IT IS ‘STUPID’ TO DEMOLISH CLINIC
A WEXFORD councillor has questioned a HSE decision to demolish the old County Clinic in Grogan’s Road and replace it with a 120-space car park to service the adjoining new Primary Care Centre.
Independent councillor David Hynes said he can’t understand why the Health Service Executive is knocking down the building when it could be used to house an addiction treatment centre and methadone prescribing service.
The demolition was due to take place shortly after the opening of the Primary Care Centre in early June but was delayed. It is now ready to proceed after all the windows were removed last Friday. The construction of the car park will take three months.
‘There is no reason for it to be demolished. It’s only there about 40 years, it’s not that old. I think it would be a perfect location for the methadone clinic.
‘It’s a disgrace that they’re knocking it down’, said Cllr Hynes, adding that even though he is a member of the South East Regional Drugs Task Force in Wexford, he knew nothing about the proposed relocation of the clinic from Grogan’s Road to George’s Street.
‘The chairman is Declan McPartlin and he wasn’t informed about it either,’ he said.
Cllr Hynes said he is calling on the HSE, through the office of the Mayor of Wexford Cllr Tony Dempsey, to meet all members of Wexford Borough District Council, to outline exactly what is happening in relation to the methadone clinic.
‘They should meet all councillors so that we can find out what is happening and why they are demolishing a perfectly good building. I never heard anything so stupid.
‘Who came up with this bright idea?’ he asked. Mayor Dempsey also met with HSE officials last week to find out about the relocation plan.