Amendment to be sought on naming of public infrastructure

Independent Tullamore town councillor Sean O’Brien is to seek amendments to the policy document adopted at the last town council meeting in relation to the naming of infrastructure, including the new bridges over the canal. Speaking this week Cllr O'Brien said he intends to propose that bridges and other infrastructure can be named after individuals and also that any policy being considered by the council must be published for public consultation before being adopted.

Cllr O’Brien said he couldn’t attend the council meeting in question due to work commitments, but was surprised when he heard the outcome that means public infrastructure won’t be named after individuals.

“I received the agenda for the meeting and this matter was not listed on the agenda,” he said. “The draft policy document in relation to the naming of infrastructure, including bridges, was not enclosed with the agenda either, but was later posted separately. A major policy like this has to be fully discussed by the whole council. The fact that it was not even on the official agenda but later added came as a surprise to me.

There has been a very big interest from the public in these new bridges and a lot of public discussion has taken place. There is a very big campaign by the friends of Fiona Pender to have the bridge at Convent View named in her honour. At the very least any document adopted at last week’s meeting should have been a proposal which would then go on public display for a month and the public could have been asked for their opinion before the document was fully adopted by the council. In everything we have done previously we have always consulted with the public.”

Cllr O’Brien said what has been adopted excludes public opinion and also very specifically has excluded consideration of individuals in the naming of bridges and other infrastructure.

'I think this completely excludes the opportunity for the council to consider people who have made a significant contribution to life in Tullamore,” he said. “It would also have been an opportunity for the public to be consulted a second time as they could suggest names for consideration.”

The new policy also prevents a bridge at Clontarf Road being named in honour of former Labour councillor Ernie McGuire. “I proposed last year that this bridge be named in honour of the late Ernie,” Cllr O’Brien said. “I raised the matter again at a meeting on January 10 this year and as far as I was concerned this was agreed.”