Search Results for 'Cllr Johnny Mee'

In what was described as embarking on a policy of “value for money” Fine Gael proposed the re-election of Fianna Fáil Councillor Al McDonnell as chairman of the Castlebar electoral area committee for another year.

The Chorus saga which has dogged Castlebar Town Council for the last number of years has ended with the council having to fork out €162,000 in settlements and legal fees over the release of a €152,369 bond lodged with them by the company. An out of court settlement saw the council hand over €100,000 to Chorus and then pay out €62,000 in legal expenses.

This Saturday November 8, the flagship current affairs programme Saturday Forum will feature four local politicians discussing a range of issues that affect the lives of people working and living in Castlebar.

The rejection of two planning applications because of the variation of the County Development Plan by the Minister for Environment John Gormley sparked anger at the monthly meeting of the Castlebar Electoral Area committee this week. The debate led to one councillor calling the Minister a coward. Mr John McMyler, Senior Planner for the Council confirmed that he and the planning department were working off the amended plan because they were directed to do so. Both applications were turned down because they were in areas identified as rural areas under severe urban influence. Cllr Al McDonnell said that “this all sounds a bit ministerial”, while Cllr Johnny Mee stated that “it’s not like there are 1000 houses going up in Belcarra, I don’t think that one house will increase the urban influence of the village”. The possible removal of 30 metres of hedgerow was also cited as a reason for the refusal in the Keelouges case. Cllr Johnny Mee said, “I’m very fond of hedgerow myself, but 30 metres of hedgerow or giving someone the chance to start a home it seems easy to me. And to say that Keelouges is under strong urban pressure is madness, come on it’s Keelouges. Cllr Sean Burke told the meeting that, “I was born two miles away from there and to say that it’s under strong urban influence, well I don’t know what to say to that.”

The issue of what happens once illegal dumping is reported to the council raised its head at this week’s monthly meeting of the Castlebar electoral area committee. Fine Gael Councillor Henry Kenny brought up the issue asking: “I have reported illegal dumping myself on a number of occasions, I’d just like to know what the follow up is on this dumping, do they come along and remove the materials that are dumped and what do they do after to investigate who is doing the dumping?” Cllr Kenny’s enquiry was backed up by Labour party Cllr Johnny Mee who told the meeting, “I agree with Cllr Kenny, there is an ongoing problem in this area where rubbish is just being dumped by people in the town. It’s a sad sight and it’s an appalling behaviour that has to be clamped down on by the council and the public in general.”

The members of the committee paid tribute to the late Sean Dunleavy, who was a planning officer with Mayo County Council. Cllr Al McDonnell led the tributes, saying: “I found him a very strong and direct man. If he made his mind up that was it, he was very fair, though, and didn’t take long to make his mind up. He was able to give a very fair assessment of a situation very quickly.”

The elected members of Mayo County Council praised the effort of the council in relation to environmental enforcement following a presentation by director of services for the council, Seamus Granahan, at their monthly meeting this month. During his presentation Mr Granhan told the meeting that the council had spent €135,000 on street clean ups, had issued 160 on the spot litter fines, and brought 24 successful prosecutions for littering in 2008 compared to less than 10 the previous year. He also told the members that so far in 2009 the council had carried out 22 major clean up operations at a cost of €132,000 and had a CCTV detection programme in place that was up and running along with greater co-operation between the council and An Garda Síochána in relation to litter enforcement. He also informed the members of a car bin scheme which the council was about to launch throughout the county to encourage people to stop throwing rubbish out their windows as they drive.