A MEETING to consider a development plan for the city from 2010 to 2016 was postponed on Monday when the Fine Gael representation declared that legal concerns had arisen regarding the issue. The party refused to elaborate on the issue when Cllr Kieran O’Hanlon FF asked for further information. The city manager, Tom Mackey, said that if there was an issue to be reviewed by “a legal person,” he would agree to a postponement.
The Development Plan, along with the city manager’s report on submissions received, was to be discussed with the intention of amending or adopting the plan.
Cllr Scully said the FG members did not feel they were in a position to adopt the Development Plan on Monday.
“There are elements in the city manager’s report that we are not happy about, but we are not in a position to pass the plan today and are asking the manager to seek legal advice on behalf of the city council”.
A recommendation to forward the meeting to 1pm on Thursday was initially objected to by Cllr Maurice Quinlivan, who said:
“We are all supposed to jump through Fine Gael’ hoops,” and Cllr Orla McLoughin said she had taken a half day’s leave from work to attend the meeting.
“Out of courtesy we should have been informed this morning”.
Pointing out that councillors have commitments, Cllr Kieran O’Hanlon complained: “The Fine Gael councillors can’t do what they like”.
However, Cllr Jim Long FG stated that there were concerns that the “development plan could be flawed”.
A proposal to reschedule the meeting for 1pm on Thursday, November 25, was agreed to.
Speaking o the Limerick Post after the cancelled meeting, Cllr Long claimed they had reason to believe that some of the information in the plan could be flawed.
“|We are entitled to legal opinion, otherwise we could be held responsible – we were asked in June to adopt the manager’s report but there is no resolution in local authorities to accept his report.
“We should have been presented with a plan and the manager’s report for consideration”.
