Minutes 2024

Minutes of Meeting of the Borough District of Sligo Held on Wednesday 30th October 2024 at 10.00 A.M. in the Council Chamber, City Hall, Quay Street, Sligo.


COUNCILLORS PRESENT:

  • Councillor Declan Bree
  • Councillor Arthur Gibbons
  • Councillor Nessa Cosgrove
  • Councillor Fergal Nealon
  • Councillor Gino O'Boyle

 

OFFICIALS IN ATTENDANCE:

  • Ms. Dorothy Clarke, Director of Services.
  • Ms. Marie Whelan, Head of Finance.
  • Mr. Thomas Kerins, A/ Senior Executive Engineer.
  • Ms. Orla Murrin, Staff Officer

 

DEPUTY MAYOR:

Councillor Gino O'Boyle presided.

 

ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE MEETING:

The Deputy Mayor welcomed all present to the meeting, before handing proceedings to Ms Marie Whelan, Head of Finance.

 

1. TO CONSIDER THE DRAFT 2024 BUDGETARY PLAN FOR THE BOROUGH OF SLIGO MUNICIPAL DISTRICT.

Ms. Whelan informed Members that the draft budgetary plan contained items of
discretionary expenditure that applies to all three Municipal Districts.

Ms. Whelan went on to advise Members as follows:

  • The additional 15% LPT for the Council equated to be €735,000 for 2025; an increase

on the 2024 amount of €17,919.

  • In 2025 Sligo County Council are continuing to provide a gross amount of €400,000

for Housing Grants that will be match funded with €80,000 from the additional LPT

15% increase.

  • €305,000 from the LPT towards the Local Roads Programme and ongoing Footpath

Improvement Scheme along with €100,000 from Development Levies.

  • D05 Tourism Development and Promotion includes €100,000 from LPT.
  • €75,000 is included for E09 – Maintenance of Burial Grounds.
  • €100,000 is included for funding salaries within dereliction E1004.
  • €75,000 is included at F0204 – Purchase of Library Books.
  • The additional Rates Income for borrowings for the Regional Growth Centre Projects

is included in D0901 – Urban and Village Renewal. €700,000 potentially allows
borrowings of €15m @ 3.25% interest over 40 years for part of the matching funding
required.

Ms. Whelan confirmed that with no other additional income all other lines in the draft
budgetary plans are stated at the 2024 budget amounts.

Councillors Nealon, Cosgrove and Gibbons highlighted the smaller allocation of funding for this MD for Roads and Footpaths maintenance and asked for clarity around, the percentage funding allocated to the Borough of Sligo for roads and footpaths compared to the county.

It was clarified that while the funding outlined in the MD discretionary allocations is for smaller road maintenance type projects and doesn’t come from capital roads funding. Members were informed that the overall Roads Programme, is itself, in excess of €20 million for the county. In Qtr 1 2025 the members will be asked to deliberate on the capital Roads Programme for 2025 when the Programme is presented to the Members. Also, the division of funding per MD is based on the kilometres of roads in each so it would be expected that the County area would have significantly larger volume of road kilometres. It was pointed out however, that the Borough receives significantly more funding from the Active Travel scheme than any other MD. The Footpath Enhancement programme also carries out works in the Borough of Sligo each year, since 2021.

Proposed: Councillor D. Bree
Seconded: Councillor A. Gibbons

AND AGREED

“To consider the Draft 2025 budgetary Plan for the Borough of Sligo Municipal District.”

The Budget was noted by all members.

 

The business of the meeting concluded at 10.35 am.


Meeting Date 30/10/2024