Christmas Tree Lighting

Dublin City Council will be turning on the lights on the O'Connell Street Christmas Tree on Sunday 24th November.  There will be free family friendly entertainment from 3.30pm with the lights actually being switched on at 6pm. There promises to be something for everyone with entertainment from the Army Band, Gospel Choirs and the Monica Loughman Ballet Group. For a copy of the Dublin Christmas Brochure click HERE.    Dublin City Council will also be trying to break Dublin’s 2011 record for the most Geansaí Nollaigs in one place. So if you come dressed in your favourite Christmas jumper and get yourself into the record books!!  Mary

May The Force Be With You

Star Wars, the movie, are holding open casting at Croke Park this weekend November 23 & 24th 2013. Calling all young actors and actresses ((men aged 19-23 and women aged 17-18)) to open casting for the Star Wars film. The Star Wars casting is scheduled to take place on Saturday 23 & Sunday 24th November from 11.00am to 3pm. The gates to the stadium will not open until 8am. Due to the forecast bad weather camping overnight will not be allowed so stay at home, get a good nights beauty sleep and get there early for 8am. The entry for the casting call will be from St Josephs Avenue off the Clonliffe Road. Descriptions of the characters they are looking for can be found HERE. For further information you can also contact Julianne Savage, Community & Public Relations Officer at Croke Park on 01 865 8607 or jsavage@crokepark.ie. Star Wars has a long tradition of casting new talent and it would be great if an unknown or known local talent was found this weekend in Croke Park. May the force be with you ! Mary

Molly Malone

At this morning’s meeting of Dublin City Council’s Public Art Advisory group north side Fine Geal and Labour Dublin City Councillors Breen and McLoughlin blocked the proposal to explore the possibility of moving the Molly Malone statue to Dublin’s north side street market on Moore Street.

The Molly Malone statue must be moved from its current location at the end of Grafton Street to allow for the new LUAS cross city line. Initially it was proposed that the statue would be put in storage until Cllr Mary Fitzptrick (FF) and Cllr Niall Ring (Ind), while working to protect the National Monument and street market on Moore Street, proposed the statue be re-located to Moore Street.

Moore Street has been a traditional street market for decades. Work has recently been undertaken to give the street a face lift and the relocation of the popular tourist attracting Molly Malone statue would have given the street a welcome boost.

Instead the statue will now remain in the Grafton Street area which is already benefiting from a €14million upgrade, popular tourist attractions Trinity College, Book of Kells, high-end retail shopping, the Phil Lynott statue, quality bars and restaurants. In addition, and in case all this is not enough, Dublin City Council is currently inviting submissions for new public art work for Grafton street with  €10,000's to spend!

For decades the north side of Dublin city has been neglected by Dublin City Council and so it is deeply disappointing that when a cost neutral opportunity to give a small lift to the north side arises it is blocked because of Fine Geal and Labour City Councillors own narrow political interests. Fine Geal and Labour City Councillors are so fearful of a resurgent Fianna Fail and increasing support for Independents they blocked  a good proposal,  that would have some real benefit to Moore Street,  purely because it was their competitions idea.  How depressing is that?  Mary

Water Restrictions

Dublin City Council will this evening lift the water restrictions that have been in place since 30th October 2013. Production at DCC's Ballymore Eustace Water Treatment Plant and improvements in storage of treated water reservoirs is allowing for the restrictions to be removed. Thanks to customers across the entire Dublin region for their patience during the period of water restrictions and through whose efforts a significant amount of water has been saved and our regional strategic storage has improved.  Unfortunately storage of treated water reservoirs is currently below the level it would normally be at this time of year. As is normal practice at this time of year DCC will be keeping reduced water pressure in place in the evenings over the coming weeks to gain additional treated water storage.  Water is Precious,Let’s conserve it!  Mary

Hogans €50m raid of Dublin Property Tax

In March 2013 Minister Hogan told homeowners that 80% of their property tax would be used to provide them with local services. Now the Minister has done a complete U-Turn and decided that he will hold onto 100% of the Local Property Tax in 2014. He has made a vague statement that “a proportion” of the Local Property Tax will be used to fund local services in 2015. He has not said how big or small a proportion, just a %. To add further insult it appears Minister Hogan is going to use the Local Property Tax to pay for his crazy plan to create Irish Water so that they can install meters so he can hit us with a new charge for water. So basically he lied to get us to pay the Local Property Tax so that he can use the money to charge us water taxes.  Who can believe him when he says a % of the LPT will be used for local services in 2015??

