Council looks to enhance roundabouts in Nenagh

A move to enhance the image of Nenagh by developing all the major roundabouts on the approaches to the town is being considered by local councillors.

The idea - to get local businesses to sponsor works on the roundabouts - was floated by the District Administrator, Rosemary Joyce, at the February meeting of the Nenagh Municipal District Authority.

Ms Joyce said a similar plan had been discussed in the past by members of the now defunct Nenagh Town Council. However, it had not been acted on for various reasons.

She said the idea has been put back on the agenda again as an option that could be explored by the elected members.

It was something that the council could refer to the new Town Team for consideration before being brought back to councillors for their views.

Cllr Hughie McGrath, recalling why he and his fellow members of the town council had not proceeded with a similar previous plan, said they were concerned that the sponsorship of the roundabouts would be hogged by the large multiple retailers who had much deeper pockets than the small and medium sized shops and other businesses in the town.

One of the fears was that a multiple could sponsor a roundabout and then put up a large sign exclusively advertising their local branch at the site.

All the work that elected members had done was aimed at enhancing businesses in the core of the town. These shops were under pressure due to the existence of the big international retailers that had branches in the locality.

District Manager, Marcus O’ Connor, said one of the aims of any scheme was that smaller businesses in the area would get a fair crack of the whip.

Ms Joyce said, that as part of a sponsorship of a roundabout, the sponsor would be allowed erect a small promotional sign.

Cllr Seamus Morris said he was on the town council when such a scheme was rejected. The town had developed and moved on since those days and he would now be prepared to reconsider such a plan if the costs of sponsorship were not made prohibitive for local shops and businesses to consider.

EXPENSIVE

Maintaining the roundabouts on the approaches to the town was an expensive business and if the sponsorship aided the local Tidy Towns group to do even better work on enhancing Nenagh then such a move might be worth making.

Other towns around the country had entered into sponsorship deals with companies, and it was something that could not be explored in Nenagh.

For years the council members had been concerned about the threat posed by the multiples to business in the town centre, but in his view trade in the core of Nenagh seemed to be going well and there was lots of money being spent in shops in the centre.

Ms Joyce said she would be prepared to talk to councils responsible for towns were such schemes exist to see if a similar concept could be introduced in Nenagh.

Cllr Hughie McGrath said roundabouts on the approaches to Clonmel were sponsored by companies. It was a town with an urban core that was currently facing huge challenges.

Mr O’ Connor said there were five roundabouts that could be considered under the scheme, three on the N52 bypass of the town as well as the others at the Junction 24 and 26 exits from the M7.

No decision was made by councillors who agreed to discuss the issue again at a future meeting.