There are no plans to construct toilet facilities at the Rock of Dunamase, a local area Council meeting has heard.
The issue was raised by Cllr Paschal McEvoy who called on Laois County Council to consider making toilets available at the tourist attraction.
In reply, Director of Services Kieran Kehoe, informed the meeting that a development was planned for the Rock of Dunamaise, but this did not include toilets.
He said: “Laois County Council have been liaising with Failte Ireland in relation to the potential for development of tourist facilities at Dunamaise.
“It is not envisaged that toilet facilities would be provided in the initial stages of any development at this location.
“It is envisaged that the initial stages would involve a new car park development followed by interpretive materials.”
All of the Councillors at the meeting were not happy with this response, and Cllr McEvoy says he just can’t understand it.
He said: “I can’t for the life of me understand how you could go and put a car park up there without putting toilets up there.
“It is one of our most prized tourist attractions and there are thousands of visitors coming there on a monthly basis in the summer. You would see them all up along the road taking photographs.
“So to say they haven’t got toilet facilities is shameful. And now to say that they are going to do up the car park but not put toilets in – it makes absolutely no sense.
“You are a long way from a toilet up there. So I will contact Kieran myself and ask him to reconsider because I think it is one of our greatest treasurers in the county and we should be putting a lot more money into it.”
Cllr Aidan Mullins echoed Cllr McEvoy’s calls and asked for the project to be ‘revisited’.
“I am at a loss to understand this as it is one of our prime tourist attractions. I would imagine you need to cater for basic human needs on the site if you want to bring hundreds of thousands of people.
“Imagine overseas tourists coming on a bus that they have been on for an hour or two and when they get out, they haven’t even a toilet to use? They have to be dropped off at hotels.
“So I think they are going about this the wrong way. This needs to be revisited.”
Chairman of the Graiguecullen-Portarlington Municipal District Cllr John Moran proposed that Minister Charlie Flanagan be written to about this to see if he could help.
All were in agreement to follow this course of action.
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