Balbriggan Town Council to be Abolished?

Cardinal Richelieu

Surprised none of the many Balbriggan posters haven't started a thread on this topic.


http://www.fingal-independent.ie/news/minister-showed-pure-ignorance-in-handling-of-council-revelations-3033102.html

http://www.fingal-independent.ie/news/council-could-be-axed-in-two-months-3017609.html


So will you miss Balbriggan Town Council if its scraped? Or did you view it as a drain on the taxpayer, was it just another layer of local government? Did it benefit Balbriggan? What did the town council actually do?

Morpheus

I wont miss them after the cock up they made of the recent decades building spree (it was done like a drive by shooting). No regulation or restraints placed on the number of/design of the estates nor the density / quality of the housing put in, no protest nor opposition put in against it. Some of them should hang for it and werent qualified to make some of the decisions that were made IMO. good riddance.

Eoineo

Morphéus wrote: »

I wont miss them after the cock up they made of the recent decades building spree (it was done like a drive by shooting). No regulation or restraints placed on the number of/design of the estates nor the density / quality of the housing put in, no protest nor opposition put in against it. Some of them should hang for it and werent qualified to make some of the decisions that were made IMO. good riddance.

Planning regulation in the Balbriggan area was down to Fingal County Council NOT the Town Council.

Morpheus

what about no protest nor opposition put in against FCC on behalf of the town? And if they couldnt do anything in the first place, well whats the point in having them?

Eoineo

Morphéus wrote: »

what about no protest nor opposition put in against FCC on behalf of the town? And if they couldnt do anything in the first place, well whats the point in having them?

I can't tell you whether they did or they didn't. To do so you'd have to check the relevant planning records at the time.

I support a lot of what the Town Council has done, and yes I criticise other stuff that they've done. I do the same for Fingal County Council. I can tell you that the councillors and the Town Council staff work very hard promoting the town and sometimes it goes unnoticed or unrecognised. In my experience some of what they do has been taken on board by Chambers of Commerce in other towns in Ireland but in Balbriggan it's done by the Town Council.

Cardinal Richelieu

Eoineo wrote: »

I can't tell you whether they did or they didn't. To do so you'd have to check the relevant planning records at the time.

I support a lot of what the Town Council has done, and yes I criticise other stuff that they've done. I do the same for Fingal County Council. I can tell you that the councillors and the Town Council staff work very hard promoting the town and sometimes it goes unnoticed or unrecognised. In my experience some of what they do has been taken on board by Chambers of Commerce in other towns in Ireland but in Balbriggan it's done by the Town Council.

I think that's the rub for other towns in Fingal especially Swords and Blanchardstown which are the powerhouses of the region these days. Balbriggan is effectivly subsidized on the organisation of activities which other towns have to fund themselves or rely on the goodwill of volunteers. Having a town council in Balbriggan in the early 1900s made sense because it was the major industrially area with rapid expansion but today Swords and Blanch dwarf Balbriggan in population and industry. Something like 40% of FCC rates come from Blanch area alone.

FCC Website

The Town Council comprises nine elected members who are elected for a term of five years. They are supported by a Town Manager, a Town Clerk and administrative staff seconded from Fingal County Council.

Full Article
http://www.fingalcoco.ie/YourLocalCouncil/LocalDemocracy/BalbrigganTownCouncil/

Just a few figures from the 2010 Balbriggan Town Council Budget

Members Allowance 18.5k
MembersRep Payment 39.7k
Conference Expenses 5k
Cathoirleach Allowance 1.7k
Leas Cathoirleach Exp 300
Local Elections 2.5k

Total Budget for year was 226k and to balance the books 189k came from FCC. Value for money?

Cardinal Richelieu

Ok Stupid Question time, if your within the Balbriggan Town Council area do you get two votes? One for the Town Council and one for the Balbriggan Ward?

Thanks

Frank Spencer

Cardinal Richelieu wrote: »

Ok Stupid Question time, if your within the Balbriggan Town Council area do you get two votes? One for the Town Council and one for the Balbriggan Ward?

Thanks

You do.