Garda manning levels raised in Dail and at Council meeting
Our news story yesterday (Thursday) in relation to the 50% drop in uniformed frontline Gardai attached to both Boyle and Castlerea station received a lot of reaction. The figure, which was made known at last Monday’s Council meeting, copper fastens what we knew already – that there are not enough Gardai in the Castlerea District that includes Boyle.
At Monday’s meeting, Councillor Gareth Scahill from Castlerea referred to a request that was made (by yours truly) at the September 2023 Joint Policing Committee meeting calling for a letter to issue to Commissioner Harris in relation to the drop in Garda numbers and resources in this area. Unfortunately not long after the request was made, the JPC was disbanded and, it is assumed, the letter never issued.
Now, a meeting is being sought with Minister McEntee on the issue and hopefully this will be followed up and the full pressure of Roscommon Co Co and relevant stakeholders in the county brought to ensure: (1) additional Gardai are assigned to Boyle/Castlerea (2) additional Garda vehicles are made available to the members and (3) that Boyle station will open for at least the hours advertised and even longer. It was also encouraging to see Deputy Claire Kerrane raise the issue of falling Garda numbers in the area in the Dail last night.
Meanwhile at this week’s Association of Garda Superintendent’s Conference, senior officers strongly criticised the new Operating Policing Model which is being introduced. They say it has led to them losing their links with local communities and the staff they supervise. They say the problems they continue to face include insufficient resources, inadequate accommodation and operating within unworkable geographical configurations. Read more here
A wonderful opportunity now exists to develop a hotel in Boyle
Fair play to Liam and Justina Gavin. After they took the decision to not develop their site on Elphin Street, they put it up for sale, opening up a wonderful opportunity for others to do so. If only more property owners in Boyle did the same as the Gavins and not ‘sit’ on their buildings, then the town might open up for further development.
Now an ideal opportunity exists for a suitable person(s) to purchases the site that had previously been earmarked for a Boutique Hotel, and proceed to build what was planned in the centre of the town. The establishment of a small size, well run boutique hotel in Boyle would, without doubt, be a tremendous success. Boyle is on the up and with the Lough Key Masterplan being developed (that will double visitors and staff in the Park), along with other soon to be announced local developments and an all year round tourist and business trade, a 10/15 bed hotel is a no brainer.
If all the people, who have been stating the obvious for so long that ‘Boyle needs a hotel’, can now positively put their words into action and let the public know that an ideal opportunity now exists in our town for a hotel, then we may get the right person(s) to invest in such a facility in Boyle.
Make Way Day today in Boyle
Today Friday September 27th is ‘National Make Way Day’ and it will be marked in Boyle at the Town Clock from 12 noon where attention will be drawn to all the ways Boyle town can be made more accessible for persons with disabilities.
The elimination of cars and vans parking on the footpaths would be one easy way of making the town more pedestrian accessible.
If you feel strongly about this issue, please drop by later today from 12 -1pm.
“Make Way Day” is a campaign that brings the disability and wider community together to consider the needs of people with disabilities in the public spaces we all share. It is led by the Disability Federation of Ireland and is a unique collaboration across Ireland and the voluntary and local government sectors.
Plenty to do in Boyle all year round
Those who (wrongfully) claim “Sure there is nothing to do in Boyle” would have had nothing to cry about last weekend. Culture Night and Roscommon Bound weekend saw over twenty events taking place in Boyle. There was something for everyone and those who attended the events spoke in glowing terms of the effort that went into making the weekend such a success. Well done to Boyle Town Team, Una Bhan, King House and Roscommon Co Co for all the work they put in to making the weekend happen.
If people think there is nothing to do in Boyle through out the year, they are mistaken. For a town of our size there is so much to do – you just have to open your eyes and look around you. Parents will also tell you of the constant “taxiing” of their children from GAA to Soccer, from Basketball to Scouts or Girl Guides, from Irish Dancing to Drama – the list goes on. For a small town we certainly are a busy one and last weekend really showed this.
Boyle PO ‘neither closing or moving’
The rumour mill was in full flow last week in relation to Boyle Post Office. A number of people contacted us worried at what they were hearing. Never a website to publish rumour, Boyletoday.com contacted An Post Head Office in Dublin to get the facts and they were quickly back to us to say: “Boyle Post Office will neither move or close. What is happening is that the Boyle premises at Shop Street will be offered for sale but with the Post Office remaining in place. The Post Office building is a large premises with the Post Office occupying just one part of the total property. Boyle is one of 14 such locations all over the country where the premises is being offered for sale with the Post Office itself remaining ‘in situ'”.
News snippets from around Boyle
This Saturday afternoon at 3pm in Daly’s Drink’s local musician Daithi (Dotts) O’Connor will host a free pop up gig to launch his new album and everyone is welcome to attend………The median price of a home in Eircode F52 region, which includes Boyle, is €177,500 according to details in the recently published Central Statistics Office’s Residential Property Price Index………..What is it with old traditional newspaper social media. As soon as the good weather came last week, they told us to “make sure to enjoy it as a major U turn is on the way’. Please stop with your click bait headlines and let us live in the moment…………Before there is a serious accident, someone needs to put an end to winning underage football team members sitting out on the widows of cars as they travel through towns celebrating victory………..Irish Rail are to appear before the Oireachtas Transport Committee after it’s new timetable has resulted in delays around Dublin and on inter city services. According to a report on thejourrnal.ie “The root cause of these delays is due to congestion after many Dublin North Rail Line services, that previously terminated at Pearse Station, are now completing their journeys at Connolly Station in the city centre”. This congestion is one of the reasons there has been so many delays of late on the Sligo Dublin train that serves Boyle. Read more here.……Corrib Oil in Boyle will be supporting Croi and World Heart Day today Friday with all
proceeds from Tea and Coffee sales between 9am – 12 noon being donated to Croi……….Thursday was a wet but busy day around town. An International delegation from the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) along with Government and Council officials met with members of Boyle Town Team in An Rioga to view the various projects that were funded in the town and seek views for the development of a successor policy to ‘Our Rural Future’. Also on Thursday, progressive local IT company ProCloud had a large number of customers in Boyle to view their new headquarters and attend a company briefing in King House……….Shannon Gaels GAA 5k Fun Run in Croghan on Sunday at 2pm. Registration from 12.30pm. Free health checks for all participants over 16.
And finally….!
A old man went into his local pharmacy and went straight to the back of the shop to where the Pharmacist’s Counter is located.
He took out his little brown bottle along with a teaspoon and laid them both onto the counter.
The pharmacist came over smiled and asked if he could help.
“Yes” said the old man. “Could you please taste this for me?”
Being a senior citizen, the Pharmacist went along with the old mans request.
He picked up the spoon and put a tiny bit of the liquid on his tongue and swirled it around.
Then with a stomach-churning look on his face he spat it out on the floor and began coughing.
When he finally was finished, the man looked him right in the eye asked, “Now, does that taste sweet to you?”
The pharmacist, shaking his head back and forth with a venomous look in his eyes yelled, “ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!”
The old man said “Oh thank God! That’s a real relief! My doctor told me to get a pharmacist to test my urine for sugar!
