Council to seek premises for Castlebar Men’s Shed

Council to seek premises for Castlebar Men’s Shed


Castlebar
Edwin McGreal
edwinmcgreal@mayonews.ie

Mayo County Council are to look for an appropriate site for Castlebar Men’s Shed after last Thursday’s meeting of Castlebar Electoral Area heard that the organisation had outgrown their current location at Moneen in the town.
Men’s Shed is a worldwide group of centres for men to come and work on various activities in a welcoming setting and the Castlebar group has 130 members and a waiting list of 40 more.
Cllr Frank Durcan told the meeting that the Castlebar Men’s Shed is ‘one of the most important things that ever happened in this town’. He said it was of great benefit for men, young and old, who were unemployed and gave them somewhere to go where they could interact and learn. He said the group needed a 4,000 to 5,000 square feet building and suggested the council give the group a one acre site to develop.
Cllr Blackie Gavin said that he was a member of the Castlebar Men’s Shed and it had done wonders for so many people while Cllr Michael Kilcoyne said some people he knew had been under severe personal pressure in the recent past but when he met them in the Men’s Shed, ‘they were in great form’.
He said that from a purely ‘public health’ point of view, the council were obliged to do something because in two months time, the group wouldn’t have enough money to cover rent costs.
Cllr Eugene McCormack said it ‘would be a sad day’ if the council couldn’t find a suitable vacant building in the town with all their property.
Castlebar Area Manager Seamus Granahan said the council would support the Men’s Shed ‘in any way we can’ and would expeditiously seek a suitable premises. He said the council would look at all their options and he would speak to the Men’s Shed representatives inside two weeks to try to move the situation on.
Michael McTigue and Patsy McHale from Castlebar Men’s Shed were present at the meeting and thanked everyone for their assistance.

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