Letter to the Editor: The Green is a sacred Mayo space and must remain so
Sir,
THE recently published article in The Connaught Telegraph by Dr. Michael M. O’Connor summed up very eloguently what I believe is the view of most Castlebar people regarding the proposed 'renewal project' for The Green or The Mall.
The headline read: 'The Mall Master Plan: Public Consultation – Let’s Not Go There'.
To the vast majority of Castlebar people, The Green is a 'sacred space' and woe betide anyone who dares to mess it up on us!
The Mall Master Plan is full of jargon and difficult to understand statements.
For instance, page two mentions it could be a 'a multi-functional public space that can establish itself as the heart of the town'.
Surely that’s exactly what The Mall/The Green is today?
The PROJECT AREA outlined on page two states Rock Square at the west end of The Mall and the monument at the east, with Christchurch to the west end of The Mall.
How in the name of Moses on high can both Rock Square and Christchurch be to the west of The Mall?
What is actually meant by the words on page three 'an urban surface on The Green, robust enough to cater for additional community purposes?'
Is it intended to put down concrete on portion of The Green? Perhaps build another skate park even?
It is stated on page four that The Mall’s original link to Christchurch and Rock Square has been 'dissolved' by the bounding roads and no longer functions as a significant thoroughfare. And is that a problem? And if so for whom exactly?
Page five states that 'The Green has become detached from the migrated town commercial centre'. Can someone please tell us when was The Green ever considered part of the true commercial centre of Castlebar?
Again on page five it is stated that 'The surrounding roads and parking around The Green create a 'clash' between pedestrian and vehicle'.
What clash is spoken about here? What’s the real intention here? Are the roads around The Green going to be a traffic-free zone and all that area pedestrianised?
On page six, under Strategic Deliveries, it states 're-establish The Mall as a key pedestrian thoroughfare'. It is fully pedestrianised and always has been, as far as I know.
The plan seeks to provide a new 'accessible urban square'. To my mind that means concrete! I remain to be convinced that a single blade of grass should be removed.
Regarding the historic Imperial Hotel, it is a shame on us all that we, by doing nothing, permitted the powers that be to let it deteriorate into the ruin it is today.
The proposed establishment of an innovation hub there (by the way, I thought we had one already at ATU) is not a proper location in my opinion.
As part of the Military Barracks is to be used as an educational centre, and that’s a positive move, why not have the new innovation centre located there too?
That would allow for the Military Barracks to be transformed into a proper educational area, with space, good location and accessibility, and encourage collaboration by students and staff and become a valuable centre of learning for our town.
Yes, fix the drainage problems, widen the paths a little, enhance the lighting and install a few more seats.
Invest the money where it is most needed in our town, for instance to regenerate Ellison Street from the eyesore it is now, and please don’t ruin our Mall and Green. It’s sacred to us all in Castlebar and you won’t be forgiven if you mess it up.
Yours sincerely,
Tom Murphy, Castlebar.