Calls from business owners to increase Garda presence in Ballina

Four in every five business owners in Ballina believe there is a need for increased Garda presence on the streets of the town.

A Business Outlook survey was conducted by the Ballina Chamber of Commerce for the first six weeks of 2024. It found that 80% of respondents believe there is a need for increased levels of Gardaí on the streets of the North Mayo capital. Only 4% of respondents said there was no need for an increased Garda presence and a further 4% had no opinion on the matter.

Sheila Clarke, who runs Clarke’s XL on Pound Street, appeared on national radio last December to express her frustration at the rise in thefts and drive-offs at her family-run filling station. She told the Western People on Monday that the situation has not improved in the early weeks of 2024.

“It is constant,” she said. “The Gardaí are doing the best they can under the circumstances but you still get the attitude a lot of the time that it is only a tenner or it is only an isolated incident, but if you add them all up, it is a lot.

“We had to rearrange the shop at one point to move Red Bull because it was sprouting legs and walking out the door,” she remarked.

Ms Clarke said she would welcome an increased Garda presence on the streets in Ballina.

“If there was greater visibility, people who are up to no good might think twice before trying something. I would love to see it myself and it would make the retailers feel more comfortable.”

Ms Clarke said it often feels as if retailers are the forgotten victims of petty crime.

“I understand the Gardaí are limited in their resources but it is all coming back on the retailers. There is a feeling that the law is not on your side as the victim. It feels like the law is on the side of the perpetrator.

“It is difficult because you are trying to uphold the law yet these people come in and they blatantly flaunt the law and you’re left trying to defend yourself.”

One survey respondent said Kathleen Lynn Lane was an area of the town that needs greater Garda attention.

This respondent said they feel unsafe when walking back to their car from here in the early hours of the evening.

“Kathleen Lynn Lane has become exceptionally anti-social. Something needs to be done,” they said.

“[There is] underage drinking, teenagers vaping and it generally feels very unsafe when walking to my car at six after work,” said the respondent about Kathleen Lynn Lane, off O’Rahilly Street. “[We] absolutely need more policing in this area or for this access to be closed in the evening.”

Another respondent said the gardaí need to be out walking the streets of Ballina at the weekend. Other respondents to the survey expressed frustration at the Garda reporting system when crimes occur.

“There is a need for the gardaí to work with the community, including the businesses and residents who run a business,” said one business owner. “They won’t even take a telephone call locally without directing you to some call centre up the country.

“There is no visible Garda presence and no support for town centre, or businesses around the outskirts who are at risk of petty and serious crime.”