Members of the public can expect to pay a bit less for parking in Castlebar in the coming weeks with the adoption of new parking bye-laws in the town by the town council this week. The new bye-laws will see monthly parking permits for the new Pavilion Road car park and the Spencer Street car park available to the public for €10 a month. Parking in both those car parks can also be paid for at a daily rate of €2.
The long stay parking discs in the two major town centre car parks, at Market Square and off Castle Street, will also see a reduction in price by 10 per cent, bringing the cost down to €27 a month. The town council from now on will also give all commercial rate payers in the town, who have their commercial rates paid in full by December 31, a free parking permit for any of the car parks in the town for the following year.
The new bye-laws were passed at Monday night’s March meeting of the council following a lengthy debate in the chamber. Independent councillor Michael Kilcoyne, who was one of only two people to make a submission on the bye-laws after they were put out to public consultation proposed a number of large reductions to parking charges, but agreed to the smaller reductions put forward by town manager Seamus Granahan over the course of the evening.
Cllr Kilcoyne also hit out at the local Chamber of Commerce in the town for not making a submission on the new parking bye-laws. “I’m disgusted that the local Chamber didn’t make a submission on this. I take it that they are happy with what came out. I’d have thought that the Chamber would be lobbying for reduced payments for their staff.”
A number of councillors including Labour councillor Harry Barrett and Cllr Ger Deere backed Cllr Kilcoyne’s call for greater reductions for the cost of long term parking in the two core town centre car parks. Others argued that the system currently in place was a very fair one.
