking the time to make submissions. He stressed that his concern with the proposed plan was the issue of parking. Primary consideration should be given to the provision of on street parking.
He said that this plan is like a set of scales and it is about setting out balance. On one side is a very lucrative application for funding to enhance and improve the town of Mohill. On the other side consideration need to be given to on street parking, traffic flow and traffic safety. It is important that there is an acceptable balance between both. He felt confident it could be achieved. He remarked that as a result of the number of submissions made in respect of parking considerable ground has been achieved. He suggested that the members go back to the public again to look for their views. Adding that the initial timescale for submission of application was not as tight as first thought, he recommended the deferral of the proposal until the December meeting to allow the councillors to go out and make the document widely available to the public and seek their views.
Councillor McGowan concurred with everything Councillor Mulligan and seconded his proposal to defer consideration until December meeting.
Councillor Guckian said that he knew for a fact that the people of Mohill were totally against this proposal. It is very simple we either accept or reject the proposal in full, as put forward to us today. I reject this proposal in full and call on my colleagues to also do the same.
He remarked that the scheme was drawn up by a Dublin based company and it lacks real research. No economic impact assessment report was carried out. There needs to be a detailed archaeological assessment report in and around the Abbey area. The whole plan appears premature and rushed through. A plan for Mohill town must firstly cater for those who live, work and shop in the town. Regarding some of the submissions he had read he said that a lot of them referred to inadequate public consultation and to the loss of car parking spaces. There seems to be no viable alternative to car parking. He expressed his view that the parking is adequate and
should not be changed. If something is not broken then why fix it. He called for this report to be thrown out, go back to the drawing board and engage with the public. Local Architects who know something of the area and its history should be employed. He once again urged all members to reject this proposal.
Councillor Stenson remarked that there had not been a discussion about Mohill for a long time. This is a genuine attempt to make proper investment in Mohill. In the 1960s and 1970s it was a great town but it has deteriorated. However there has been some investment over the last number of years, a lot of good work done. It is an age friendly town. The Local Enterprise Office is working towards making it a green town. The Lough Rynn Rowing facilities are second to none in the country. The town team have been working very hard. He said that when he did see the plan he had serious concerns with parking, parking is everything in Mohill. He emphasised that he did not know anything about the proposal until the public consultation and had no hand in developing this plan.
He said that before any public realm works should take place the issue of problems with waste water and water gullies in the town needs to be look at. He stated that he had a motion tabled in this regard on today’s agenda and asked could it be taken now in the context of the discussion taking place.
He also supported the deferral for two weeks commenting that it was only right that the people of Mohill get the chance to look at it in detail. To allow everyone involved to make an educated decision. He thanked all those who had made submissions. He added that €2.8 million was a lot of money to be spent in a rural area and it would be remiss to let this opportunity pass.