Trevor Quinn
A meeting to discuss an installation application for a 24-metre (79ft) telecommunications mast, which is proposed to be located adjacent to the Newport Road side of Lough Lannagh, Castlebar, will take place on Thursday, February 24, at the TF Royal Hotel at 8pm.
The issue has generated much debate in the local area recently, and concerned residents are keen to air their views and opinions on the matter. The proposed mast will be situated close to St Gerald’s College, Castlebar, school and De La Salle Sports Hall, and parents and members of the wider community fear it will raise new security concerns in the area.
Residents and rental property owners of Blackfort, Garryduff, Hazel Grove, Patrician Park, Pound Road, Newport Road, parents and guardians of students at St Gerald’s College, Castlebar, and all interested parties in the estates in the surrounding area are asked to attend the meeting on Thursday evening.
The conservation of the area around Lough Lannagh is a subject which many local residents feel strongly about, and the organisers of the meeting hope there will be a large gathering to debate this proposed development. They plan to form a committee and formulate a definitive course of action against the application before an official letter of objection is lodged.
One local resident who spoke with The Mayo News said that Councillors Therese Ruane, Michael Kilcoyne and Ger Deere were liaising with locals and the Town Council in relation to the proposed mast. “We’re getting people together to discuss this matter”. She said that the residents of Blackfort Manor had arranged a meeting in recent days, and now the residents were keen to speak with residents in the surrounding areas, as well as the large number of people who use the local amenity.
Commenting, Cllr Michael Kilcoyne said: “The proposed site for the telephone mast is probably the most unsuitable place in Mayo,” before adding, “I will do anything that I can do to assist the residents. “This development could have huge implications for the health of the people and under no circumstances should it be granted.”
Cllr Kilcoyne added that if the controversial planning application was approved the elected members of the the Town Council should sanction a Section 140 notice against the development.
A local resident said for the people of Castlebar, the proposed location for the 78.8 feet high structure at Lough Lannagh was akin to putting up a mast near the River Moy in Ballina or the Mall in Westport. The local residents have been advised that the technicians who are being lined up to work on the proposed mast have instructions to stay a considerable distance away from it unless it’s powered off, causing the local residents to wonder what it would be like living under its considerable shadow.
