Municipal District chair calls for progress on Camden Fort Meagher

A MASTER plan for Camden Fort Meagher, which cost the taxpayer €100,000, needs to be progressed as soon as possible because it appears to have ‘stagnated’, according to the newly-elected chairperson of Bandon Kinsale Municipal District, Cllr Aidan Lombard.

Speaking following his election to the post at their recent AGM, held in the fort in Crosshaven, Cllr Lombard (FG) didn’t waste any time in calling the Council out on this matter.

‘The fact that we’re here in Camden, it would be remiss of me not to mention that this place is run by volunteers and the enormous job they do and I think it’s important that we in Cork County Council are supportive of that,’ said Cllr Lombard.

Cllr Lombard said the Fort is a small bit ‘rudderless’ at the moment due to the fact that they are waiting on a manager and a master plan, which he said was launched three months ago.

‘There’s no direction here and no way of progressing things here, and everything that is proposed to be done has stagnated. 

‘While we are sitting here, there’s a master plan in County Hall that the taxpayer has paid €100,000 for, and we need to get it published so this place can push on.’

Currently Camden Fort Meagher is only open at weekends from June until September and is staffed by volunteers.

Cllr Lombard also added that it’s important that they, as councillors in the Bandon Kinsale Municipal District, represent the southern half of Carrigaline – a town that will be the biggest town in the county – which is part of Bandon Kinsale Municipal District.

Cllr Lombard was elected chairperson unopposed after being nominated by his colleague Cllr Kevin Murphy and seconded by Cllr James O’Donovan (FG).

Cllr O’Donovan was  later elected vice-chairperson after being proposed by Cllr Kevin Murphy and seconded by Cllr Rachel McCarthy (SF). 

In congratulating Cllr Lombard, Cllr Alan Coleman (Ind) quipped that, like The Southern Star with Russia, he would be keeping a close eye on him in case he influenced spending by diverting it to the eastern side of the Municipal District!

Outgoing chairperson Cllr McCarthy thanked her fellow members and Council staff for their help over the past 12 months during her tenure as chairperson. 

She said one of the highlights of the year was visiting Newport, which is twinned with Kinsale, and seeing how twinning actually works.

She said she hopes that the deputation from Newport will visit Bandon on their return visit.