AIB Bank in bid to halt plan for proposed £1m road
June 1995
AIB Bank is lobbying Kerry County Councillors to oppose the re-routing of a road which is a crucial element in a £1 million plan to upgrade the Square in Listowel.
County Secretary Gerry Heneghan told The Kerryman that if the plan to re-route the N69 road through the Square to the southwest of St John’s cultural centre is not approved by Kerry County Council then the £1m re-development plan will not proceed.
“The re-routing of the road is an integral part of the plan to re-develop the square. If the road is not re-routed, then the entire £1m plan will fall,” said Mr Heneghan.
AIB Bank is vehemently opposed to the road-plan as it would bring the road far closer to its branch in the Square and would remove a substantial amount of parking space in front of the branch.
The Kerryman confirmed this week that senior bank officials are lobbying members of Kerry County Council to vote against diverting the road. Bank management staff have made personal calls to Council members, on a cross party basis, asking them to vote against the proposal.
Ironically, in June of 1993 the planping authority for the town, Listowel Town Council, approved the development in its entirety. However, as a result of an anomaly in the planning laws, it is Kerry County Council which has the final say in deciding if the road should be re-directed.
Kerry County Council will meet on Monday next to vote on the issue. Soundings taken by The Kerryman indicate that unless there is a major change of heart among councillors the plan will fall.
The £1m to upgrade the Square has run into considerable opposition particularly from traders in the Square. One of the central elements of the proposal is to move the main road from the Northern side of St John’s Cathedral to St John’s Cultural Centre to the Southern side.
AIB Area South Regional Manager, Niall Kelly, who has written to Kerry County Council outlining his bank’s objections to the plan was attending a meeting and was unable to comment on the issue when The Kerryman attempted to contact him.