€1m penalty facing locals who object to road plan

Date Published: 16-May-2007

Bearna residents who are enraged by plans for a €19.5 million relief road for the village have invited all of the General Election candidates to discuss the issue at a public meeting next week.

Locals have been shocked to discover that they would be landed with a €950,000 penalty if they make any moves to delay the controversial project.

And they are also enraged that a Commercial High Court ruling effectively means that it would cost them €45,000 to seek a judicial review into how planning permission was granted for the road.

Pobal Bhearna Teo., who objected to the project last year, say that there is no way they could raise €45,000 in order to proceed with a judicial review into the Galway County Council decision.

“It seems to us that an authority which is funded by the tax-payer is using all of their resources to suppress tax-payers’ objections,” said a
spokesman, Sean Murray, yesterday.

“There are about 700 houses in the Bearna area and this would mean raising €70 per household if we were to attempt to go ahead with the case.”

Mr. Murray said Pobal Bhearna was disappointed with the Commercial High Court decision — and that it set a worrying precedent for all future
cases brought by residents’ groups against local authorities.