Abolition Of Town Councils – FAQ

As a result of legislative changes introduced in the Local Government Reform Act 2014, the Town Council structure in Ireland is being abolished from June 1st 2014.  As a result, the three Town Councils in Kerry, those in Tralee, Killarney and Listowel, will cease to exist on June 1st. All activities, operations and functions that were previously carried out by the Town Councils will be merged into Kerry County Council. Similarly, any assets owned by the Town Councils and any debts and liabilities of the Town Councils will be assumed by Kerry County Council.  And, any debts owed to the Town Councils will now be owed to the County Council and will be followed up by Kerry County Council’s Finance Department.  All pending legal proceedings will continue in the name of Kerry County Council from June 1st. All agreements, leases, wayleaves, licences and permissions made with the Town Councils will be preserved after the dissolution of the Town Councils

Are there any major changes?  For the majority of the public, there will be very few significant changes, especially at the start of the merger.  The majority of the changes will take place behind the scenes in terms of administration, particularly the role of Town Clerk, which will no longer exist.  Again though, there will not be a significant impact on the customer, who will be able to access the majority of the services they previously did at the Town Hall.  The main areas which will see changes will be Planning, Revenue and Housing. Kerry County Council will be the sole planning authority for the county and all applications will be dealt with centrally in Áras an Chontae, Tralee   Commercial businesses/Ratepayers who have dealings with the Town Councils will now be dealing with Kerry County Council’s Revenue Section in the Ashe Memorial Hall, Tralee.  Additionally, in the coming months, the Housing Departments will come together and while housing rents can still be paid at and basic Housing queries can be dealt with at the Area Offices, housing applications and their processing will be dealt with centrally in Aras an Chontae, Tralee.

Will the three town suffer without the Town Councils? Given the number of people who live in the three urban areas of Tralee, Listowel and Killarney, and their importance to the local economy, the three towns will continue to be strongly supported to ensure that they remain strong, vibrant urban communities.  At the start of the year, each Town Council passed a budget for the 12 months of 2014. As a result, activities like maintenance of roads, parks and public places, street cleaning, traffic wardens, litter picking etc will continue as before. There will be no reduction in this activity. All commitments made to organisations and festivals for 2014 will be honoured.

In future years, budgets passed by Kerry County Council will recognise the importance that Tralee, Killarney and Listowel have to the county, both in terms of the county’s economy, and ability to attract visitors and business to Kerry.

What will happen to the Town Halls? The Town Halls will continue to operate and will serve as the Operational Headquarters for the Municipal Districts of Tralee, Killarney and Listowel.

The name will change. They will now be known as the Tralee, Killarney or Listowel Municipal District Headquarters, but many of the services they previously offered will continue to be available there. This is the same with the Area Offices around the rest of the county.

Persons will still be able to carry out most of the transactions they had carried out before June 1st. This includes :

• Payment of Housing Rents,
• Payment of traffic fines,
• Parking permits,
• Applications for road opening licences, hoarding or scaffolding licences.
  • Housing Repairs (A request can be lodged in the Municipal District Office, but you will be contacted by Kerry County Council’s Housing Department).

Additionally, the majority of the outdoor/operational/maintenance works which take place in the towns, will be managed from the Municipal District Headquarters.

This includes:

• Street Cleaning
• Public Lighting
• Road Maintenance
• Litter Control
• Parks & Playground maintenance

Outlined below is a sample of questions, may assist with any queries

Frequently Asked Questions in relation to Local Authority Services Click Here