Councillors offer support to LGBT+ centre for city

Councillors voted to include support for a resource centre for the wider gay community in the next development plan despite concerns that would amount to discrimination against groups lobbying for their own dedicated facilities.

Social Democrats Councillor Owen Hanley told a draft development plan meeting that Galway was the largest city in Ireland not to have a LGBT+ (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender+) resource centre after Teach Solais closed in 2019 due to a lack of dedicated funding to meet operating costs.

A room was set up in the Westside Centre to hold certain activities organised by the community group Amach but a standalone resource centre was vital, he stated.

“It’s about sending a strong signal to the national government that we take this seriously,” he stressed.

Mayor Colette Connolly (Ind) said “many, many” organisations had approached her and other councillors requesting their own centre, among them the Indian and Muslim communities.

“I could name another ten,” she remarked. “Why would we specify a centre for a particular community that could discriminate against the Indian or Muslim community.”

She said support for a multi-functional community facility was preferable rather than designating a specific puspose.

Senior executive planner Helen Coleman agreed, saying the Council had no objection to a LGBT+ resource centre, it had a policy of supporting all community facilities collectively rather than singling out one “that would trump all others”.

Cllr Niall McNelis (Lab) asked what guarantee was there that a LGBT centre would be delivered, pointing out that a proposal for a western writers’ centre had been in three successive plans but it had never materialised.

Fianna Fáil’s Mike Crowe believed support for this facility did not rule out all others. He stressed that community centres could be used by all people in Galway, “no matter what race or creed you are”.

“I think this proposal is merited, it’s needed and required and parents around the county would appreciate it. It’s not that discriminate against other groups.”

On recommendation of the planners, Cllr McDonnell tabled a motion that the Council encouraged the provision of facilities to support all community groups, including the LGBT+ community.

Cllr Hanley said this would downgrade the objective contained in successive plans. He wanted to single out the objective as a standalone policy to elevate its importance. When that motion failed by seven votes, Cllr Hanley’s proposal was passed by unanimous agreement.