By Cianna McNally

info@monaghanlife.ie

THE security of Belgium Park football pitch is to be re-examined by Monaghan Town Council.

This decision was made after anti-social behaviour concerns in the area were raised by Councillor Paul McGeown at a recent meeting. According to Cllr McGeown, broken glass and discarded rubbish is creating a health and safety risk for those who use the pitch for sports and he questioned the security of it. In response, Town Engineer Gareth McMahon said that while he would have liked to keep the pitch locked, it was decided at previous meetings to leave it open for walkers. However, Mr McMahon added that a lock had been put on the front of the dug-out to stop loitering

Councillor Seamus Treanor said that it would be “disappointing” for all who use the Belgium Park facility if it was to close due to the anti-social behaviour and asked if the Gardaí could help with the security issue. Cllr Pàdraigín Uí Mhurachadha supported Cllr Treanor’s suggestion that the Gardaí would become involved. However, Cllr Robbie Gallagher said that while nobody wanted to take the pitch away from the public he did not know if involving the Gardaí was a good idea. “There are different access points to the area and it would be difficult to police.” Cllr Gallagher also acknowledged that there was “no straightforward solution” to resolve the issue.

Fine Gael’s Mary Carroll suggested that a leaflet drop would be done around the area to alert people to the importance of keeping the pitch open and encourage them to call the Gardaí if they witnessed any anti-social behaviour. This suggestion was supported by Cathaoirleach Sean Conlon who added that the telephone number of Monaghan Town Council should be included on the leaflets.

Ideas to resolve the security problem at the football pitch include employing a key-holder who would take responsibility for locking the gates every night. The issue is to be further discussed by members at a later meeting of the local authority.