How public money is spent in Navan

Dear sir - Last Tuesday night in the chamber of Navan Town Council a meeting took place in which four councillors voted to contribute €350,000 of taxpayer's money towards a private refurbishment scheme of Beechmount Retail Park. The four councillors in question were Anton McCabe (Lab), Francis Deane (Ind), Joe Reilly (SF) and Peadar Tobin (SF). This substantial sum of money was our block grant from government towards road and footpath improvement works in Navan for 2009. It has now been simply handed over to this retail park. According to town manager, Eugene Cummins, problems arose as to the original intentions for this money and after meeting business people in Beechmount Park, he proposed that the money should go to them. I sought drawings and specific details as to the exact items the public's money would be funding in this scheme. I did not receive that information because as I have stated the councillors voted to simply hand over this money to Beechmount Traders Association for their project. Not one of these councillors sought to even find out the smallest detail as to how this money would be spent. Why I write this letter is that just one day after this meeting, I listened to Cllr Joe Reilly talking on the radio about cuts to local government funding and the impact it would have on frontline services. Yet here was the same man spending money on a job that was not even on the books of Navan Town Council. Lest I forget, the budget for 2010 will be passed in the next month. Last year the Sinn Fein group tried to increase parking charges by 10 per cent after Eugene Cummins had tried to put them up by 30 per cent. I urge everybody to keep a close eye on what these four men attempt this Christmas and remember what they promised you last June. Yours, Cllr Shane Cassells MCC, Oakleigh, Navan.