A Travellers advocate in Sligo says the only way to solve issues arising from members of an extended family living in a car park in the town for the past 30 years is to provide them with suitable accommodation.
It comes after complaints at this week’s meeting of the county council about the dismantling of vehicles and the keeping of animals in the public local authority car park.
The issue arose at yesterday’s monthly meeting of Sligo County Council when Fianna Fail Councillor Tom MacSharry asked that the council deal with what he described as scrap dismantling and disposal operation at the Connaughton Road Car Park.
Cllr MacSharry said he had received over 100 complaints from residents and business owners.
Council Director of Services Tom Kilfeather said the council had put considerable time and resources into trying to resolve the issue.
However, Bernadette Maughan of the Sligo Traveller Support, told the North West Today Show that complaints about the family living in the Connaughton Road car park is now becoming an annual event.
She says providing accommodation to the family is the way to deal with the situation.
Meanwhile, Finbar Filan, of Sligo Business Improvement District, says the Connaughton Road car park is affecting the image, or ‘perception’, of Sligo town.
He appealed again for all sides to come together to try to solve the long-running issue.
