All-day parkers pushed to rear of Blackhall

Workers are set to be deterred from all-day parking in parts of Blackhall car park, in order to keep the spaces nearest the town free for shoppers.

The €3 all-day fee zones in front of the mural, in front of the Blackhall Place roundabout, and on the stretch in front of Apache Pizza are to be abolished, and motorists wanting to park in all-day spaces will have to park further away from the town centre.

The decision, originally made by members of the Mullingar Kinnegad Municipal District at their March meeting, moved a step closer to fruition at the September meeting, held last week, where council official Pat Keating revealed that the move would yield the council a potential €20,000 in parking fees.

Mr Keating explained that in Blackhall, there is a total of 518 spaces, including nine disabled spaces and two electric vehicle charging bays.

Under the new system, 123 spaces will be rezoned, and a maximum stay of two hours will be allowed in those.

He said it was believed that shoppers would be more likely to park at Blackhall if they knew they could park closer to the town centre.

A warm welcome for the change came from Cllr Emily Wallace, who felt it would go a long way to helping shoppers realise they could park a short walk from the shops.

She went on to ask that any additional parking fees generated be reinvested in the town.

Cllr Ken Glynn asked that the council consider extending the rezoning to the car park adjacent to the council buildings, while the MKMD chairman, Cllr Bill Collentine, said that he felt the move would encourage shoppers in to the town.

Council officials told members that the change will not come into effect immediately, as there will have to be signage erected and advertising of the changes undertaken.