Minutes of the December 2013 Athlone Town Council Meeting

Minutes of the December Meeting of Athlone Town Council, which was held in the Civic Centre, Church Street, Athlone at 6.00 p.m. on Monday 2nd December 2013

Attendance:

D/Mayor:    Cllr. M. Cooney

Members:    Cllrs. J. Henson, P. Hogan, K. Molloy, K. Moran, A. O'Rourke and A. Shaw.

Officers:          Mr. Hugh O'Reilly, A/Director of Services
Mr. Pat Keating, Town Clerk
Mr. Pat Nally, Town Engineer
Ms. Anne McNamara, A.S.O.

Apologies:       Mayor G. McFadden and Cllr. S. Buckley Byrne      

Vote of Sympathy:

All the Members wished to be associated with Cllr. Cooney's expression of sympathy to the Mayor, her sisters Nicky and Áine and the McFadden Family on the recent death of Brendan, former member and chairman of the Council himself. The Members who had worked with him, in turn recalled that time and praised him for his dedicated work for the town during his long and colourful career. On their own behalf and that of their parties, each Member expressed their sympathy to the McFadden Family and said their thoughts and prayers were with them. The Director expressed his sympathy and that of the Executive and Staff of the Council. All agreed Brendan will be sorely missed.

As a mark of respect the Meeting was adjourned for ten minutes.

************

Minutes:

It was proposed by Cllr. Hogan,
Seconded by Cllr. Shaw and resolved,

"That we hereby adopt and confirm the Minutes of the November Monthly Meeting which was held on November 4th 2013"

Matters Arising:

Cllr. Hogan advised that the Broderick Family are happy with the proposed wording for the plaque and they hoped it will proceed now and be in place early in the new year.

The Town Engineer advised Cllr. Shaw that the lights will be done in The Orchard when it is taken in charge; the light in Bloomfield is being done this week and the Developer says the railing at Coill Uir will be done before Christmas. He advised Cllr. Moran that the green area at Arcadia has been sprayed and will be tilled.

The Director advised the Members that the text messaging service is up and running and training is being provided for internal staff during this coming week.

The Town Clerk advised Cllr. Shaw that he raised the issue of the Brown Bins with the Environment Section and he is awaiting their response.

Cycleway Route Selection for Athlone:

The Director advised that the part of the route being dealt with is the route from Garrycastle Bridge, through the town to the Roscommon county border. Michael Kelly, SEE, N.R.D.O. gave a presentation on the route selection process to date and outlined the preferred and proposed option that has emerged. It will follow the railway line and cross the River south of the Railway Bridge, continuing south along the promenade, cantilevered out over the River, past the Gallery, through the tunnel, along the docks and west through the show-grounds by the Shamrock Lodge Hotel and into Roscommon. The Route will be on public display from Thursday, December 5th next and there will be a public information session on Monday, December 9th from 2-5pm but Mr. Kelly assured the Members that they would stay longer if required. He also agreed to circulate the route map to them.

The Members welcomed the whole idea of a cycleway from Dublin to Galway and agreed it would be very beneficial for the Town. There were some concerns expressed over loss in parking, bus parking, the visual impact on the Railway Bridge, and the number of C.P.O.s that may have to be done. Mr. Kelly advised them that the cycleway was mostly along publicly owned lands in Westmeath, so CPOs will not be necessary but there are about 650 landowners between the Castle and Eyre Square. They are awaiting direction from the Department regarding the use of Permissive Access or C.P.O.s. In response to queries, Mr. Kelly confirmed that the track will link most of the Schools which will be beneficial and also that it is hoped to add pebbles to the disused railway line, to make it safe for walkers.

In conclusion he added that final documentation will be ready for public display on Thursday and it will be circulated to the Members. They in turn thanked him for his presentation.

European Festival and Town Twinning:

Carmel Duffy on behalf of the two committees gave presentations on the European Peoples Festival and Town Twinning. She outlined the history of both since 1991 and 1995 respectively and pointed out how both provide great and invaluable opportunities to showcase the town. She added that approximately 750 people participate in the EPF and this alone is of great economic benefit to the town, When the Athlone Team go abroad they each pay their own way so the money given by the Council, €10,000 in 2013, goes towards providing team uniforms, track suits, costumes and decorations and goods for the promotional stand each country has. Town Twinning also fosters links abroad and again the Council's contribution of €3,000 to €5,000 has far reaching effects in promoting the town. She thanked the Council for their support in the past and hoped that it will continue into the future.

The Members thanked Carmel for her presentation and Patricia Cleary who was also present from the committee. They unanimously supported both committees and the continued financial support by the Council. They felt that for €15,000 the town of Athlone got very good promotion in 15 countries across Europe and they agreed the Council should continue to support them.

