Court inaction an ‘absolute disgrace’
THE inaction surrounding Wicklow Courthouse is an ‘absolute disgrace’ according to Cllr John Snell.
Speaking at last week’s meeting of Wicklow Municipal District, district administrator Joan Sinnott said that she had received a letter from the Courts Service regarding the future of the courthouse.
It read: The position in respect of Wicklow Courthouse is that it is one of five courthouses that have been earmarked as a priority for investment upon completion of the current PPP initiative in 2018. It is the Courts Service intention to include it in the next capital building program, subject to the necessary funding being made available with the intention of extending and refurbishing the building to provide a significantly larger four courtroom venue with corresponding upgraded facilities for all staff, stakeholders and members of the public.
‘While planning and design work has not yet commenced, the Courts Service, as you will be aware, has already purchased a number of adjacent properties from the County Council, some of which will be demolished so as to have a larger site capable of accommodating a courthouse on the scale envisaged.
‘The Courts Service is at present considering bringing forward some of the demolition works with the aim of undertaking them in 2018 and has made provision for the anticipated cost of same in its 2018 budget.
‘Should the funding required for the overall development be made available, it is envisaged that a time scale of four to five years is realistic for the delivery of the refurbished courthouse, to include planning, design and construction.’
The letter concluded by saying that if all five Wicklow TDs still wished to meet with representatives of the Courts Service they should contact the office with potential dates to see which suits.
Ms Sinnott said that Deputy Pat Casey had also raised the matter in the Dail and heard that there are three empty courthouses in County Wicklow – Bray, Baltinglass and Wicklow town.
In respect of Wicklow, Deputy Casey heard that the courthouse in Wicklow was closed for health and safety reasons.
The Courts Service wrote to Deputy Casey: ‘As part of the Court Service provincial capital building programme, one of the objectives is to extend and refurbish the courthouse in Wicklow town to provide a significantly larger four courtroom venue together with a range of facilities for staff, the judiciary, persons in custody, jurors, legal professionals,, other state agencies and members of the public.
‘The Courts Service has indicated that while detailed planning or design work has not yet commended, it has purchased a number of adjacent properties, some of which will be demolished in order to create a larger site capable of accommodating a courthouse building on the scale envisaged. The Courts Service is, at present, considering bringing forward some of these demolition works.
‘Wicklow town is one of a number of provincial city/county town venues nationwide still requiring new or upgraded courthouse accommodation and collectively these venues will be the next priority for investment in courthouse facilities outside the capital,’ said the Courts Service in its response to Deputy Casey.
Cllr John Snell slammed the responses, describing the situation as ‘an absolute disgrace’.
‘Unfortunately we, as elected members, are being given the run around. We asked for the five TDs to work together and it seemed to be a proactive meeting. But they haven’t looked for the meeting we requested. It seems they didn’t have enough appetite. Where do we stand with getting a meeting ourselves?’ asked Cllr Snell.
‘These (responses) make dismal reading. The reality is the Department is sending copy and paste responses to everyone. I think we are being short-changed and it is undermining us. I think we should follow this up ourselves.’
Cllr Mary Kavanagh said that the responses are ‘kicking the can down the road’ and wondered if the five TDs were prepared to met with the Courts Service.
Cllr Irene Winters said she was very disappointed by the responses, adding it had been her understanding that the meeting with the TDs should be with the Courts Service and the Department of Justice so ‘it wouldn’t be pushed from Billy to Jack’.
She added that Minister Simon Harris had put in a request to meet but hadn’t received a response and said that she would follow up the matter with the Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan.
‘If we don’t have that meeting we won’t get anywhere for four to five years which, in reality, will be ten years.’
Cllr Kavanagh said that ‘it is vital they have this meeting even if it is just to reduce the timeframe’.
Cathaoirleach Shay Cullen said it was disappointing ‘because it doesn’t seem to be a matter of urgency for the TDs. We need to get this sorted.’
Cllr Winters said it wasn’t just a matter of getting the building sorted out but it was also imperative to bring matters to court speedily. Cllr Kavanagh said ‘the town has lost so much since the court went. The town was always alive on court days. It’s a terrible loss in terms of revenue.’ A NUMBER of groups and events in the Wicklow district will benefit from a discretionary fund from the municipal district.
Every year, each district in Wicklow receives an allocation of funding which can be spent within the district on various projects.
Last year Wicklow council members allocated €20,000 to the Christmas lights in the town, €10,000 towards the Wicklow Hospice Gala Ball, €11,000 to various tidy towns groups, €1,000 to the Rathnew Active Forum as well as €3,000 to the Wicklow Regatta and money for St Patrick’s Day and estate development grants.
Speaking at last week’s meeting of the Wicklow Municipal District, cathaoirleach Shay Cullen said he wanted the members to start thinking about the best way to spent this year’s fund and said he wanted to get the matter dealt with over the next couple of meetings.
He said the members also needed to know how much money was going to be made available to them, adding he understood that this year’s fund would be an increase on last year’s figure.
Cllr John Snell said the councillors had been employing a tried and tested method for allocating the money for the past number of years and asked district administrator Joan Sinnott for a breakdown of where the money had been allocated for the past number of years.
He suggested the members have a number of meetings among themselves to help finalise where the money should be spent before bringing the matter to council.
Ms Sinnott said she would compile the figures.