Boyle man to head Council Finance department
Congratulations to Boyle man Derek Caldbeck who has been appointed Acting Head of Finance and Housing in Roscommon County Council. Derek’s brief will also include Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for the local authority. The new Chief Executive of Roscommon County Council Eugene Cummins has made major changes in the top layer of management in the Council since taking office with Derek one of those who has gained promotion.
Reduced Garda Station hours still causing concern
It was interesting to hear comments recently by the Chief Superintendent of the Roscommon Longford Garda Division Padraig Rattigan that there is an increase in Garda numbers in Boyle station since reduced hours came into effect. Chief Superintendent Rattigan has also said that there is an increased Garda presence in the towns in the area since the hours changed and that “the person who gets up from the desk goes out on other duties”. But what wasn’t stated was the fact that in an emergency, you cannot get in the door of Boyle Garda Station at certain hours of the day. Neither was the fact that there is occasion when there is no Garda in Boyle station or perhaps only one member in the building as others cover in Castlerea or are patroling the ridiculous geographical area that is the Boyle Garda district. In addition, it is the reality that when the station is unmanned, telephone callers get through to Castlerea station to Garda members do not know the townlands of Boyle and in effect are of little help in an emergency situation due to their distance from and lack of knowledge of the town. The Gardai in Boyle are doing their best with limited resources and are stretched beyond belief. The current situation is not their fault as they are only implementing what has been directed from on high. The Chief Superintendent has said the hours can be reviewed and he is open to sucha a review. This is where you can make a difference. Everyone with a concern for policing in Boyle needs to write to the Superintendent, Castlerea Garda Station to outline their reasons for getting the reduced hours reversed. This writer has done so and calls on others to follow suit.
Rejuvination of Boyle Town Centre is needed
The recent closure of Mattimoes Bar on Bridge St has resulted in a gapping hole in the commercial life of the lower end of the town. From the Bazaar to Lookwell Dry Cleaners on Main St, there is only one ground floor business in operation – all others are vacant buildings. This is not good for the centre of Boyle. Unlike similar size towns, we do not have large scale out of town shopping centres which, one reflection, may be to our advantage, but an effort needs to be made urgently to rejuvinate the centre of Boyle. The opening of the one way system was meant to be the catalyst to see trade improve “downtown” but that has not happend. In fact, the opposite has occured, with the Crescent and “top of town” benefitting most. Incentives like the recently announced commercial rates incentive scheme for vacant premises (click here), the need for a list of town centre premises with sizes, rents etc that are available and some form of incentive to get people to live in the centre of Boyle needs to be devised very quickly if the decline is to be addressed.
Will Cortober be next for the saving campign?
In recent weeks all the talk has been of “Saving Roscommon” and ensuring Monksland near Athlone remains in County Roscommon. But closer to Boyle a debate is raising it’s head on the movement of Cortober from county Roscommon into county Leitrim. The local newspaper in Carrick on Shannon asked the question on Facebook recently “Given that part of south Roscommon may join Co. Westmeath, would it make sense for all of Carrick-on-Shannon town to be in Co. Leitrim?” Many who answered the question were quite happy for Cortober to sever links with Roscommon. While we are anxious to keep all of our county intact, it does seem a bit ridiculous having Boyle council staff maintaining Cortober as is the case at present. Get ready for further debate on this subject in the coming months.
Defibrillator list in Boyle need to be drawn up
Last week’s emergency at the Hastings Cup GAA game where Conor McGowan helped save a young players life just goes to show the importance of having defibrillators at sporting occasions and indeed in the community. Many years ago the late Fergus Ahern was the first person to campaign locally for a defibrillator. He drew attention to the devices that no one had heard of previously. At one stage there were up to 5 or 6 defibs in Boyle but the majority of locals could not now tell you where the nearest one is located in town. In light of last Sundays event, a list should be drawn up of where defibrillators are located in Boyle and a list of those trained to use them.
And finally….!
The telephone company needed to hire four more telephone pole installers and the choice came down to two from Poland and two Irishmen. So the boss met both teams and said “Here’s what we’ll do. Each team will be installing poles out on the new road for a day. The team that installs the most poles gets the job.”
Both teams headed right out.
At end of the shift, when the two Polish guys reported back, the boss asked them how many they had installed. They said it was tough going but they’d put in twelve.
Forty-five minutes later, Paddy and Mick came back in, totally exhausted.
“Well, how many poles did you guys install?” said the boss
Mick wiped his brow and sighed, “Paddy and me, we got three in. ”
The boss gasped, “Three? Those two Polish blokes put in twelve!”
“Yeah,” said Mick, “but did ya see how much they left sticking out of the ground.”
