Minutes Template

DÚN LAOGHAIRE-RATHDOWN COUNTY COUNCIL

Minutes of the Budget Meeting held in the Council Chamber, County Hall, Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin on Wednesday, 6 November 2019 at 5.00 pm

PRESENT:

Ahmed, Kazi Kennedy, John Baker, Marie Kingston, Deirdre Blain, Emma McGovern, Lynsey Brennan, Shay McLoughlin, Sean Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer Murphy, Tom Clark, Michael Ní Fhloinn, Deirdre Colgan, Anne O'Brien, Peter Devlin, Cormac O'Callaghan, Denis Donnelly, Deirdre O'Connell, Juliet Dowling, Eva Elizabeth O'Connell, Maeve Dunne, Daniel Ó Faoláin, Séafra Fayne, Mary O'Leary, Jim Feeney, Kate Power, Una Fleming, Michael Quinn, Dave Gildea, Jim Saul, Barry Grainger, Anna Smith, Dónal Hall, Lorraine Smyth, Carrie Halpin, Melisa Smyth, Ossian Hanafin, Mary Ward, Barry

Apologies for inability to attend were received for Lewis, Hugh and McCarthy, Lettie

Absent:

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor Shay Brennan presided.

OFFICIALS PRESENT:

Philomena Poole (Chief Executive), Tom McHugh (Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services), Helena Cunningham (Director of Finance and Economic Development), Mary T. Daly (Director of Corporate, Human Resources and IT), Andrée Dargan (County Architect, Architects), Mary Henchy (Director of Planning Department), Catherine Keenan (Director of Housing), Dearbhla Lawson (Director of Community and Cultural Development), Michael Mangan (A/Director of Infrastructure and Climate Change), Therese Langan (T/Director of Service), Mary Creasey (A/Financial Management Accountant, Finance and Economic Development), Leonora Earls (Senior Executive Officer, Corporate, Human Resources and IT), Martina Kehoe (A/Senior Executive Officer, Finance and Economic Development), Fiona Rooney (Senior Staff Officer, Finance Department), Pamela Graydon (Administrative Officer, Corporate, Communications and Governance), Jason O'Sullivan (Senior Staff Officer, Corporate, Human Resources and IT), Ruaidhrí McLoughlin (Staff Officer, Corporate, Human Resources and IT) and Anna Jenkins (Clerical Officer, Corporate, Human Resources and IT)

C/639/19 Presentation of Draft Budget

It was AGREED, on the proposal of An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan, that Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive would give a presentation as an introduction to the 2020 Budget, followed by a financial overview of the Budget and a presentation on each division of the draft Budget by Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development.

It was AGREED that questions arising from the presentation would be taken at the end of each Division.

C/640/19 (Agenda Item No. 1) To consider the draft Budget circulated herewith for the Financial year ending on 31st December 2020

The presentation commenced with an introduction to the 2020 Budget by Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive, during which the following report of the Chief Executive was CONSIDERED:

“To An Cathaoirleach and Members of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council

Annual Budget 2020

I am presenting a balanced Draft Budget to the Members for 2020. This budget represents an investment in the delivery of services to the county of €193m. There are always balances to be struck in the construction of any budget and those balances this year are about increasing costs, decreasing income in some areas and additional statutory requirements. At the same time the county of dlr must remain an attractive place in terms of its quality of life, a desirable place in which to do business and an appealing destination to visit. I believe this budget represents the best way in which to meet those needs. There are increases proposed in areas of income over which we have discretion and while there are reductions in service no service has been discontinued and some of those reductions are compensated for with other initiatives.

The statutory budget tables will provide you with details of the income and expenditure across each division. In addition each Director has set out the highlights of their own directorate in the narrative. This will include achievements of the year just gone as well as priorities for 2020. The 2020 Draft Budget has been prepared in the statutory format, in consultation with the Corporate Policy Group who met on 8th July, 2nd September, 15th October and 16th October to consider the Draft. As stated earlier the Budget provides for services of €193m which is an increase of €9.1m relative to the 2019 Budget. A significant amount of the increase in expenditure is funded by corresponding grants.

The process of preparing the Budget involves a number of stages including the consideration by the Corporate Policy Group of the broad parameters of the Budget followed by detailed review of all expenditure and income headings with the Management Team and Budget Holders. The decision taken to vary the basic rate of the Local Property Tax by resolution had to be made before the end of September and finally, now, the adoption of the Budget, with or without amendment, by the Members at the Annual Budget meeting(s).

The Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government has determined that the prescribed period for holding the Annual Budget meeting is between 1st November and 30th November 2019. The dlr meeting will be held on 6th November and must be adopted - with or without amendment – by the Members within 14 days from that date.

2 The 2020 Budget must therefore be adopted by 19th November 2019. Several reserved functions will be determined by resolution at the Budget meeting including:

 The adoption of the Budget  The determination of the Annual Rate on Valuation  The determination of the Vacancy refund rate  Approval of transfers from revenue to capital  Disposal of Pay and Display income to fund various transportation initiatives  Deferral of consideration of the Report on the Three Year Capital Programme

Support to Business Economic conditions nationally and regionally continued to perform strongly in 2019 and are expected to remain robust in 2020. However, the threat posed by Brexit remains and could result in poorer than predicted economic growth next year. The 2020 Budget makes provision for business and economic supports to ensure businesses are robust and resilient enough to mitigate the risk posed by Brexit. Grant funding for start ups as well as training and mentoring for any business is made available by the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) and a range of business grants including Business Promotion Grants, Grants for Vacant properties, Shopfront Grants and the very successful Business Support Grant Scheme for Ratepayers have been retained in the 2020 Budget. Also, several initiatives to increase footfall in the towns and villages throughout the County will be implemented during the year. In collaboration with the business groups in the county there will be a focus on dereliction with a view to strengthening the towns and villages and enhancing the physical environment to increase footfall.

Budgetary Impacts Despite the strong economic conditions enjoyed in the Dublin region the Council did not have an adequate funding base to maintain all service levels in 2020 when the process of preparing the budget commenced and as a result, preparing a balanced Budget for 2020 has presented a major challenge. There were a number of reasons for this. While this county has a strong level of planning activity with 1041 planning applications decided upon to date and assessment of 15 SHD (Strategic Housing Developments) to date there is none the less a decrease in the level of planning fees being received and it must be anticipated that the same will be in the case in 2020. There has also been an increase in the cost of the Fire Service in the region of €800,000. Dlr has had a very active approach to the footpath repair programme and reduced accidents on those footpaths which has benefitted us now with no substantial increase in public liability insurance. However in recent years there has been a dividend payable by Irish Public Bodies to its members in the region of €500,000 and this dividend will no longer be paid.

In addition to these the Council took over Dún Laoghaire Harbour towards the latter part of 2018 and this has placed a significant burden on the Council’s finances. Regardless of the capital works – in the region of €38m – the revenue costs are substantial. At the time of transfer a tenant for the ferry terminal building was believed to be in place however this did not subsequently transpire and while we are almost in a position to secure another tenant now this resulted in €700,000 income foregone. The repair works resulting from Storm Emma were not fully covered by the insurers and an additional €550,000 had to be paid by the council. It is for these reasons that there is a debit balance in the 2019 outturn. In order to carry out minimum maintenance works €300,000 has been budgeted for in 2020. Ultimately the harbour integrated into the operation of the Council is a significant opportunity to bring together the town and

3 harbour into a unified place and destination with activities, retail, start-ups and commercial activity ensuring its sustainability long into the future. However, in the short-term it does place additional liabilities on the Council.

Most of the Council’s expenditure budget is non- discretionary as there is a statutory requirement to provide many services. Expenditure headings including payroll, loan repayments, insurances, agency services which are provided by other Local Authorities such as the Fire Service are non-discretionary and there is no capacity to reduce these budgets. Furthermore, the Council receives grants totalling €39.9m and the associated expenditure / match funding cannot be reduced or the funding and thus the opportunity would be lost. Areas where the Council has discretion to reduce expenditure include road and footpath improvements, parks, libraries and some grants. All of these areas were examined and while no service has been eliminated there has been a reduction in the amount budgeted for those services. Some of the reductions are facilitated by changes in service delivery. For instance the National Library Strategy now allows borrowers to order books from any library in the country. As such the Council is reducing the book fund but access should remain the same for library users. While provision has reduced for the Parks area the use of Eazytree has created a more targeted and efficient means of managing the tree programme in the county. It should be noted the Council has significantly increased the investment in its Parks and open spaces in recent years and it is intended that the reduced allocation in 2020 will be reversed in future budgets.

The Council has had a very strong programme of events running across the county for a number of years however there are declining numbers attending and indeed audience attendance in some instances fell as low as 400. Therefore three to four of the events will be discontinued in 2020 and create space for an internal review and refresh of the events programme to make it more relevant to audiences for the following year.

