Residential conversions threat to commercial cores of towns in Mayo

BUSINESS tenants are being told to leave properties as landlords avail of the repair and lease scheme to turn them into residential units.

The loss of commercial space in town centres as a result has been raised as a concern by Councillor Gerry Murray.

The Charlestown-based representative said he knows about a number of tenants running active businesses who have been asked to leave, he told a Claremorris-Swinford Municipal District meeting.

Something needs to be looked at in the regulations, he suggested, to prevent this from happening.

Concerns have been expressed to him about the commercial cores of towns being hollowed out, he said. Where a commercial unit becomes residential, it will have an impact on the town core.