93% of Main Street residents and businesses object to the Council village scheme

WATCH:

Tallaght village residents carried out a door-to-door survey of 29 homes and businesses on Main Street, Tallaght, in the last week.

Main Street is potentially the most impacted under the current Part 8 active travel project.

27 of the 29 signed to confirm they object to several aspects of the proposed concept.

This signals an overwhelming 93% objection from both village residents and businesses to date.

The business surveyed include: Tax Assist, Salon Xpress, Broadline Recruiters, Tom Maher, The Barber Shop, Priory Dentist, Sherry Fitzgerald, Tena Takeaway, Sholin Beauty and Four Star Pizza.

Several businesses operating by the main street discussed the new Tallaght Village Enhancement Scheme with The Echo this week and showcased a mixture of optimism and pessimism about the upgrades expected in the near future.

The new enhancements are set to bring a more biodiverse look to the area and the council aims to introduce a ‘bus gate’, prioritising public transport and working to build a ‘quiet street.’

Irish Language Officer at Gaelpobail Tamhlachta Dawn Nic Íomhair helps to run Aon Scéal?, Tallaght’s bilingual café where patrons are encouraged to share their ‘cúpla focal’ or fluency in Irish.

Recent works to create the public realm enhancements outside of the café had impacted the business. “How much time is it going to take to do all the sections within the village?

“Will it have a big impact on the footfall again?”

She noted that it is positive that the local authority is looking to enhance the village and that the biodiversity changes proposed “look beautiful on plan”. However she called for caution when it comes to parking, which she noted was a concern of several customers.

Francesco Macari’s fish and chip shop by the Old Blessington Road junction is one of the food businesses that will experience the effect of the changes on Main Street.

Macari’s has been in business for over 50 years and is a family affair, with Francesco at the helm for 26 of those years.

He believes the buses will generate more traffic and is concerned about the changes to the current road layout impacting “passing trade”, such as cars stopping by for a quick pick-up of his meals.

“I’ve nothing against putting new lights up, new benches, doing up the footpaths. Fair enough – it’s nice.

“But to stop cars coming into the village, to stop passing trade coming into the village, that’s going to kill everybody.”

Molloy’s Bar and Grill Assistant Manager Alvin noted that questions still remain in regard to how deliveries will work out.

There’s also a concern with outdoor seating, which may lead patrons to believe they could drink outside of the pub, and combined with food offerings may lead to confusion when it comes to cleaning up any mess. Alvin noted that the establishment remains open to the street’s proposed new look if it gets people around and it gets people coming in for drinks.”

The survey carried out by residents included: We request our views and the impact this will have on our daily lives directly shape any changes imposed on our village.

We accepted the introduction of disc parking / permits on Main Street in the past as being for the “greater good” a few decades ago.

We reject the council proposal to remove ALL on street car parking on Main St. This equates to approx. 20 to 22 car spaces to the south side of Main St.

We demand fair treatment, the same as was afforded to Lucan and Templeogue villages in 2022. Lucan lost no on-street car spaces and Templeogue got 38 new spaces.”

Tallaght Community Council (TCC) are supporting the residents and businesses in their opposition to the current design proposed by SDCC.

They are holding a public meeting on this issue next Wednesday evening, April 15. All SDCC councillors will be invited to attend to hear directly from the village residents and businesses.

The meeting venue is to be confirmed, please keep an eye on the TCC socials for more details.