Councillor calls for full-time garda station for Maynooth

Kildare County Council is to write to the Minister for Justice and the Garda Commissioner calling for a 24-hour garda station for Maynooth.

The move follows a motion by Cllr Angela Feeney (LAB) at a recent municipal district meeting, who pointed to the need of a full-time garda station for the town.

Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Feeney said she grew up in Maynooth when it was a much smaller town, and when it had a full-time garda station.

Yet, she said, the population now was growing exponentially and there was no full-time garda station at present, leaving the town to rely on Leixlip Garda Station.

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She commended gardai in Leixlip for “all the work they do under very challenging circumstances”, but she didn't think it was fair to them “or to us” (Maynooth residents) to be relying on Leixlip garda station for support.

Cllr Feeney said Maynooth residents are increasingly worried about their personal safety, and reiterated her request for a letter to be sent to the Minister for Justice and the Garda Commissioner.

Also speaking at the meeting, Cllr Padraig McEvoy (IND) asked if a 24 hour garda station meant that the station in Maynooth would be open to the public 24 hours, or staffed by gardai 24 hours.

This would need to be clear, he said, before sending a letter to the Minister and Garda Commissioner.

He said it needed to be determined if what was being asked for was increased public access, or greater garda resources.

Cllr Feeney said she was happy to discuss wording of the letter and circulate it to members, but either way, the current situation “isn't working.”

An amendment to Cllr Feeney's motion saw it refer to a “full-time” Garda station for Maynooth.

Supporting Cllr Feeney's motion, Cllr Tim Durkan (FG) pointed out that the last census was taken in April 2022.

At that point, he stated, the population of Maynooth was approximately 17,769.

Since then, several large housing estates had been completed, so that number now probably surpassed 20,000, with 18,000 people also attending Maynooth University, he pointed out.

“It's the largest population centre in the county by far”, he said, adding that the fact that Maynooth still had no full-time garda station “beggers belief.”

Upon agreement from councillors, a letter is now to be sent to the Minister for Justice and the Garda Commissioner calling for a 24-hour garda station for Maynooth.