Clonmel residents want security gates to help combat 'appalling' drugs problem
Syringes scattered in lane near Upper Irishtown homes
Residents of Upper Irishtown in Clonmel are calling for the installation of security gates to help combat a drug dealing and drug taking problem that they say has been going on for years in a lane at the rear of their homes.
“It’s unbelievable what’s going on, it’s appalling,” stated one of the residents, Mary McGrath, when speaking to The Nationalist.
She said that syringes used for drug taking were scattered around the place from the gatherings of anywhere between six to twelve people that are happening on a daily basis.
“I leave my yard light on at night and I’m afraid to park my car out the back,” stated Mrs McGrath.
She says she has been reluctant to go out through the back gate since her husband died six years ago.
She says that drug dealing and anti-social behaviour have persisted, despite the gardaí being made aware of the situation.
When the issue was discussed at a recent meeting of Clonmel Borough District, a report from District Engineer Eoin Powell stated that as this was a public road, “closing off this road/laneway at the behest of only a few people could prove quite problematic”.
It was also stated that the request would be considered.
However Mrs McGrath says that she and the other residents don’t want the nearby Sergeant’s Lane, which is a public road, closed off, only the laneway that it leads to.
“The security gates would have nothing to do with Sergeant’s Lane,” she says.
Mary McGrath says they are also opposed to plans to turn this lane into a public walkway, and the residents are adamant it was never a right of way.
The residents say that the former Clonmel Corporation, or Tipperary County Council, has never owned the lane and were only given access to it during the flood relief works some years ago.
They claim that if gates are installed they wouldn’t interfere with the doctor’s surgery in that area or the adjoining car park.
Mrs McGrath, who thanked Cllr Pat English for his support, says the residents are seeking a meeting with the council.
At the recent Borough District meeting, Cllr English formally requested the provision of the security gates.
At the same meeting, Cllr Richie Molloy said that people in that area were living in fear of those who were using that area as a hideout, especially during the summer.