Councillors back primary care centre proposal

LOCAL councillors have controversially given the green light for a new primary health care centre to be located on a site in Finglas West.

Dublin City Council (DCC) officials were given the go-ahead at a recent local area committee meeting to sell a plot of land bordered by Mellowes Road, Mellowes Avenue and Kildonan Road to the Health Service Executive (HSE) for the high priority centre.

At a previous meeting in June councillors rejected the proposal by a vote of 3-2, with Cllr Paul McAuliffe (FF), Cllr Bill Tormey (FG) and Sinn Fein’s Anthony Connaghan calling on officials to look for an alternative site in a counter motion.

That decision angered local Labour politicians who feared any delays could mean Finglas losing out on funding for the long-awaited health centre.

Following last month’s vote the HSE expressed disappointment and confirmed it would

“inevitably lead to delays

? in delivering the project.

However, during last week’s meeting Cllrs McAuliffe and Connaghan changed their minds and voted for the proposal to dispose of the land to the HSE.

The reversal means the health care centre plan will progress to the next stage, much to the delight of Labour councillor John Redmond.

“Finglas badly needs the GP facilities this health centre will bring and thankfully this sale will allow the project to go ahead,

? he said.

“I’ve been consistent on this project from day one and I’ve met with the Minister for Primary Care, Alex White, and the Tánaiste about the need for this centre in Finglas.

“Some councillors tried to muddy the waters around this vote suggesting there was a Plan B. Let’s be clear, we were asked to sell a site the HSE said was the only realistic site for the facility, nothing else.

“It was claimed another site could be found in eight weeks but if experts couldn’t find a better location in a year, then Sinn Fein and Fianna Fail sure weren’t going to find one in eight weeks. I’m glad Councillors Paul McAuliffe and Anthony Connaghan have done a U-turn on this and we can now move on to the next stage.

?

The centre is still expected to face opposition at the planning stage from local residents who had argued against locating it on the proposed site. The decision to back the HSE proposal will also anger locals who had been campaigning for the centre to be built in Finglas Village to help with the regeneration of the area.

“The HSE wishes to locate a new primary health care centre on a green field site to the west of Finglas at enormous expense and delay,

? said Sean Mooney of the Finglas Village Renewal group.

“Yes we agree the west and the south of Finglas need improved medical services, but to site the new high spec centre in the west would favour only one location to the detriment of the south, and to a lesser extent the north and the east.

“It would be more central and of long-term benefit to site such an advanced operation in the village which is equidistant from all the four main residential zones in the greater Finglas area. The village also has intrinsic advantages which go with its location such as access, pedestrian footfall and security.

?

The HSE expressed satisfaction that the plan can progress onto the next stage and said it was waiting for Dublin City Council to rubber stamp the proposal to dispose of the land at the Mellowes Road site.

“Following the review of a number of sites in the area the HSE identified the site as the preferred site for the construction of the proposed new Primary Care Centre for Finglas,

? a spokesperson said.

“The commercial terms for the disposal have been agreed with the officials of Dublin City Council and approved by the HSE.

?

The HSE also outlined its reasons for choosing the site.

“It is centrally located for the Primary Care Team’s catchment area which it is intended to serve; it has very good accessibility; it is well served by bus routes; it is a generous greenfield site and will have no impact on current services during the construction period; it provides future expansion capacity; facilitates the establishment of GP services in this area; and provides a synergy with the HSE Day Care Centre on Kildonan Road.

?