“We have waited too long; we desperately need the department to fund this,” says Shay L’Estrange, coordinator with Ballyfermot Traveller Action Project.
Many of those who sleep rough haven’t had anywhere to wash for weeks, says Louisa Santoro, CEO of the Mendicity Institution. This is in part because some can’t get into accommodation still either, she says.
Three Ireland has applied for planning permission to build a 19-metre telecommunications mast on Sundrive Road, for “2G voice, 3G and 4G data service provision in the area”.
Allotments were closed roughly five weeks ago, but there has been ongoing debate around whether it was the right step. Meanwhile, some growers have found stopgaps.
Some cities worldwide – from Los Angeles to Sydney – have switched pedestrian crossing buttons to automatic timers, so people don’t have to touch them to activate.
At Labre Park in Ballyfermot, some are calling for more caravans for those who may need them to self-isolate. But Dublin City Council said that overcrowding meant they planned instead to move people off-site.
Some suburbs have only a vast open field of grass, but these days there’s more demand for smaller, better-maintained parks, trees, allotments, and playgrounds.
With a drop in rates and other revenue streams – and the need to ramp up some services – the council will have to turn to a bail-out from central government, say councillors.
