Parking plans at SUH
There was widespread support for a motion from Cllr Thomas Healy calling on the council to write to the HSE, seeking an update on plans for parking at the hospital.
Cllr Healy said that it was important new spaces be provided given the growing number of service users and their family members attending the hospital.
He argued it was important that plans for a multi-storey car park be advanced and looked at. Cllr Rosaleen O’Grady said that proposals for a car park had been mooted for some time, and that it is an issue that needs to be addressed.
Meanwhile, the meeting heard that the current parking situation at Gurteen Health Centre is ‘not good enough.’ Cllr Paul Taylor said that given the amount of activity there on a daily basis, there needs to be an improvement in both the parking situation and the disability access to the building.
The Gurteen native said the health centre in the village was a very important facility, especially for the elderly. The amount of services at the centre - including doctors, dentist and public health nurses - means it has approximately 55 clients on the day centre list. In addition, a number of those attending do so with the aid of a walker or a frame, and in this regard the current facility is not suitable from a health and safety point of view. Cllr Gerard Mullaney argued that Gurteen needed ‘ the very best’ of facilities, and therefore required an upgrade in the parking situation.
The council is set to write to the HSE requesting an update on the works proposed at the centre.