Minister Hogan has announced that in 2014 he will not allow local authorities use 80% of the Local Property Tax collected in their area to fund local services as he previously promised. He has announced that he will instead keep the more than €150million in property tax collected in Dublin to fund his crazy Irish Water scheme.

On March 12th 2013 Minister Hogan said the Government “has accepted, in principle, a policy position that from next year 80% of all Local Property Tax (LPT) receipts should be retained with the local authority areas where the properties are based and that these receipts should be utilised by those authorities in their local budgets. This will assist in the funding of new services such as the establishments of Local Enterprise Offices and other labour activation measures that will help create jobs.”

On October 16th 2013 Minister Hogan said: “Retention of a proportion of local property tax receipts at source will now commence from 2015 onwards.”

Minister Hogan is putting his hands into the pockets of Dublin homeowners and extracting €50million for his own crazy pet project to privatize water services in a secret deal through the creation of Irish Water. Homeowners in Dublin are extremely annoyed by this underhand move by the Minister particularly given that there has been an average 90% compliance rate for the property tax across Dublin. (see table below).

Dubliner homeowners paid €80m in property tax this year and will pay over €160m next year. People signed up to the property largely in good faith. Many people took Minister Hogan at his word that 80% of the taxes raised locally would be spent locally and their elected representatives would have a say in how that money is spent in communities across the city. This amounts to a disgraceful betrayal by a Minister who seems intent on consistently centralising power and increasing his control over local authorities.

The Minister needs to keep his commitments to the homeowners of Dublin and allow the Local Property Tax to be spent on local services.   Mary

FREE Electrical Waste Collection

WEEE Ireland will hold a FREE electrical waste collection in Tesco Cabra on Saturday 26th of October from 10.00-16.00. Any household item with a plug or battery will be accepted free of charge.  Mary

North Dublin Enterprise Expo 2013 'Supporting Business Growth in North Dublin'

NDCC is holding the North Dublin Enterprise Expo 2013 'Supporting Business Growth in North Dublin on Thursday 7th November 2013 from 10.00am to 4.00pm in The Helix, DCU, Collins Avenue, Dublin 9. The expo represents a good opportunity to meet with Procurement Officers from large North Dublin organisations e.g. DAA, DCU & Others, meet new business prospects from all over North Dublin.  There will be a focused Social Media Workshop hosted by LinkedIn and a lunchtime Briefing 'The Budget, The Economy and the Implications for Business' presented by Tony Foley, Senior Lecturer, DCUBS. For more details please contact NDCC: Call +353 1 700 8861 | Fax +353 1 700 8863 | Email ndcc@dcu.ie. Mary

Hanlons Shooting

The shooting in the early hours of Sunday morning of four people on the North Circular Road has left the local community in shock and highlights the need to protect local garda resources. The shooting happened on one of the capitals main streets outside a busy public house and close to many private homes. The area is heavily populated with young families and older people who are extremely upset by what has happened and now have serious concerns about community safety.

There is no room for complacency when it comes to violent crime in the community and this latest shooting highlights the importance of protecting community garda resources and supporting the gardaí in the fight against crime. Dublin Central is served by dedicated and hardworking Gardai however they are stretched to capacity.

People are very worried that this shooting and other shootings in the inner city, Finglas, Glasnevin and Clondalkin in recent months appear to indicate towards an increasing trend in violent gun crime.  People want to see a determined and comprehensive response from the Gardai.

I am urging the Minister for Justice Alan Shatter to ensure that local gardaí are given every resource and support they need to investigate this shooting and bring the attackers to justice without delay. I am calling on the Minister to recognise the importance of protecting key frontline garda resources and to ensure that investigations such as this are not hindered in any way by budget cuts.

I am also appealing to the Minister to immediately address the concerns of local residents by committing to provide additional resources to allow active community policing of the local area.

The Gardai are appealing to anyone who was in the area or might have any information to contact them at the Bridewell Garda Station 01 666 8200.  Mary

Water Charges

At this months meeting of Dublin City Council I called for the installation of domestic water meters to be delayed in Dublin until Minister Hogan releases information on his promised "first fix free" scheme.  The government is making a major mistake prioritizing metering ahead of fixing leaks and building new water sources.

