The long awaited Castlebar skate park has twice missed out on funding because both applications from the former Castlebar Town Council were “deemed invalid”.
The applications for funding were submitted to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport under the Sports Capital Programme in 2012 and again in 2014.
Paddy Mahon, director of services in the Castlebar Municipal Area, acknowleded it was “disappointing” neither application made it through but said he hoped to see the skate park finally get off the ground as part of the second phase of the town park development.
He said the applications did not proceed because of a planning issue.
Councillor Therese Ruane called on Mayo County Council to prioritise the project at the monthly meeting of the municipal area on Wednesday.
She said it had been four and a half years since an impressive delegation of young people first came to Castlebar Town Council, requesting a skate park for the town.
“Castlebar was the first town in Connacht to spearhead a campaign for a skate park and we still don’t have one,” said Cllr Ruane.
She stressed the importance of providing an amenity for teenagers in the town.
“We need to see very clear steps set out on how we’re going to deliver this in a timely manner,” she stated.
Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Michael Ring said neither funding application came before him because they were deemed invalid.
“In the interest of fairness I deal with applications that are valid only. I simply could not grant funding to an application that was invalid,” said Minister Ring.
