Kildare youth centre delayed due to council staffing 'constraints'
Photo for illustrative purposes only
PLANS for a proposed Newbridge Youth Centre have been delayed due to a shortage of technical staff within the council.
The update was provided in response to a question from cllr Tom McDonnell, sought an update on the proposed development.
According to a report from the council’s community department, final preliminary surveys were completed over the summer, along with internal consultations involving other council departments.
The work was intended to pave the way for the Part 8 planning process. Subject to outstanding design decisions, costings and drawings, the Community Department and Strategic Projects and Public Realm Team (SPPR) had planned to brief elected members in October and begin public consultation on the planning proposal in November.
However, the council said the project had not progressed sufficiently to meet that timetable because of “resource constraints with technical staff”.
The council said there was no imminent solution to the staffing issue and that redeploying staff was not considered an option due to a number of other projects being prioritised by the SPPR Team.
‘Other options are being looked at,’ the report stated, but added that these would be more expensive and would not fit with the original timeline for the project.
Several elements of the project remain to be completed. These include the reconfiguration and design of the yard area to the rear of the proposed centre, as well as the technical assessment and costing of that work. Associated legal issues also remain to be resolved.
The council also intends to produce additional architectural sketches and images specifically to help residents understand the proposal and participate meaningfully in the public consultation.
The report states that these materials would go beyond the standard documentation normally prepared for a Part 8 consultation.