The Government has not published the legislation to deal with the transition of water services to Irish Water yet they are pushing ahead with the installation of meters to homes in Dublin City. Installation of domestic water meters will being this week on the northside of the city on the following roads: Mobhi Rd, Clarehaven, Glasanaon Road, St Pappin’s Road, Glasnevin Ave, Benevin, Ballygall, Ventry, Kilkieran, St Attractas and the Finglas Road.  I have asked rish Water to contact homeowners directly before they install the meters.

In June 2013 Minister Hogan promised the Government would pay to fix any leaks found on the homeowner’s side. I have repeatedly asked Irish Water, Dublin City Council and the Minister for information on his promised “first fix free” scheme. Irish Water and Dublin City Council say they have no details and the Minister’s office says he is still working on it.

It is wrong that the Government are again hitting homeowners with extra charges for no additional service. I raised this at City Council where the majority Labour and Fine Gael Councillors support Minister Hogan’s crazy water “plan” as he is guaranteeing their re-election by adding 53 more Councillors in Dublin.  Mary

Reillys Bridge

Work on the €9.8million project to replace Reillys Bridge on Ratoath Road with a fly-over spanning the railway line and canal will continue until the end of 2014. The initial stages of the project would have benefitted from better communication from Irish Rail and Dublin City Council. In response to my request Irish Rail and Dublin City Council attended the October meeting of the Central Area Committee to address concerns over the construction.  At the meeting I proposed three motions: that an independently chaired forum be established to deal with residents concerns, that Dublin City Council put in place a comprehensive traffic management plan to deal with the increased traffic problems during and post construction and that Dublin City Council commence the process of extending the 5+axel ban to Ratoath Road. The three motions were passed. I have since met with the residents and I am working with them, Irish Rail and Dublin City Council to get the forum up and running as soon as possible. In the meantime if residents have any concerns they can contact Irish Rail's community liaison officer Garry Keegan on 1890253555 or Dublin City Council Area Manager Fergus Synnott (01) 222 7410 or drop me an email. Mary

Cabra Traffic

At the October Central Area Committee meeting I submitted a motion calling on Dublin City Council to put in place a comprehensive traffic management plan for Cabra to reduce the negative impact of increased traffic volumes through Cabra when the fly-over on the Ratoath Road opens. In response to this motion the Manager provided me with the following report : "In common with all major schemes an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was prepared as part of the planning process for the Ratoath Road realignment and new Overbridge. As part of the EIS Traffic Impacts were considered. While the scheme will increase traffic safety, reduce traffic congestion and facilitate enhanced rail services on the existing rail line traffic volumes are predicted to increase on Ratoath Road, Canal Avenue, Fassaugh Avenue, River Road and Cabra Road and to be reduced on Dunsink Lane, Ashtown Road and Navan Road. Traffic analysis undertaken shows that the junction most affected by the scheme the upgraded Ratoath Road / Ballyboggn Road junction will operate satisfactorily in the design year. Following the opening of the bridge traffic department will monitor traffic in the area to determine if any additional traffic management measures are warranted. The contact for this work is Ronan O’Dea, Senior Engineer, Tel 222 2907."  Mary

Royal Canal Day

Everyone is invited to the ROYAL CANAL DAY, a dynamic event planned by the Dublin City North Volunteer Centre.  The Royal Canal Day will take place on October the 12th along the banks of the Royal Canal with the main objective being to get local people to come out, have some fun and to clean-up litter all along the Royal Canal from Dublin’s city centre all the way out to Blanchardstown.  There will varioius activities and events related to the canal and its history, such as Walks with Botonist Declan Doogue, Pat Liddy walking tour and Dublin Cycling Campaign social ride.  Further information including the schedule and the meeting points for the canal clean-up can be found on the facebook page or contacting the Centre by tel.872 2622 or email: royalcanalteam@gmail.com.   I encourage as many people as possible to come along and participate in this family friendly event and enjoy the wonderful Royal Canal.  Mary

"First Fix Free"

In June 2013 Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan promised homeowners that the Government will pay to fix any leaks found on the homeowner’s side when domestic water meters are introduced.

