Calls To Release Funding For Brackenstown Centre
Monday, 26 July 2010 14:16 Local Senator, Brendan Ryan (LAB) has called on John Gormley, TD, Minister for Environment, Heritage and Local Government to immediately release the necessary funding to allow the County Council to build Brackenstown Community Centre, in Swords. The maddening thing is that the Council has the money and wants to spend it. For years, residents of Brackenstown have been campaigning for and working towards the provision of their own community centre to meet the community, sporting and recreational needs of the greater Brackenstown area, which has in the region of 3,600 houses, with an estimated population of 15,000. Speaking to the County Leader, Chairman of Brackenstown Community, Sport and Development Association, Dermot O’Keeffe said, “Planning permission has been granted, all tests undertaken and archaeological surveys have been passed. The local authority accumulated millions in recent years, but a directive from Government has said that these monies should not be touched.” Dermot went on to say, “I have spoken with the liaison officer in the council, but nobody has been allocated to this project since the freeze on spending. This is still the number one community project in Swords according to the council,” he said. Bernie Montgomery, assistant treasurer of the association said, ‘Some progress has been made, but it should be finished by now. Kids can play football, but nothing else and in bad weather they have nowhere to play. The majority of kids would use a Community Centre and we have the co-operation of all the local groups, so everyone wants it. At the moment the site is a place of anti-social activity,” she said. Senator Ryan concluded, “The Brackenstown community is waiting long enough. All the community groups are signed up. They have a viable business plan which has been accepted by the council. They are ready to go, as is the County Council. I ask the Minister to let them off and give them the go-ahead.” |
