Custume Place car park in Athlone set to close

The possibility of Custume Place car park becoming a magnet for anti-social behaviour as a result of its closure to the public was strongly rejected by council management at the July meeting of the Athlone Moate Municipal District.

District Engineer, Willie Ryan, told the meeting that the area is being “passively monitored” and he felt it was “very unlikely” that people would engage in unsavoury behaviour at a location which was quite open to the public.

Mr Ryan made his remarks during a discussion on a proposal he brought before the meeting to close the Custume Place car park at the AIB Bank on safety grounds.

He explained that there has been an increased volume of pedestrian and cyclist traffic through the car park since the opening of the new Greenway Bridge, and also pointed out that manoeuvrability in the car park is below any acceptable standard.

In response to Cllr Frankie Keena, who asked if any enhancement could be done in Custume Place to justify taking away the car parking spaces, Director of Services, Jackie Finney, said it was hoped to regenerate the area “eventually”.

In the short-term, the council was proposing that the car park be closed as a result of safety concerns for the increased number of pedestrians and cyclists using the car park to access the Greenway Bridge.

Cllr John Gibbons expressed concerns about the possibility of anti-social behaviour in Custume Place if the existing car park is “cordoned off” but this was rejected by District Engineer, Willie Ryan, who pointed out that the area is already being “passively monitored.”