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HomeNewsLimerick Council urged to act on derelict toll house

Limerick Council urged to act on derelict toll house

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Athlunkard bridge toll house at the turn of the 20th century.
Athlunkard bridge toll house at the turn of the 20th century.
by Charlie Mullowney
LIMERICK City and County Council has been asked to invoke the Derelict Sites Act to compel the owners of the old Athlunkard Bridge toll house to make the property safe.
Meelick-based county councillor Cathal Crowe has raised the issue with An Garda Síochána but he is now hoping that the Limerick local authority will exert their powers to make the property safe and secure.
Athlunkard Bridge, which was built in 1830 at a cost of £7,000, spans the Shannon River and links the north Limerick suburb of Corbally with the nearby Westbury and Shannon Banks communities in South East Clare. The old toll house has stood on the Limerick side of the Athlunkard Bridge for almost 200 years but is now uninhabited and has fallen into a state of dereliction.

According to Cllr. Crowe, the building has been used as a hangout for teenagers and has become a magnet for anti-social behaviour.

“At weekends and during school holidays, throngs of teenagers from both the Limerick and Clare sides of the river and from further away congregate at the house. They have forced an access way into it and, according to locals I have spoken to, it is being used for drinking, smoking, drug taking and everything else!

“On one weekend, the building was set on fire. There have also been a few ugly fist fights on a green area across from the toll house. I witnessed one of these some months ago when I was jogging in the area”, he said.

“People have stopped walking and jogging past the toll house. They are fearful and feel intimidated. It is a shame because it is beside the much loved scenic ‘Red Path’ riverside walk.

The toll house is in a quiet and respectable residential area. With the co-operation of local authorities and Gardaí, peace and harmony can be restored”, he claimed.

 

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