NAAS 01 April 2003: As someone who uses these ways to allow my children to safely walk from Kingsfurze to where we are going, I am disappointed that the safe access route has been closed.
The walkway network through the town is an excellent resource. I provide the motive power for a double buggy with the walkway network through the town, and I can get from Kingsfurze through Roselawn, onto the Blessington road then through Sunday's Well's walkway across the top of Lakelands and then across the railway walk and from there to the graveyard around the lakes and back via the swimming pool field. All with minimum amount of being beside a road. The integrated network that this provides is an excellent resource, that is a credit to town planners in the past.
This network means that Daire (3 months) can watch the passing scenery in safety hearing more than just traffic, Columb (2) can safely hop up and down from the buggy as he pleases to (as he did yesterday) chase a crow from the green in Roselawn and Caoimhe (4) and Claire (5) can move around me and explore freely without fear of the many dangerous drivers that occupy the roads of Naas. This closing off of pedestrian ways continues the process of degradation of family freedoms and closes of safe journey's of exploration such as this. (I note the Sunday's well residents are also looking to circle the wagons and close off that pathway also). It is a sad day to read this report.
I note the claim by the town council officials that the appropriate legislation had been adhered to and I dispute that statement. The legislation states where and when the signage must be erected. How long that signage must be erected for. That was not adhered to. Within two days of posting the statutory notice it was removed by people unknown.
Legally I understood that the sign should have been re-erected by the town council as many times as was necessary during the statutory period. I verified the matter with the Department of the Environment. I informed, in writing the town council, of this, but I note that no action was taken.
Possibly the reason why the public process received so few submissions is because the public who will be affected by such were not informed due to the absence of the statutory signage.
I have a sympathy with the residents of the area with reference to the problems that they are experiencing, but why should the innocents suffer along with the guilty? Why not bring the forces of law and order down on these types. Where are the community wardens (or should I more correctly say parking attendants who are called community wardens). I remember at the launch of the scheme where Naas was picked as a pilot area, Minister Dempsey's words as to what he saw the role of the wardens as being. That is not at present, as I see it, happening in Naas.
If we start down this road of removing and blocking up amenities, should we not also do the following: remove all seating by the canal, as sometimes people use them to drink at. Remove the picnic tables at the lakes (sure, I know in the summer families use them, but so could unsocial elements also), remove bus shelters as people might congregate in them. Remove the playground in Monread, as I saw an empty can of cider near there last week. In fact, close off all green areas, as who knows who could be walking through them.
There needs to be a balance - we cannot let our town become hostages to the few antisocial elements. We cannot slide further towards fortress Naas.
I hear lament in the council chamber for the passing of the days when there was stronger sense of community in Naas. How can we redevelop such when we isolate ourselves off from each other? Hostages to the antisocial few.
No, I say, do not remove amenities for the people of Naas. Enforce the litter laws, enforce the drink laws, get our community wardens that the community is paying for out of the car parks and into the community. Remove and curfew the abusers of those amenities. Zero tolerance. Perhaps if this had occurred, Roselawn residents wouldn't have been forced to go the way they went.
