#Howth - A new website has been set up outlining opposition by local traders and stakeholders to proposals to charge for parking in Howth Harbour.
As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Dublin North East TD Tommy Broughan slammed the proposals by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine as "crazy" and potentially devastating for Howth's marine and tourism businesses.
Some 500 parking space are available in Howth village, which Minister of State Jimmy Deenihan has argued are being predominantly used by park-and-ride commuters.
In response to a question from Deputy Broughan in late December, Marine Minister Simon Coveney added that "the volumes of traffic currently parking at the fishery harbour, both during the working week and at weekends, are creating significant health and safety risks, to the extent that on some occasions access for emergency service vehicles is compromised."
At a meeting called by the Howth Chamber of Commerce on Monday 28 January, Howth Yacht Club Commodore Breda Dillon rejected that assessment, claiming that overcrowding was not an issue, and that on normal days there was only 10% occupancy of parking spaces on the middle pier.
Her sentiments were echoed by the majority in attendance, with area TDs and representatives of local business all referencing the potentially damaging effects that parking charges would have on the village economy. Click HERE for more on the story.
