Plans for market in car park ejected

PLANS to establish an open air market in a car park in a west Cork town have been shot down.

Councillors in Clonakilty voted against designating the Kent Street, or former credit union, car park site for casual trading after being told the move would result in a hike in rates and scupper a sheltered housing project earmarked for the site.

Town officials told councillors that the site, on which an illegal market was held on August 8, was bought for €381,000 in 2000 for sheltered housing for the elderly.

“Should this site be designated a casual trading area the initial purchase price would then have to be met by way of a loan,” said town clerk Justin England and assistant town manager Gráinne O’ Mahony in a joint statement.

“Estimated repayments of €50,000 per annum over 15 years would be required to meet the cost of the site.

“The only option available to the council to finance this loan would be to increase the rates in the coming budget.

“In short the rate payers of the town will be asked to fund this loan over the next 15 years and the sheltered housing project for elderly people could not continue.”

The town’s management team said it is in favour of the ethos of a farmers’ market. But they insisted that any market must be properly managed and regulated.

A designated casual trading site already exists at the Community College car park, they said.

This site is the ideal location for the sheltered housing project, which has to be close to essential services and shops, the statement said.

“The credit union site is very suitable for this purpose and in the current debate we should not lose sight of the reasoning behind the original acquisition of the site which is vitally important for a vulnerable section of our community,” they said.

“The illegal trading that occurred on August 8 cannot be condoned and while some of the traders cannot technically be described as locals selling seasonally grown local produce in accordance with the ethos of a farmers’ market, council management is willing to work with them to develop the existing designated site at the Community College car park.”

The council said it is willing to extend that site to accommodate an extra 20 to 25 bays and provide funding to meet costs of set up, advertising and signage.

Funding avenues from West Cork Leader could also be explored, they said.

The statement was presented to a town council meeting on Tuesday attended by market champion Gerald Kelleher, who led a three-person delegation.

He said the credit union site is the ideal site for a market — enclosed, safe, central and pedestrianised.

He also claimed a Department of Enterprise official told him the site could be designated for casual trading in the short term.

But councillors voted five to four against designating the former credit union site.