Four locations identified for casual trading in Mayo town

Four locations in Castlebar are being designated for casual trading where vendors and stall-holders can sell their goods and wares.

Mayo County Council is proposing new by-laws that will see the following areas in the county town designated for casual trading: Hopkins' Road Car Park (next to Tesco), Market Square Plaza, Castle Lane and Lough Lannagh Car Park. All four locations will offer a mixture of trading stall pitches and designated spaces for mechanically propelled vehicles.

A range of licence fees is proposed for the various locations and casual trading licences will normally be issued for 12 months, with consideration given to seasonal trading licences. Fees under consideration include €1,200 for a pitch at Hopkins' Road, €1,600 for a pitch at Market Square, €950 for a pitch at Castle Lane (all for trading on Saturdays between 8am and 8pm) and €2,000 for a pitch at Lough Lannagh Car Park, with trading allowed there for three days of the week between Monday and Sunday. It is proposed to locate two trading pitches for mechanically propelled vehicles at a coffee dock at Lough Lannagh, beside the car park, and to re-locate a tree in the vicinity to accommodate the designated trading area.

At Castle Lane, which can be accessed from the bottom of Bridge Street in Castlebar or through the Castle Street car park, five pitches have been allocated alongside one pitch for a mechanically propelled vehicle.

At Market Square, five pitches and two spaces for mechanically propelled vehicles are allocated, while at Hopkins' Road, just to the left of the Tesco Car Park entrance, five casual trading pitches are allocated.

It is also proposed that Farmers' Market licence holders will be subject to an annual fee of €800 for trading on Fridays between 8am and 8pm at Hopkins' Road Car Park, Market Square Plaza and Castle Lane.

The council notes that casual trading licences will also be available for one-off events, at a proposed fee of €65 per day, and that the Farmers' Market, which will be restricted to selling agricultural/horticultural produce as well as fish, food and locally-produced crafts, shall be held on a Friday (unless it falls on March 17th, December 25th or 26th or January 1st).

Applicants seeking to obtain a casual trading licence must complete an application form to be submitted to the council at least 30 days before the first days of trading and will be required to have full public liability insurance, indemnifying the council against any claims. Traders will also be subject to a host of rules and regulations as outlined in the by-laws.

Once the new by-laws are passed, they will revoke the previous Municipal District of Castlebar Casual Trading By-Laws made in February 2020.

Members of the public are being invited to make submissions on the new bye-laws by Monday July 7 either in writing to the Head of Castlebar Municipal District, Mayo County Council, Arás an Chontae, The Mall, Castlebar, Co. Mayo or by email to castlebarao@mayococo.ie while the full plan can be viewed online at https://www.mayo.ie/en-ie/news/castlebar-municipal-district-draft-casual-trading or a copy can be inspected at Aras an Chontae until June 23.