Rural dwellers need to support local business
GURTEEN village wasn’t affected by the recession because it never saw the Celtic Tiger.
That’s the view of PJ Tansey who runs Gurteen Discount Store in the main street.
He didn’t know anything about the report which is supposed to save him and his village.
He tells The Sligo Champion that business is just about ticking over, only because the sort of stock he’s selling can’t be stocked in other shops “and the village has to have it.”
PJ says a lot of young people have left Gurteen because there’s no employment. We have Green Isle Foods down there but only for that we’d have nothing at all,” he says.
“There’s no employment to absorb the young people. You have to think of something new. Agriculturally the land isn’t great here. It’s mostly mixed and mostly cattle here, it’s not a good dairying area. The vast majority of farmers are working part- time in other places. A lot work in Sligo.
“What happens is that they do their shopping in Sligo. If they would at least so a shopping once in Gurteen. You can’t blame people, they’re hard- pressed. There isn’t a lot of money around,” he says.
“There should be no rates in villages because there’s no business,” added PJ.
Up the road in The Crossbar pub owner Adrian Tansey spoke on the plan.
“The devil is in the detail. I’d like to see costs for businesses setting up reduced. It’s very, very tough with rates, overheads. Businesses are very stretched. Any little bit of industry to our town would of huge help.” His broadband is “terrible”. “My turnover is down 60 per cent from 10 years ago. Rates are a huge issue too,” he adds. “You keep hoping things will improve though,” he adds.