Former Waterford TD questions council’s €125k pedestrian crossing request to local school
Matt Shanahan criticised Waterford City and County Council’s planning condition in a post on social media
A former Waterford TD has questioned the council’s request for a local school to pay €125,000 towards the installation of a pedestrian crossing.
Matt Shanahan took to social media after final planning permission was granted for the redevelopment of Gaelcholáiste Phort Láirge.
The school has been granted planning permission to proceed with its plans for its grounds in Bishopscourt, Ballygunner.
It comes after an appeal was made to An Coimisiún Pleanála over the conditions attached to the planning permission granted by Waterford City and County Council.
The council had requested that the school make a ‘special contribution’ of €125,000 for the development of a pedestrian crossing outside the school.
The school argued that this represented an excessive fee.
Furthermore, under the conditions proposed by the local authority, the school would have had to realign the public road adjacent to the school development site.
The school argued that this was the council’s responsibility and that it was something that should have been done a number of years ago.
In the appeal that followed, An Coimisiún Pleanála ruled in the school’s favour and the conditions were removed.
Former Independent TD Matt Shanahan took to social media in the aftermath of the decision.
In a post on Facebook, he wrote: “As a councillor and TD working to achieve this project, I received final departmental approval for a new school build by the Education Minister on June 30, 2022.
“Now, August 2026 and only now the final system hurdles are being cleared.
“€125k council cost request to appoint a Pedestrian crossing? I know of five companies who would install it for €25k with pleasure and with profit!”
Mr Shanahan went on to lament the amount of bureaucracy involved in the delivery of such projects.
“We are going nowhere fast in Ireland and in Waterford when public bureaucracy and cost dysfunction are the main obstacles to developing opportunities for our kids, education and other areas aside.
“This is not even accounting for the impacts ongoing to preserving our native language in Gaeltacht na Déise.”
“Four years on from ministerial approval, we are well past the point of ‘get the finger out’ on this project.”
He argued that the redevelopment of the school was reflective of larger problems with the delivery of capital infrastructure in Ireland.
“We are now in the arena of ‘call 999 and check for pulses in our depts and local councils delivery offices’.
“‘Physical incapacitation’, ‘tied up and awaiting ransom’ or ‘dead at the desk’ are likely the only plausible explanations at this point to this project delay?
“Anyone who believes Ireland is a first world country in capital infrastructure development must spend most of their time in the Gobi Desert.
“This dysfunction is a flag waving banner for our national failing competitiveness which politicians on all sides continue to ignore.”
He concluded by calling on all those involved in the delivery of the project to “get on with it for heaven’s sake”.