Anti-social behaviour at Whitesands

An East Clare Councillor has warned that an amenity area at Whitesands in Flagmount may have to be barricaded up to the visiting public, if something is not done to eliminate anti-social behaviour there at night.
Councillor Pat Hayes heavily criticised the use of the Whitesands amenity area by motorists who he claimed “do 360° turns and are engaged in anti-social behaviour”.
“This is an ongoing problem. I spoke before about closing the place down altogether and it looks like we might have to do that. This kind of thing is going on all night and it’s a constant occurrence. The community are very upset and feel intimidated in their homes,” he said.
The situation was exacerbated last weekend when locks were cut off the gates to the tarmaced public area. “The gates were cut, which is criminal damage. The gardaí have been informed and I hope they investigate and take this matter seriously and that the full force of the law is brought to bare.
“It is a disgrace that a community can spend €30,000 on improving their community only for it to become a magnet for racers. Good money was spent on improving things at Whitesands and this has resulted in an act of pure vandalism. What they are doing essentially is breaking and entering. The place will end up boarded up, which would be a complete loss to the community,” he continued.
Councillor Hayes said the community is at its wits end as to what to do to resolve the problem, as it appeares all there is left to do is to put in a permanent structure to block the area off completely.
“It is very disheartening and I feel very sorry for the people of the area. People are very fed up and intimidated. They are a community under threat, and that’s the feeling of a lot of people in the area. The gardaí can’t be there all the time,” he concluded.