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In an interview published in the current edition of ‘Business Sligo’, Sligo
County Council’s James Walsh, talks about how the One Stop Shop, Teach Laighne
came to fruition in Tubbercurry
Download the Interview by
Clicking Here
or read the interview below.
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Can you take us through the process of how the
‘One Stop Shop’ came to fruition?
Teach Laighne in Tubbercurry opened its doors to
the public of South Sligo in 2003. However,
preparation and planning had begun much earlier.
In October 1997 it was agreed at a meeting of
Sligo County Council to make a submission to the
Minister for the Environment to have Tubbercurry
considered as a location for a pilot “One Stop
Shop” initiative. The fact that the application
was successful was due in no small way to the
quality of the submission made and also to the
efforts of the former Councillor and Dáil Deputy
Mattie Brennan who was especially helpful in a
number of ways.
A total of eight properties were acquired from
seven different owners and construction
commenced in 2001. Funding for the project came
from a variety of sources including the
Department of the Environment and Local
Government, An Comhairle Leabharlanna, Motor
Taxation, the Court Services and a significant
investment by Sligo County Council.
What hurdles had to be overcome?
In determining a location for the
project, a number of sites were considered.
However, it was decided that the greatest impact
could be made by choosing an area close to the
town centre but which had been neglected over a
long number of years for various reasons.
Quite a number of properties in Tubbercurry and
particularly on Humbert Street did not have
freehold title but were occupied on leases or in
some cases sub-leases. This situation meant that
property owners were reluctant to improve the
buildings as they were unsure whether following
improvement, a claim might be made on their
property by a third party of whom they were
unaware.
By using the provisions of the Derelict Sites
Act to acquire the properties, the Council were
in a position to establish clear title and
proceed without having the worries of the
previous occupants.
In providing this facility, what does it
aim to achieve?
There were a number of objectives in mind when
this facility was first mooted. The obvious aim
is to deliver from one premise a co-ordinated
range of public services. In addition to having
an Area Office for Sligo County Council, Teach
Laighne also hosts the Community Library, Motor
Taxation Office, Planning and Housing Clinics,
Department of Social & Family Affairs, Sligo
Citizen’s Information Service and FÁS together
with the Environmental Health, Social Work,
Family Welfare Conference and Community Welfare
departments of the Health Service Executive. The
Courts Service also holds the monthly sitting of
the District Court in the building on the fourth
Wednesday of each month.
Would you agree that this investment in
South Sligo has served as a catalyst to other
important developments in the area?
The venture has shown itself to be very
effective in a number of ways. The Community
Library has been the major player in introducing
the facility to the general public and figures
show that the Motor Taxation office for example
is now handling approximately 20% of all the
Drivers Licence and Taxation transactions for
the County and is also processing all of the
parking offences queries.
One of the most satisfying aspects of the scheme
is the use that is being made of the building by
voluntary and community groups from the area. In
the design of the project two of the original
houses were retained in order to preserve the
streetscape and the ground floor of these is now
used as a meeting/activity room by a wide range
of organisations. These include such regular
users as the local Active Age group, Gallagher
House Resource Centre, Bridge Club, Chess &
Draughts Club and Tubbercurry Women’s Group
together with a host of other occasional users.
Other benefits have also followed as a result of
this initiative; the building itself has made a
significant improvement to the image of the town
as it is approached from the Sligo direction and
other owners who have renovated premises in the
area have indeed added to this. A measure of the
confidence being shown is the fact that 3 new
business premises have opened within metres of
Teach Laighne inside the last 2 years. The
people of Tubbercurry and the surrounding areas
now have a facility they are proud of and this
was perhaps best illustrated when An Taoiseach,
Mr. Bertie Ahern, who incidentally had turned
the first sod some years previously, opened an
Art Exhibition here in April 2005.
If you have any queries on the services provided
at Teach Laighne please feel free to contact
(071) 9111706. Teach Laighne – serving the
people of South Sligo.
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