Calls for Crossmaglen to retain town status | Latest Newry News, Newry Sport and Newry Business for Newry City

Calls for Crossmaglen to retain town status

SDLP Slieve Gullion Councillor Pete Byrne has called for Crossmaglen to retain its town status after discovering its proposed reclassification to a village in the Council’s Local Development Plan.

Speaking to Newry Times, Byrne said, “I was shocked to find when I was preparing for this month’s Strategic, Policy and Resources Committee that Crossmaglen had been earmarked for reclassification to village status as part of the Council’s Local Development Plan.

 

 

“It’s extraordinary that this proposal was made considering how far Crossmaglen has come in terms of infrastructure development over the last number of years. This is why I proposed during the Committee that Crossmaglen should retain its town status in order for local people to benefit from its continued growth.

“I was also keen to highlight the documents blatant contradiction in its criteria which became the basis for Crossmaglen’s proposed reclassification.

 

 

“In the document it states although some settlements like Crossmaglen have a significant number of services like a Health Care Centre, Fire Station and local Library, its population of only 1608 does not justify it being classified as a small town,” he continued.

“However, it later states that population size alone should not dictate the classification alone but take into consideration the range of facilities provided and the ability to serve the wider area.

It’s incredible to think that the reclassification of Crossmaglen from a town to a village came down to contradictory criteria within this document. Without its town status Crossmaglen would not have benefited from developments like the Cross Square Hotel, Casey’s Supermarket and the state of the art Credit Union.

 

 

Councillor Byrne added, “In the face of Brexit, this reclassification has the potential to damage the town long term and hinder future infrastructure development. I am delighted that the Committee accepted my proposal and I am hopeful that it will be ratified by full Council next month.”

 

Short URL: https://newrytimes.com/?p=62823

Posted by on Dec 15 2017. Filed under Community, Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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