CORK County Council and An Garda Síochana will hear calls for an expanded garda force in Ballincollig at meetings next Monday.
Councillor Daithí Ó Donnabháin is calling for Ballincollig’s garda station to be upgraded which he said would have a knock-on effect for policing in the areas surrounding the town.
He will make his case at the Ballincollig-
Ballincollig Garda Station
Carrigaline municipal district meeting and the Joint Policing Committee in County Hall.
The Ballincollig garda station falls under the Gurranabraher district HQ, which he says can lead to problems when more gardaí are needed.
While the station is open from 12pm to 7pm, Monday to Saturday, and for two hours on Sunday, it can often be temporarily closed if gardaí are called out on duty.
“There is not enough gardaí employed and it’s having an impact on policing visibilty,” said Mr Ó Donnabháin.
“The gardaí there are very proactive. There is a community guard and a community watch, but if there was more gardaí patrolling it would give a better sense of security,” he added.
Due to the low level of staff at the station, it can often be closed during working hours, as gardaí respond to crimes in the area. This makes it more difficult for people who need to visit the station for purposes like stamping a passport form.
He said that by upgrading the station and
adding new gardaí, it would also be easier to
respond to crimes in the areas around Ballincollig, where people are sometimes waiting for gardaí from the city to arrive. “If you designated Ballincollig higher, it would have a knock-on effect for the rural areas,” he said.
“Having more gardaí patrolling would also help to curtail a lot of the issues that people are bringing up at the community watch,” he said.
While neither committee has the power to change the status of the garda station, the call will be made directly to the top Garda staff in Cork, who Mr Ó Donnabháin hopes will take the issue to a higher level.
He also plans to stand for the position of Ballincollig-Carrigaline municipal district chairman, as councillor Deirdre Forde finishes her term this week.