CPO process yet to start on tragic Castledaly shop site
Westmeath County Council has yet to begin the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) process in relation to the former shop and petrol station in Castledaly, the site of a tragic murder over 20 years ago.
The news emerged at the January meeting of Athlone Moate Muncipal District after a question from Cllr John Dolan on the issue, some three months after the local authority announced plans to kickstart the CPO.
“The council is currently seeking legal advice on this issue after which the process will be commenced,” the local authority said, in a written reply to Cllr Dolan who had asked for an update on the matter in early January.
Back in November 2003, Gregory Fox (36) was jailed for life for murdering his wife Debbie, and two sons Trevor (9) and Killian (7) at the Castledaly site in 2001.
It was a horrific tragedy that rocked the local community and the surrounding areas to its very core, and the prominent premises in the village has lain idle since then with various calls on the local authority over many, many years to do something with the site.
Fine Gael Cllr John Dolan, who has been leading the charge in recent years to have the council compulsorily purchase the building, was told in a written reply to his question at at the September Athlone-Moate Municipal District meeting that the “process will be commenced in the next four weeks”, however, that timeline is well behind schedule at this stage as it’s understood a number of legal issues need to be clarfied before the CPO can officially begin.
There is a much hope in the community that via the Compulsory Purchase process, the council will acquire the premises, have it demolished and the site could be put to use by the community in the years ahead.
Cllr Dolan, from nearby Kilgarvan, previously suggested the site could be leased back to the community and used for an extended GAA facility, or as a community centre, car park or other project.
One thing that will be central to the future of the site is a memorial to Debbie, Trevor and Killian Fox, he stressed, and the community would like to involve Debbie's family in that project.
Back in May of last year Cllr Dolan received the unanimous backing of his colleagues after a motion calling on the council to serve a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) on the old shop and to purchase the property for community use.
Director of Services, Barry Kehoe, said at that time that the CPO process is only ever used as a last resort in terms of achieving particular council objectives, and the Chief Executive of the council is then required to sign the order to initiate a CPO. The order is then sent to An Bord Pleanála and if submissions are received, it could take up to six months to finalise, but if there are no submissions it could be finalised quicker.
A CPO is a legal function that grants certain statutory bodies like councils the right to take ownership of land and/or property without requiring the owner’s consent.
A complex process, the local authority must meet set criteria and prove that the purchase of land and/or property is in the public interest.