Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the town centre first approach. In fairness to the town and village renewal scheme, it includes a real and excellent level of consultation with those in the communities in which the scheme is, hopefully, going to work. I want to raise an issue. Actively working against this is the town centre public realm enhancement scheme. In Ballaghaderreen, which is my home town, there are plans to remove 67 parking spaces and replace them with a number of small green areas, with approximately 20 trees and benches. This will have a devastating impact on businesses. There will not even be loading bays for deliveries. This is a matter of huge concern. The sum of €3 million is a huge investment and badly needed in a town such as Ballaghaderreen, but if the people in the town were asked, they would call for a childcare facility in the town to be re-established or for public transport to be improved because it is a blackspot. With regard to vital funding for towns such as Ballaghaderreen, will the Minister please look at the public realm enhancement scheme, which will do huge damage to businesses and work against the very good schemes that are there?

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