I have repeatedly requested details of Minister Hogan’s promised “first fix free” scheme but been unable to obtain any. Dublin City Council and Irish Water, the two organisations that work for Minister Hogan, and are responsible for water services have advised me that they have no information and suggested I check with the Minister. The last update I received from the Minister’s office indicated that the Minister is still working out the details.

This week Irish Water will start connecting meters to homes in Dublin City. There will be considerable cost involved for the state in connecting meters to more 130,000 homes in Dublin. Apart from the fact that it makes no sense to install meters on leaky pipes, if the Government is going to pay to fix leaks on the homeowner’s side, they should keep costs and disruption to a minimum by fixing the leaks at the same time as meters are installed.

130,000 homes in the city will be affected by this deal. At the City Council meeting on Monday October 7, 2013, I will propose a motion calling for the installation of domestic water meters to be put on hold until the Minister meets with City Councillors to address our concerns. I will ask all Councillors, including the majority Labour and Fine Geal Councillors some of whom must share our concerns, to support the motion.  Mary

Motion in relation to Item 8 Report No. 340/2013 Transition to Irish Water
Report No. 340/2013 details a number of significant issues around the Governments plans to transition water services from Dublin City Council to Irish Water. Secure and reliable water services are essential for the Dublin City. The elected members of Dublin City Council are concerned about the negative impact the issues raised in the report could have on every home and business in the city. We call on the Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan to immediately provide details of his promised “first fix free” scheme that he said will see the Government pay for leaks found on homeowner’s property. We call for the installation of domestic water meters to be delayed until such time as the Minister meets with City Councillors and addresses our concerns.

Irish Water

Following announcement of Minister Phil Hogan's plan to transition water service from Dublin City Council to Irish Water and in advance of the official transition date of January 2014, Irish Water is due to start installing domestic water meters in Dublin City this week. I have major concerns which must be addressed before we proceed down a similar route to the disastrous transition of waste services to private operators in 2011.

Some of the most important details about how water services will be delivered in the future have yet to be confirmed. The primary legislation that will set-out the arrangements for the transition of water services from local authorities to Irish Water has not yet been published even while Irish Water install meters to homes in the city this week.

In a report, attached, to Dublin City Councillors, Dublin City Manager has outlined a number of significant issues and concerns including : no legislation, challenging timescales for transition of services from Dublin City Council to Irish Water, installation of domestic water meters from 7th October 2013, absence of Service Level Agreement, absence of Annual Service Plan, investment in water services, transfer of assets, staff, future planning and development matters, separation of drainage and waste water services, customer relations management, financial issues and communications. 

The government is prioritising metering ahead of fixing leaks and building new water sources. Only secure and reliable water services are suitable to be metered and charged to homeowners and businesses. Despite my repeated requests the Minister has still not given any details of his promise that the government will pay to fix any domestic leaks found. As of now homeowners are liable to fix any leaks found and if leaks are caused when the domestic meters are being installed it will be homeowners who will have to pay to have their gardens dug-up and leaks fixed. This could prove very costly for some homes and be unaffordable for many.

The financial aspects of this secret deal are of even greater concern. From the bits of available information it appears businesses in Dublin are going to face an unfair hike in charges to bring them in line with commercial water charges in other parts of the country. It also appears that funding for local services could be reduced as government uses the available funds to pay for Irish Water. Additionally the Government plans require all water services assets to be transferred from Dublin City Council to Irish Water. It is imperative that the City gets fair value for those public assets.

Secure and reliable water services are essential for the Dublin City. There are too many unanswered questions and uncertainties around the Governments plans which strips Dublin City Council of valuable assets yet burdens it with continuing responsibilities and slams homes and businesses in the city with extra costs.

At the City Council meeting I will propose a motion calling for the installation of domestic water meters to be put on hold until the Minister meets with City Councillors to address our concerns.

Every home in the city will be affected by this deal and I will ask all Councillors, including the majority Labour and Fine Geal Councillors some of whom must share our concerns, to support the motion and on behalf of the people of Dublin hold the Minister to account.

Motion in relation to Item 8 Report No. 340/2013 Transition to Irish Water 

Report No. 340/2013 details a number of significant issues around the Governments plans to transition water services from Dublin City Council to Irish Water. Secure and reliable water services are essential for the Dublin City. The elected members of Dublin City Council are concerned about the negative impact the issues raised in the report could have on every home and business in the city. We call on the Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan to immediately provide details of his promised “first fix free” scheme that he said will see the Government pay for leaks found on homeowner’s property. We call for the installation of domestic water meters to be delayed until such time as the Minister meets with City Councillors and addresses our concerns.