It was proposed by Cllr. Moran,
Seconded by Cllr. Shaw and resolved,

"We hereby agree to set aside funds in the budget for the European Peoples Festival and Town Twinning”

Proposals for establishment of new company: 

The Director advised the Members that the Council proposes to proceed with the amalgamation of Athlone eCom and Athlone Art & Heritage to create a new company, Athlone Arts & Tourism Ltd. He said it is proposed that the Town Council will own the company and the Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association are currently being drawn up. It is proposed to appoint a small Board of 3 officials, so as not to be putting a burden of responsibility on voluntary directors.

This Board will then be guided by a properly constituted committee consisting of council members, officials and external persons with particular skills and expertise who are willing to get involved. He recommended that the 3 officials be the County Manager, the Director of Services for Athlone and the Town Clerk.

While the Members welcomed the proposed new company combining the existing companies in the interest of efficiency and the fact that jobs are safe, there was unanimous disagreement with the proposed structure of the new Board. They did not want 3 officials making up the Board. They felt that two members together with three officials should make up the Board and have the wider committee as a steering group.

It was proposed by Cllr. Moran,
Seconded by Cllr. Molloy and resolved,

"We hereby agree that the Board of Directors of Athlone Arts and Tourism be made up of three officials and two Members to be agreed by the Council”

Parking Sub-Committee Report:

The Town Clerk informed the Members that the sub committee consisting of the Mayor, Cllrs Moran, O'Rourke and Shaw, the Town Engineer and himself, met to assess the current parking strategies and to look at possibilities for improvements in the long term. The Councils income from car-parking is about €500,000 p.a. so any proposed changes will have to be financially measurable. The possibility of free parking at times and the issue of monthly discs were also discussed by the subcommittee. They need to build up data on the usage of car parks in the town and it is therefore proposed to carry out a survey in January for a two week period. The Committee also agreed that there should be free parking on Tuesday afternoons up until Christmas.

It was proposed by Cllr. Moran,
Seconded by Cllr. Hogan and resolved,

"We hereby agree that there be free parking in Athlone on the Tuesday afternoons from 2.00pm onwards up until Christmas”

Report on Energy Improvement Works on Council Housing Stock:

The Members welcomed the Director's Report stating that all the OPDs and houses constructed prior to 2002 will have the necessary works undertaken by the end of this year at a cost of €365,000 and in 2014, Phase 2 will deal with the more recent houses.

Right of Way between Ard na Glug and Cartron Drive:

As there was continued pressure from residents and Members, the Director asked their views on the closure of this Right of Way, but he recommended that it stay open. The Members however felt that the residents of both estates want it closed and they asked that the Council commence the procedure and inform the residents.

It was proposed by Cllr. Cooney,
Seconded by Cllr. Moran and resolved,

"Pursuant to Section 73 of the Roads Act 1993, we hereby agree to the commencement of the process to extinguish the Right of Way between Ard na Glug and Cartron Drive housing estates”

Update on the Athlone Mains Rehabilitation Scheme Contract:

The Director advised the Members that the Contract has now been signed by Shareridge Ltd but the Programme of Works has not been agreed upon yet. He proposed there be a presentation at the January Meeting outlining the programme. The Members welcomed this.

Disposal of Fee Simple Interest:

It was proposed by Cllr. Henson,
Seconded by Cllr. Hogan and resolved,

"Pursuant to the provisions of the Local Government Act 2001, the Housing Act 1966, Section 90 of the Housing Act 1966 and the Landlord Tenant (Ground Rents) No. 2 Act 1978, we hereby approve of the disposal of the fee simple interest in the property as set out in the schedule hereunder:

SCHEDULE

Update on John Count McCormack Project:

The Town Clerk advised the Members that he had met with Fáilte Ireland on November 20th and they confirmed that no funding would be made available by them for the McCormack Project, though they continued to support Athlone with a wider framework product. He said that Donal McNally and the McCormack Society are still interested in giving memorabilia to Athlone. The Central Bank is launching a commemorative coin in the new year and while they will not launch it in Athlone, they will invite the Mayor and Members of the Council.

Managers Orders:

The Members noted the summary of Managers Orders as circulated.

Correspondence:

The Town Clerk informed the Members that the following correspondence had been received:

The Competition Authority re alleged anti-competitive behaviour – sent to their Cartels Division.

WCC Notice of Preparation of Draft Traveller Accommodation Programme 2014-2018.

Athlone Community & Voluntary Area Forum- 2013 Submission.

Office of the Taoiseach – acknowledgement of letter on budget cuts and stated copy sent to the Minister for Social Protection and to the Minister for Health.

Office of Minister for Social Protection – acknowledgement of letter on cuts in the budget.

Letter of Thanks from Francis Duffy, Bishop of Ardagh & Clonmacnoise.

Letter of thanks from the Athlone Marconi Heritage Centre Group for support and financial assistance given to them recently.

It was agreed to circulate the correspondence together with notifications for conferences and resolutions from other Councils.

A.O.B.:

The Members agreed to hold the Budget In-Committee Meeting on Tuesday, December 10th 2013 at 5pm and the Statutory Budget Meeting on Tuesday, December 17th at 5pm.

This concluded the business of the Meeting.