Cllrs hit out at 'fake news' surrounding Mayo project
Public consultation has taken place on the project.
Councillors have hit out at some of the ‘fake news’ surrounding the proposed Mall project in Castlebar.
Cllr Donna Sheridan said “fake news” about the project was circulated online.
She told a meeting of Castlebar Municipal District that some of the commentary about the development was “absolute balderdash.” “None of us want to destroy the Mall which is the beating heart of Castlebar,” Cllr Sheridan added.
Cllr Deere remarked that “keyboard warriors” should “stop spreading misinformation.” “You would think we were going to concrete over the Mall or turn it into a multi-storey park,” he stated.
David Mellett, head of Castlebar Municipal District said some of the misinformation surrounding the Mall project was “frustrating.” A public information day on the development recently took place. “There isn’t a budget to do any major transformation here. It’s about protecting the character while addressing some very practical issues,” said Mr Mellett at a press briefing.
Niall Taylor, Director of Castlebar-based Taylor McCarney Architects, who will be designing the project, said the company is acutely aware of the importance of the Mall to Castlebar.
“At the end of the day this is the town’s park. We know that. We are from the town,” said Mr Taylor.
“It’s a parkland, it will remain a parkland. That’s not to say that there aren’t improvements and enhancements. When we look at something like this from an urban design perspective, we are not just looking at the Mall in isolation. We are looking at how that might interact with the Imperial and the spaces between the Imperial and the Mall. We are looking at the Barracks, and the Ellison Street back lands and how these things will interconnect,” he added.
Feedback from the consultation process will inform an emerging design proposal, which will undergo further public engagement before any works proceed.
