Tania O’Neill the woman who organised a beach side protest to illustrate the need for a new Garda station in Laytown has told Meath Live that plans to extend the current station are ‘not enough’.
Tania led thousands of protesters at a rally on Bettystown beach in the summer of 2021 to call on the Minister for Justice to provide new facilities in the coastal area.
Now the Garda Commissioner’s office has confirmed that the OPW have been asked to prepare proposals to extend the Laytown Garda Station following an assessment by the Garda Estate Management.
But O’Neill is adamant a new station is what is required.
She said, ‘Look this is certainly a step in the right direction but what we really need is a larger new build on a new site everything else is just putting a sticking plaster on the wound.
‘The Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris, was down here quite recently and I think what he saw allied to the census showing a large population increase has really opened his eyes.
‘The extension is welcome but it is not the ultimate solution.’ More forward thinking solutions for retailers like a garden centre and stores will need to be considered.
