Dundalk businesses struggling to keep going through Church Street rejuvenation works

The impact of the ongoing St Nicholas’ Quarter Rejuvenation works in the Church Street area of Dundalk is having a detrimental effect on businesses in the area, according to some shop owners.

“It’s having a dreadful effect on us, a really dreadful effect”, said John Kennedy, owner of Ma Brady’s restaurant on Church Street.

“We have nearly more staff than we have customers here today,” added John, speaking to the Democrat at lunchtime last Monday.

“The bottom line is our takings are down about 43%. There's no representation, there's nobody. There's no councillors coming to talk to you, there's nobody from the council coming to talk to you.

“The last time we saw any councillor in here, was when they were looking to put posters up for the last election.”

“To be really honest we are struggling. I’m taking money out of my savings account every week just to keep the doors open,” John continued.

“There's no redress,'' he continued. “The rates still have to be paid. There's nobody coming to say, 'we understand, it's difficult so here is a helping hand', or 'we're going to cut the rates' or 'we're going to put the rates on hold for nine months until you get back up and running.'

“From what I can gather from talking to other people, the restaurant businesses seems to be affected the worst.

“We have a lunchtime trade - we had a decent lunchtime trade. If you can’t get parked out the front, you’re going to go somewhere else. You can get your lunch in 20 different establishments up the street.”

“The worry is people fall into the habit of going to other places, they go out of the habit of coming to you. It will take a while to build that back up.

“We’re working at a building site here. If you want to get in - and most of the other places up the street you would have noticed, they had an alleyway into all shops.

"To get in here you have to go down to Conlon’s down there, if you want to come in the other way you have to up as far as the lights. There’s no alleyway here.”
John also pointed to the high fences surrounding the works and businesses, saying that they put people off coming in.

“I think everyone understands the roads needed to be done. The work had to be done. Everybody understands that. But if you see the pace they are working at, at the minute.”

He points to one area outside the restaurant where he says was barricaded for three weeks but no real progress was made.

“There’s a meeting over there in the town hall every Friday,” sais John. “It’s just a ‘this is where we are, this is what we’re doing’ - your views and annoyances aren’t really being taken on board.”

The Democrat spoke to a number of other businesses in the area who agreed with John.

One anonymous owner said “I couldn’t even begin to tell you how bad it is. I do not know how any of us are still open. It’s desperate.”

Due to delays, the works, which were planned to end before Christmas 2019 are now set to continue in to 2020.