By July 2014 mobile phone users will pay maximum charges of 19 cent per minute to make a voice call, 5 cent per minute to receive a call and no more than 6 cent per text message sent. The maximum data download charge will be 20 cent per megabyte. ‘I expect that competition between suppliers will reduce this further’

Fine Gael MEP Sean Kelly has been campaigning to abolish roaming fees since he was elected.

Nama have said they hope to make a decision soon as to whether to fund stage 2 consisting of the Primary Care Centre, five clubhouses and a much better quality finish for the Public Square than at present. The developer is considering whether there is enough demand to open the marina next Summer. The Coastguard and the Council are considering going to tender to construct the Coastguard station. ‘I hope these proceed soon so we can finish the job’.

In the Past.

• Footpath from village to School.
  • Spent 9 years pressing for his to be done and finally it is. The road has also been strengthened.
• Children’s Playground.
  • Helped Community Centre initiate this.
• Voted against Large Development on Sea Road.
  • This was inserted in the Plan 5 years ago and I voted and campaigned against it. It was then deleted.
• Airfield.
  • Helped initiate planning enforcement action against its creeping expansion. There have been 2 adjourned Court Cases so far. I want them to apply for planning permission, like anyone else, so appropriate safeguards for the residents and the nature area can be put in place. I do not want it to grow by stealth into another Weston aerodrome.

In Future.

• Road to N11.
  • Some years ago I got this listed as a ‘Road for Improvement’. Some funding was granted this year but it now seems to have been withdrawn. I will be following this up and pressing in future years.
• Busses.
  • I will be pressing for a more frequent bus service to connect to the DART.
• Speed bumps.
  • More effective ones are needed.
• M50/N11 Traffic Jams.
  • There are large traffic jams in both directions at rush hour as the road is carrying 1.7 times the amount it was designed for. I am concerned that it will seize up.
  • There is a plan to build a new large town (7,000 people, 16,000 jobs)!! at Fassaroe. I opposed the plan unless the N11 is expanded and this has now been inserted as a condition.
• Footpath and road strengthening from the village to the school finally complete.

The harbour works are running about 4 months late because the waves have made it more difficult to lay the blocks than was anticipated. This work is now going to be done on two shifts over the Summer to try to complete most of the outer wall before Winter when bigger waves make it more difficult. A second barge is being brought in to speed up laying the rock armour. This is not the mark of a contract that is not proceeding.

The construction of the clubhouses (including piling) has been postponed to give total priority to the Harbour Walls.

There is a €10m bond in place to ensure completion. This is adequate as the €35m sea wall is more than half complete. We expect to open the harbour in the Autumn 2010 and the Southern half of the hoardings around the public square will come down then.

The boardwalk and homes will take 2 years from then to build though they could be mothballed for a bit. However the marine clubs, public slipways and Public Square will be open. October 2014 is the date when all the contract must be completed.

Years ago I arranged that the Council would employ a top lawyer on this complex project and the selection criteria included considering the financial strength of the bidders. The Council is in a strong position because of this preparation.

This is a great walk but must be improved before it can be used by more people. My second priority as Cathaoirleach is to get a plan together. The rail track must be fenced off from the walking path and a path welded onto the side of 2 rail bridges for safety reasons. I have had a positive meeting with Irish Rail and The National Parks and Wildlife Service and hope to initiate a study. It will take some years to put it into place.

This would complement the Cliff Walk to Bray and one could get a train to one end and walk one way. Few walks would be so accessible to public transport.

I have also pushed to get a footpath from Kilcoole to the station included as part of the Kilcoole Plan and this is now included.

It cost €17m and is the result of great deal of work from the Community Centre Group and Greystones Swimming Club over more than 15 years, and also the full backing of all Greystones Town Councillors and T.Ds. It shows what can be done when the united force of the community is applied to a problem. The funding came from many sources:
                                                          €M
Wicklow County Council              8.5
Central Government                     4.5
Builders of Charlesland               3.5
Community Fundraising              .8m

In 1999, when researching how to set about getting a pool and assisting with the Preliminary Feasibility Study I spoke to a pool lobby group in Swords and they were very impressed with the support which Wicklow Council was giving as they could not get the same from their Council. We are lucky we got the funds before the 2008 cutbacks!