‘Enough is enough’: Councillors’ anger as Ballyfermot gambling arcade plans resubmitted
Councillors have reacted with anger at renewed efforts to build a gambling arcade in the Dublin suburb of Ballyfermot.
Last month, a planning application for a gambling arcade submitted by Ger Ryan in Ballyfermot was withdrawn following a campaign by local councillors and residents against it.
But earlier this month, a very similar application was made for the same site, at 304 Ballyfermot Road, under a different name, Alejandro Garcia.
If approved by Dublin City Council, the proposal would turn the former butcher into a gambling arcade.
Sinn Féin councillor Daithí Doolan said he “couldn’t believe it” when he saw the latest arcade application.
"When the last one was rejected on a technicality, I thought great. But then to hear about it again, I was frustrated, I was angry. But you have to channel that energy into something positive,” he said.
Sinn Féin is organising a public meeting on the proposal at 7:30pm today at the Ballyfermot Civic Centre, with Mr Doolan adding that it would help people get the facts of the application and planning process.
“Gambling has nothing to offer this community. I have seen gambling bring whole families to their knees,” he said. “Gambling addiction brings nothing but misery and debt to families and their communities.”
"We have too many bookies and betting shops here in Ballyfermot. It is time for us to say enough is enough.”
Green Party councillor Ray Cunningham submitted an objection to the latest application, saying that the city’s development plan does not permit such arcades in this area.
"The reason why gambling establishments are not permissible uses in [Zone 4] areas, is that these establishments are a plague on communities,” he wrote.
A planning statement produced by Coakley O’Neill Planning said the development would “respond to a recent trend in closures in the local area,” citing the shuttered Gala Bingo Hall and Win-Win Bingo, which was operated out of the local community centre.
They added that the proposal would bring a “long-term vacant” unit back into active use, and would create seven full-time jobs on opening, with more employment supported by the fit-out.
"This would help to retain and revitalise the mixed-use character of the area while also animating the public realm by contributing to an animated streetscape within a retail and commercial core,” it said.
The statement said the city development plan has a presumption against developing gaming arcades close to schools and churches, however there is both a primary school and church to the east of the site.