Please Vote No

 

The main reason to vote No tomorrow is to send a strong message to Government that we are not fools and we do not like being lied to. They lied to get power and they continue to lie as they exercise power.  They say abolishing the Seanad will mean political reform – this is a lie. They say abolishing the Seanad will save €20million – this is a lie. They say abolishing the Seanad will mean less politicians – this is a lie.  Since they were elected they have ruled with an iron fist. They dismiss any real debate. The Budget is only days away. Each of their budgets has been marked by unfairness and inequity, each budget more regressive than the last. I am no defender of the current Seanad. It is a creature of the political establishment.  Like all our political structures it could benefit from REAL political reform.  However if it is abolished as a pretence for “political reform” it will be a major boost to dishonest, uncaring and autocratic politics. We are right to expect better and we should demand better from our politicians. Please Vote No. Mary

Housing Adaptation Grants

During the summer Dublin City Council closed its scheme that gives grants to elderly and/or sick people who need to adapt their homes to allow them continue to live independantly.  The reason the City Council had to close the scheme is because Minister Hogan had cut funding for the grants by 50%.   At the September City Council meeting I proposed an Emergency Motion, which was passed by the full City Council,  calling on Minister Hogan to reverse his decision to cut funding by 50% for housing adaptation grants for older and disabled people and to use some of the €100million available to him in Dormant Accounts to re-open the grants. Last year the council administered €10 million in these grants. This year, the Minister gave less than €5 million forcing Dublin City Council to stop accepting applications and to advise those already approved that they will not receive their payment until next year. These grants make a huge difference to peoples lives. They are the difference between being stuck in a hospital and coming home. The cut makes no sense as it is far more expensive to keep people in hospital than to be cared for at home. The grants also support local construction jobs. Hopefully the Minister will see sense and use some of the Dormant Accounts fund to restore funding.  Mary

Cabra Road Bus Shelter

At the December 2012 meeting of the Central Area Committee I submitted a motion to ask Dublin Bus to provide sides to the in-bound bus shelter on the Cabra Road at the seventeen shops. In response to this motion the City Manager wrote to Dublin Bus and recently they replied saying that they will arrange to have it checked out and that they will revert back in due course.  Mary

GPO museum

The GPO, Dublin

At the September meeting of the Central Area Committee I proposed a motion expressing members appreciation to An Post for the information they shared with us regarding their plans for the development of the GPO museum.  The motion also called on An Post to amend their plans to make the main building, which was the scene of many historic events at the GPO, the central component of any GPO museum. The motion was agreed and a letter will be sent to An Post reflecting the terms of the motion.  Mary

Moore Street National Monument

At the July meeting of the Central Area Committee I proposed a motion, which if implemented by the Government would instruct NAMA to make available sufficient funding to ensure the restoration of the National Monument on Moore Street and to provide an appropriate commemoration and interpretive centre in time for 2016. In response to this motion the City Manager received a letter from the Department of the Taoiseach, who reported that the matter has been brought to the attention of the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the motion has been noted.  Mary

Joint Policing Committee

On September 23rd 2013 I chaired the quarterly meeting of the Dublin Central Joint Policing Committee in City Hall. At the meeting Gardai and Dublin City Council gave detailed reports on activity in Dublin Central during the previous quarter. Issues addressed at the meeting included anti-social behaviour on Fassaugh Avenue & St Laurence’s Place East, Traffic breaches at Doyle’s corner, homeless hostels in the Phibsborough area, mobile phone theft, traffic accidents in the Drumcondra area, empty units at St. Finbar’s Court, Neighborhood Watch, Off-licence test purchasing, staffing of Garda Drugs Unit, Halloween, Operation Assist, anti-social behavior, street crime, “better city for all” report, burglaries, Phoenix Park concerts, Neighborhood Watch, privately rented properties and many other items. The meeting was recorded and a webcast is available here.   The date of the next meeting is Monday 16th December 2013 @9.30am in City Hall. Please email me if there are any issues you would like addressed by the Joint Policing Committee. Mary