Questions asked of council over historical Achill land CPO
QUESTIONS have been raised about a historical land transaction which appears to have resulted in Mayo County Council owning over 400 acres in Achill, including a golf club, football pitch, tennis courts and campsite.
Detailed research on a 1970 compulsory purchase order relating to lands at the Sandybanks, Keel, was revealed by local Councillor Paul McNamara at Monday's Westport-Belmullet Municipal District.
The council contends it has ownership, which is disputed. And with grazing lands and commonage amounting to 440 acres, on which there are 557 shareholders, Councillor McNamara wants clarity for today's generation, many of whom farm and draw down payments on the land.
The local campsite has been leased out by the council over the years and the latest renewal was deferred earlier this year when Councillor McNamara asked the local authority to provide full title.
In the last few weeks, he explained, he found out that the CPO didn't just cover the campsite but other lands.
The CPO was signed off on but the vesting order - the final stage - was never completed, and it is now the council's intention to process that, the meeting heard.
Seeking full transparency, Councillor McNamara had a list of questions he wants answers to.
Among them, he asked who represented the 557 shareholders 56 years ago, were their rights protected, and what compensation did they receive and records of same. He had been unable to uncover any clear record of compensation, legal representation or how shareholders interests were dealt with.
Where is the evidence that the CPO was properly done, and why did the land registry records differ from the original CPO, he asked. The discrepancies between them remained unexplained.
Why was he always told these lands were privately owned when the information uncovered suggests otherwise.
A sign CPO does not in itself establish that every necessary legal step in the acquisition was completed, he pointed out.
The vesting order would be issued in the coming weeks, he continued. Is the council providing a copy of an existing vesting order or is a new order being proposed? This crucial distinction requires clarification.
Councillor McNamara said he wants a full and transparent examination of the original CPO, vesting documentation, land registry records, compensation agreements and the council's claimed ownership.
It appeared, he stated, that the council owns the golf, tennis and football grounds, as well as the campsite and over 400 acres of grazing land.
When he had previously raised issues regarding Keel Sandybanks, such as wild camping and drainage, he was told the council couldn't do anything as the land was owned by the 557 shareholders, but the information he has uncovered says the council owns a substantial portion of the lands.
Only recently he asked who authorised the erection of two poles on the grounds, and the council failed to provide him with an answer, which left them questioning ownership, responsibility and accountability.
He wasn't born when the CPO was signed, Councillor McNamara pointed out, and an entire generation has passed, with their children and grandchildren left asking questions.
The 350 active farmers have relied on these lands as part of their livelihoods and their rights must be protected, he commented.
The farming community believe they own the land and they have submitted documentation time and time again over the decades.
In his opinion it raised the possibility of a grave historical injustice, and the passage of time does not remove the obligation to account for decisions in the past.
If it was done properly, he added, the records should be in the solicitors at the time.
Municipal head Seamus Ó Mongáin said he understood the shareholders had been represented, in documentation he has seen.
The process went through the normal CPO, up to and including a public hearing, with just one objector. It was signed by the then county manager, an elected official and minister.
The records, he said, are 'quite voluminous'.
The matter has potentially serious implications for a lot of people, noted Councillor Peter Flynn. It has to be a priority, agreed Councillor Chris Maxwell, that farming families who acted in good faith are looked after.
Noting that a vesting order is just a rubber stamping exercise, Councillor Brendan Mulroy said it was hard to comprehend that the council did not know it had purchased the land.
And he asked how the campsite leases got through before, but this time someone spotted the land wasn't vested.
Mr. Ó Mongáin said it will be referred to the legal section, with Councillor McNamara seeking an update at their next meeting.
* Funded under the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme