Time to save the barracks?

Councillors go to war with department over military barracks

Proposals by Nenagh councillors for restoration works at the old crumbling Military Barracks in the town have stepped up a gear with angrily uttered demands for immediate action by the Department of Defence to prevent the historic site becoming a complete ruin.

Speaking at the January meeting of Nenagh Municipal District, Cllr Seamus Morris said he made several attempts to talk to the department about the future of the barracks but its officials were not really engaging with him.

He called for the site to be cleared up and the matter put on the agenda for every meeting of the district until concrete action was taken by the department.

He said there had also been no action from the department on his request to carry out a title search in relation to the properties on the site. They were ignoring requests to engage on such issues.

There were some beautiful buildings on the site and it was vital the district ensure that they were properly maintained. “The department seems to be wiping its hands on the Military Barracks site,” said Cllr Morris.

Cllr John “Rocky” McGrath said the department had plenty of maintenance staff who, if dedicated to the site, could tidy it up in a short amount of time. “If they put in a hundred people on the site for a couple of months it would make a huge difference and give the site the lift it needs,” he said.

Cathaoirleach Cllr Michael O’ Meara said the campaign to do something on the site was gaining momentum. He understood it would take a huge amount of money to restore the barracks itself, but it was something the district authority should work on.

BEAUTIFUL SITE

He said there was no better time to start the works, given that it was now a century since the British vacated the building and handed it over to the Irish Free State.

“I had a very good look at it over Christmas and it is an absolutely beautiful site. It’s probably the best site in Nenagh, and we should look at its preservation and get the full backing of the Department of Defence,” said Cllr O Meara.

He added: “Instead of this dragging of feet we should set up a Zoom meeting with the department to establish what its proposals for the site are going forward and try to put it back in its original condition.”

District Administrator, Rosemary Joyce, said correspondence had been sent to the department and it had issued a reply in relation to the registration of title in regard to the site, which stated that a deed of assurance was pending. The department had said it was looking at a clean-up of the site and would revert to the council in due course on that matter.

Cllr Morris said the pace at which the department was working was “very very slow”. He said the council should put in a request for a Zoom meeting in order to clarify a number of issues. One of the issues to be addressed was to establish who exactly owns the properties on the site.

“It appears to me that the department don’t know who owns what in there. This site is of massive strategic value to the town and the department don’t seem to give a dam about the people living around the site. We will be scratching our heads some day over not acting sooner on this.”

HAZARD

Cllr Morris went on to say there were gaps in the fencing around the barracks which made it a hazard if any child should wander on to the derelict building. It was now time that the council started to dictate the pace at which things happened on the site rather than go along with the foot dragging of the department.

Cllr O’ Meara said he would try to set up a Zoom meeting with the department. Rather than putting it on the long finger, the council should send out a message that it wanted immediate action because the site was derelict and becoming dangerous.

Ms Joyce said she would make contact with the department to request a Zoom meeting.

Referring to the old water tower on the site, Cllr Morris proposed that it be visually enhanced by painting a mural on it. He produced photographic example of how Australia had transformed the look of similar structures with murals and he felt consideration should be given to similar projects in Tipperary.