‘Neighbours falling out’ over lack of parking

A lack of car parking spaces in housing estates in Fermoy is causing tensions among residents, according to local councillor Noel McCarthy.

“People are living in estates with big green areas and a lack of parking which is actually causing arguments among neighbours,” Cllr McCarthy told TheAvondhu this week.

According to the councillor, in some estates there may be three or more cars to a household, especially in the circumstance where the adult children in a family are living at home, meaning parking may become scarce.

He went on to note that the issue with a lack of parking in local council-owned estates may also impact the response and delivery of emergency services to the area as they may not have the space to set down or park, having arrived on the scene.

This issue was raised by Cllr McCarthy and a number of other local councillors at council meetings and has been ongoing for the past three years.

“The council has acknowledged that it is a problem, and other councillors have brought different estates in their areas to their attention,” Cllr McCarthy noted.

In Fermoy, Uplands, Ballyard and Pike Road estates were highlighted along with the Elm Place estate in Kilworth.

According to Cllr McCarthy, the council have agreed to a pilot project to remove some of the green areas in estates and to convert this to additional parking spaces.

Initially, three to four estates are to be chosen from a list provided by councillors on which, Cllr McCarthy has said, he will be submitting the four aforementioned estates.

“Neighbours are falling out over this and I think that’s very sad and there is a need to address this problem,” he said.

When queried about the new pilot project, a spokesperson for Cork County Council issued the following statement to TheAvondhu: “Cork County Council is currently reviewing the provision of additional car parking in Council Housing Estates within Fermoy Municipal District. A number of estates were put forward for consideration. This feedback is being reviewed at present.”

GREEN AREAS

With plans being made to remove sections of green areas in these estates, he was asked whether he believed this would negatively impact the children living in the estates in question who often use the green area for play and recreation.

“In all these estates, the green areas are very big in each place, so I think there is still plenty of room for the children to play. There will be maybe six or ten extra spaces and that would be the most. Residents have been approaching me over the last two or three years about this,” Cllr McCarthy said.

It is understood that any new parking spaces provided under the pilot project will be for general use in the estates and will not be allocated to individual households.

“New estates being built are taking the need for additional car parking into account and that’s a good thing because a lack of spaces causes a lot of problems. Even with people visiting these estates, they find it hard to park,” Cllr McCarthy concluded.