No free parking in Newbridge, County Kildare, again for Christmas 2022
Ciarán Mather reports on a proposal which ended up being a point of contention for local councillors
The Christmas parking arrangements for the Newbridge from last year will remain in place for this year.
The decision was made following a vote at the latest Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District meeting, which was held on Thursday, November 16.
Social Democrats Cllr Chris Pender proposed that the on-the-street parking charges should remain the same, with the exception of charges in the St Conleth's GAA carpark in Newbridge, which would be suspended.
It was also heard that enforcements would cease on Christmas Day, St Stephen’s Day, December 27, and New Year’s Day.
Although Sinn Féin Cllr Noel Connolly agreed with Cllr Pender, Fianna Fáil (FF) Cllr Anne Connolly said she disagreed with the proposal.
Fine Gael Cllr Peggy O’ Dwyer also said to Cllr Pender: "While I understand where you are coming from, I think we should leave well-enough alone."
Cllr Chris Pender of the Social Democrats
When asked about an observation period by FG Cllr Tracey O’ Dwyer, a representative for Kildare County Council’s (KCC) Roads Department said that there would be a 30 minute grace period.
After a brief adjournment to allow for Cllr Pender to solidify his proposal, he proposed that the changes take effect from December 1 to January 3, 2023, but also clarified that he was open to leaving it at December 1 to December 15.
However, the KCC representative pointed out that the suspension of charges for the car park, which has 187 spaces in it (including the ‘overflow’ area), would result in a revenue loss of around €12,497, when looking back on pre-Covid revenue figures.
Cllr Pender’s decision was then put to a vote, with two in favour and six against it.
Independent Cllr Fiona McLoughlin-Healy abstained from the vote.
Following this, a vote was then put forward to keep the parking arrangements the same as last year, which passed through six in favour, two against and with one abstention.
NOTE: Fine Gael Cllr Kevin Duffy and Fianna Fáil Cllr Rob Power were absent on the day in question and as such were not in a position to vote.