Keena calls on local authority to lease land for community use in Glasson

An unused plot of Westmeath County Council-owned land located in the heart of Glasson village should be leased for use by community groups in the locality, Cllr Frankie Keena has stated.

The Fianna Fáil councillor called on the local authority to lease the land for the betterment of the Glasson and Tubberclair communities, with local groups eager to avail of its use for a "wide variety of community drive initiatives".

Speaking at last week's meeting of the Athlone/Moate Municipal District of Westmeath County Council, Cllr Keena said that correspondence on the matter had already been sent by community groups in the area to the council executive.

He suggested that the Tubberclair Local Action Group, Glasson/Tubberclair Community Group and the two local tidy towns groups would be interested in using the land for community initiatives.

"I feel strongly that the council needs to respond positively to their request. The community intend to use this plot of land to provide necessary storage for the local tidy towns groups and develop a biodiversity garden which is in keeping with Westmeath County Council’s biodiversity strategy.

"I am 30 years a public representative and in all that time Westmeath County Council have never sought to use this piece of land for development purposes. There has never been a need to use the land for housing and I am hoping that still remains the case," Cllr Keena said.

The councillor suggested a lease of seven to ten years with the option of reviewing the agreement with the respective community groups at that stage.

"There are local community groups who want to take this on. The land presents a great opportunity to develop community initiatives for the residents of Glasson and Tubberclair," Cllr Keena added.

Cllr John Dolan stated that local groups from Glasson and Tubberclair had recently visited Ballinahown and saw the potential of what can be achieved in terms of community development.

"Are the council going to use this piece of land in the future? The executive should be open to leasing the land if the local community groups make appropriate suggestions for its use," Cllr Dolan said.

Cllr Dolan said that the next step would be for the council to meet with the respective community groups and discuss how the land can be best put to use for the local residents.

Acknowledging that the lands had been idle for "quite some time", Cllr John Gibbons said that local community groups in the area had "plans to improve the aesthetics" of the area.

Empathising with Cllr Keena, Cllr Aengus O'Rourke, said he could feel a "sense of frustration" from his fellow elected member.

"Is there a strategic interest from the council in this plot of land? My view is that the local authority has 'bottomed out' their interest in it and there should be an alternative use allowed for it," Cllr O'Rourke said.

In response, Director of Services Jackie Finney said the local authority was "looking at all options" with regard to land under its ownership.

"At the moment we are not committing to releasing these lands for use until there is clarity on whether they should address housing needs or support community development as part of the strategic development of the Glasson area. However, I have to add that the council is not closing the door on the recommendation from the elected members," Ms Finney said.