Athlone Town Council has been congratulated on its success in taking estates in charge, but there is more work to do.
The council received a briefing on seven estates which are still to be taken in charge, and these remain at various stages in the process, but planning permission has run out in all cases.
The estates listed by the council include Ard Grainne (104 units ); Cois na hAbhainn (136 ); Toorvalley (50 ); Ard na Locha (183 ); Clibborne Way (26 ); Crofton Court (8 ); and Kilcleagh, Castledaly (12 units including a shop ).
Warning letters have been sent to those responsible for Crofton Court and Kilcleagh Park, and an enforcement notice has been sent regarding Ard Grainne.
Outstanding works on the estates vary from finishing roads, footpaths, traffic calming, CCTV, lighting, removal of construction debris, and landscaping.
The taking-in-charge process began at Clibborne Way in 2010.
Cllr Alan Shaw said it was very good news to see the progress made, as seven estates were listed for taking in charge in the town.
Cllr Aengus O’Rourke congratulated the enforcement team at the council for the work it has done in recent years.
However, Cllr Sheila Buckley Byrne expressed concern that Chestnut Court is 30 years old and is “always at the bottom of the list”.
She wanted to know how much longer it will take before the estate is taken in charge and at what cost, and Cllr Kevin Boxer Moran said that Meadow Lane is also “going on a long time”.
He wanted to know whether it was cost-effective for the council to take enforcement proceedings in court, or if it would be better to put the money into improving estates.
Cllr Paul Hogan said people are wondering why, if they’ve paid their household charge, they are not getting adequate services.
Barry Kehoe said the report before councillors was “relatively positive” and “most estates are almost there”.
He said the town council knows how it plans to proceed with those estates and provision has been made in the budget to deal with some of them.
“This time next year a substantial number will have been dealt with and taken in charge,” he said.
Work at Glenatore is progressing with the help of the developer, money has been set aside for Church Wood, and funding has been identified for Chestnut Court from the capital budget, the meeting heard.
