New Laois TD wants another public park for Portlaoise
Cllr Willie Aird made the request ahead of the General Election
Fine Gael's new Deputy Willie Aird who topped the poll in Laois in the recent General Election, made a request to plan a new public park in Portlaoise as one of his final motions as a councillor.
The then Cllr Aird tabled a motion to November's meeting of Portlaoise Muncipal District, for a park to serve the Mountrath road on the west side of Portlaoise.
He suggests that Laois County Council investigate the possibility of buying a piece of land owned by the Odlum's flour family.
"It was rented to finish off Rockview estate. I'm watching this all along, it would be a lovely place, it's very open, and off the roundabout.
"This is forward thinking. There is a huge amount of development on the Mountrath Road. There are hundreds of homes there all paying Local Property Tax. We have to have proper sustainable development for the next generation. The park on New Road started in this chamber.
"On the left are 60 acres of community development land. It is the old site for the Department of Agriculture but that was scrapped. I feel it would be a great opportunity for us as a council. We should write to the Department of Sport in order to get some pocket money for the site.
"Parents want to get children out on small bikes, when they come home in the evenings, to unwind. It would be lovely if they had that at that end of the town," he said.
Cllr Barry Walsh seconded the motion.
"It's a brilliant notion. It's all well and good building houses but we have to lead the way providing recreational facilities. The town is getting huge, there's a lot of development that side," he said.
Fianna Fáil Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald agrees.
"I fully support this, do it before it's gone or too late," she said.
Cllr Tommy Mulligan also backs the park plan.
"This is a side of town where there are no real amenities for kids. I'd love to see housing slow down in the town and green areas become a priority. We had a green area beside Scoil Bhride NS, it should have been a park, it went to housing," he said.
Laois County Council's Planning and Community section will now assess the need for, and feasibility of, providing a town park at the location. They say the assessment will consider the current provision and locations of parks and recreation facilities in Portlaoise.
The town already has two parks and two playgrounds. The People's Park on the New Road/Timahoe Road is planned to be extended. The Linear Park runs beside the River Triogue from Greenmill Lane to Millview.