00:00is the investment hasn't been going into the island and that's not just the marina
00:05it's down at the discovery center and all the other facilities there too
00:09yes there has been investment in the caravans and in the new play park but with regards to the actual
00:15open water ceiling and motorboating and all of that there isn't the investment being put into that
00:22so ultimately we want to come together and this is what this meeting is about as one voice
00:28to go to the council to have that understanding and as i said we have been working with them now
00:34for a number of years but as i said we keep getting told there's this big plan we have asked for that
00:40big plan many of the time and we don't know that's that's not available though that's and if you look
00:46at the weed control and the environmentalists won't allow the council to do certain things with the
00:53weed that's why the weed's sitting on the um jetties over there because the small creatures have to
00:58crawl out for the game and back into the lock so there's all sorts of issues and problems but it's
01:04all internal departments within the council not being able to agree and come together you know one
01:10of the issues that we have that start backly that sits down in the outer breakwater it's an iconic picture
01:17and has been for years you can't even get down the breakwater now because the we have been kind
01:25basically going on and asking for that to be replaced it's a council owned facility which is supplied to
01:30the club that hasn't been available for the last five years and now it's completely derelict and the
01:37breakwater's overgrown and when you ask the council about it we get well there's no funding for it
01:42is there any representation here from the council or any local authority and because i believe
01:49invites were sent out yeah so who has arrived to support this anyone no local council all turned
01:57down the media that's a shame and disgrace so it is an absolute shame
02:06grandchildren here and it will be part of the ceiling club in the future all we're here is to go
02:11can i keep my boat in this water for the next two years or should i sell it because
02:16oxford island is not for sale so let's just say that really clearly in fact we want to invest in it
02:23the plan that you're talking about we have a master plan there is an oxford island master plan
02:27it's probably publicly accessible accessible if it isn't it should be we will get that to you yeah first and
02:34foremost oxford island is not for sale look there needs to be a regular schedule of the maintenance
02:39carried out throughout the year that's clear from what i've seen i've done a walkabout there at the
02:42very start the jetties and all of that there that should not be like that there needs to be a look
02:48out of the agreements that have been drawn up from way back in the handover from down the
02:54north would end up to kenny over here so there's a lot of stuff that we need to take back and we will
02:58take it back and we will hold whoever it is to account within this there needs to be a better
03:03approach going forward there needs to be a better working relationship between yourselves and council
03:09just to plot this pathway forward this is a gold mine so i can see that and i know nothing about
03:16sailing or i can't even swim so that's my take on that but look i can see the potential of this area
03:22and we do need to invest in it and i know and i feel the frustration here within you all here tonight
03:27and it's up to us maybe take us away and get it certainly as once and for all so catherine this
03:32is the first time you've heard about these complaints uh about can you go marina uh why is
03:37that that's something i'm going to have to find out from council officers on monday night we intend to
03:42bring this as an item of any other business at the full council meeting and gobsmacked tonight
03:46to come down and find out just the level of disrepair that our jetties are in i'm really concerned
03:51not only for the safety of people on the jetties but also children
03:54um that are on the water side where the boats usually enter and the weeds uh that have grown
03:59there that have not been dealt with and cut by of it i was let aware a number of weeks ago when i
04:03was invited to the meeting i then asked senior officers for updates on what had been done and
04:08all of a sudden there was a scary effectivity this week prior to the meeting but what we need going
04:13forward is consistency investment a better communication with the sailing club and an approach
04:20that can work for everybody because this is the jewel in our crown and our council i genuinely
04:25believe in it i'm here regularly with my family and my children and we need to make sure that we
04:31invest in this and that we do not lose this asset in our borough this is a major asset for for the area
04:37and tourism is such a big thing for for ireland at the moment why is there no investment from our
04:43armagh bambridge and prigavon council there's been investment down here and there's been a new play park
04:48there has been the upgrade to the caravan the pods um and different things around that have we
04:54invested properly in the jetties it would absolutely appear that we haven't so going forward that now
04:59needs to become a priority we need to set aside um a pot we need to meet with the club we need to agree
05:04an action plan going forward and we need to be even more imaginative than that we need to then go and
05:09look at extra funding that we can get uh to make sure that when we do invest it in it we're not just
05:14throwing good money after bad that we can really bring this up to a contemporary marina that the
05:19people deserve um you heard tonight as well that uh whenever the members of the sailing club have
05:26raised concerns with uh council representatives on the ground here at kinago uh marina that they were
05:33treated with disdain how do you feel when you hear that disgusted disgusted uh they're ratepayers
05:39uh they bring such a vibrant um aspect to this marina uh they are valued they need to be heard
05:47they need to be respected they need to be listened to kinago marina is in a serious state of disrepair
05:53and there's been no investment from uh armagh bad bridge and craigavon council what can storming do
06:00well there's a role for a whole myriad of agencies to play in this lock now is the jewel in the crown of
06:05our local environment and we need to see action taken first of all on the water quality issues
06:10because it's not just issues with weeding here at kinago marina we know that blue green algae has
06:15disrupted sailors fishermen people who rely on the lock for their livelihood for the last number of
06:20summers so we have the lock now action plan but people now need to put their money where their
06:23level here council also needs to take responsibility for its role in basic maintenance in upkeep of the
06:29jetties and ensuring that weed cutting takes place so that the the sailors here fishermen and others
06:35can actually navigate their boats in and out and so that we can actually start to promote kinago marina
06:40as the real the real gem that it is for the local community there is so much potential here for tourism
06:46for local economy but council needs to grasp that opportunity and nick well the the investment of
06:52kinago marina is first and foremost for the council but in terms of that wider issue in terms of waterways
06:59absolutely through the shared island fund we have been making the case as a party to the irish
07:03government that block now under waterways they don't know borders the catchment area for lock
07:08now covers counties in the republic of ireland as well and so absolutely we have been making the case
07:13and we've we have secured commitments from the irish government that through the shared ireland
07:17the shared island fund there will be investments in things like water quality and biodiversity
07:21and i think that is really critical but it's important that all partners are playing their role
07:26in addition to the work that storm is doing councils need to ensure that where they're responsible for
07:31local marinas they are making the investments that are necessary and there is no point in throwing good
07:37money after bad and repairing what is fundamentally broken here at kinago we need to be more imaginative
07:42than that we need to reimagine what the marina could be and ensure that it's up to the standard that
07:47it ought to be for the local community and for the service users here that's going to take millions
07:52where is that money coming from well in terms of the council council does have a significant
08:00capital investment budget so this comes down to a question of priority and oxford island kinago marina
08:08it is one of the main tourism attractions that we have in this borough so if council can't prioritize
08:13investment in an asset like this then i question where the investment is going so i think council needs
08:19to listen very carefully to the views that have been expressed very strongly here tonight about the
08:23priority that this local community places on the fantastic asset that we have here and actually
08:29follows the community's guidance and puts the money where the public wanted to be spent and i think
08:34investments that we make here to open the lock up to to youth provision to open the lock up to tourism
08:41would be an investment in this area and we would see the dividends from that in years to come
