Parking issues around Nowlan Park look set to be tackled.
Calls had been made at previous council meetings for the setting up of a committee representing the residents of the surrounding estates. They’ll be joined on that group by members of An Garda Siochana & the GAA.
Director of Services Tim Butler says “The local authority, the gardai & the GAA have met at this stage on two occasions and following on from that we’re inviting the residents associations to nominate somebody from each of the estates in the vicinity of Nowlan Park to come to a meeting and that’s firstly I suppose to listen to their concerns and the issues or the problems that they’re having, I don’t think there’s many issues on big match day because the gardai are there with their barriers and all that but it’s when the smaller matches are going on as well, so we’ll listen to their concerns and we’ll see what solutions we can come up with”.
He adds “We’re always trying to get the message out that there are other parking areas available during match days and the GAA try and do this as well, our own carpark at the back of County Hall is two euro a day and during big matches we open that up and allow it to be free so we’d encourage people to use that, there’s also MacDonagh Junction do a special rate on those days as well and there is parking up at the HSE offices on the Dublin Road as well. We’d remind people they should have respect for residents and make sure they’re not causing inconvenience to them during a match”.
Cllr Andrew McGuinness had made the original pleas for a committee to be set up & says “I’m delighted with the progress so far and I know Deputy John McGuinness has met with various groups as well over the past couple of months and progress has been made but I’m looking forward to the official meeting kicking off and for solutions to be put in place as a matter of urgency”.
It was the first issue Eugene McGuinness raised when he became a councillor. He says “I call it the Eugene McGuinness effect, people might call it something else, but a meeting is planned, the GAA are going to attend, I think it’s the first time, the GAA are obviously major stakeholders there, I would say that it was built in 1927 and at that stage the county council allowed it to be built in the way it was and they didn’t make proper provision as they had built around it, this will bring everybody together and hopefully yes I could see for the first time that we have this meeting that there may be a solution in sight”.