Housing will remain centre stage and indeed in delivery terms the Council continues to be one of the country’s leaders both in innovation and delivery. The first cost rental development in the country will be in dlr as well as being leaders in design as evidenced by the awards for Georges’ Place. There is a substantial increase in the housing budget for 2020 as a result of increases in leasing which in turn will bring additional units for families to the county.

As we move towards increased sustainability and we see significant changes in the use of public transport, increased cycling, the use of electric cars and bikes rising. The Council is proposing to review the Parking Bye-Laws and provision has been made for an increase in parking charges. The parking promotions will also be discontinued with a view to encouraging greater use of other transport. To support this programme the Council will also update the Cycling Network Review which was initially conducted in 2012 to report on progress to date and to produce a new prioritisation of investment.

Commercial Rates

The Council has always been very conscious of the challenges faced by businesses operating in the County and since 2010, at the time of the most severe economic difficulties, has reduced rates on 4 occasions, maintained rates on three occasions and increased the ARV on two occasions. Over that period the cumulative increase in inflation has been 5.5% while over the same period there has been a cumulative reduction of 5.5% in commercial rates (AVR) as outlined in the table below:

4 Year CPI AVR 2010 -0.9% -2.00% 2011 2.6% -2.00% 2012 1.7% 0.00% 2013 0.5% -2.00% 2014 0.2% 0.00% 2015 -0.3% -2.52% 2016 0.0% 0.00% 2017 0.3% 1.48% 2018 0.5% 1.52% 2019 0.9% 0.00% Cumulative Change 2010 - 2019 5.5% -5.5%

It is necessary to increase commercial rates (ARV) by 4% to ensure the Council has a sustainable funding base to enable it to provide the range of services required by people who visit, live and work in the County as well as businesses operating in the County. As outlined earlier a full range of business supports have been retained in the 2020 Budget including the Business Support Grant for Ratepayers which means that a significant number of businesses are still better off relative to 2017 despite the increases in ARV and for many others the grant offsets a major element of the increase in rates since then.

The outstanding level of service that is delivered to the people of Dún Laoghaire- Rathdown could not happen without the dedication and commitment of the management and staff of the organisation and I want to thank them for their contribution to life in the county.

The preparation of the annual budget is a time when people reflect on the services being provided and values of the organisation. I want to thank the Management Team for their role in this process but I particularly want to the thank the Director of Finance and Economic Development, Ms. Helena Cunningham, and her team for the way in which their innate understanding of the services, the risks, the opportunities and priorities are balanced. Their role in ensuring the services provided to the county remain the very best they can be can never be underestimated.

I also wish to thank the Members – past and present – for their support throughout the year and look forward to that again in the coming year as we work together to deliver the programme. However I want to acknowledge the additional work undertaken by the members of the Corporate Policy Group who work from an early stage in this process. In particular I want to acknowledge and thank An Cathaoirleach, Councillor Shay Brennan, for all of his support and assistance throughout this process.

Having regard to all of the circumstances the 2020 Draft Budget represents a programme of investment in the county which positions us to deliver excellent services in an equitable and progressive manner and I formally recommend an Annual Rate on Valuation of 0.1740

Philomena Poole Chief Executive

5 C/641/19 Financial Overview of Draft Budget 2020

Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development presented a detailed financial overview of the draft Budget 2020 and outlined the background and context within which it was prepared. An explanation of the main issues that impacted on the budgeted Outturn 2019 and the 2020 Budget was given and the main provisions of the estimated expenditure and income for 2020 were also considered and discussed. Details of the Central Management Charge allocated to Divisions A-H were also explained.

A discussion took place during which Ms. P. Poole Chief Executive, Helena Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development Ms. M. Henchy, Director of Planning and Human Resources and Tom McHugh Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services responded to Members queries.

C/642/19 Division A - Housing & Building

Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division A – Housing & Building. Ms. C. Keenan, Director of Housing and Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

Division B - Road Transport & Safety

Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division B – Road Transportation and Safety. Tom McHugh Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services and Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

C/644/19 Adjournment of Meeting

It was AGREED to adjourn the meeting at 19:47pm.

C/645/19 Reconvening of Meeting

The meeting reconvened at 20.15pm.

C/646/19 Division C - Water Services

Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division C – Water Services. Tom McHugh Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services and Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

C/647/19 Division D - Development Management

Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division D – Development Management. Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development, Ms. M. Henchy, Director of Planning and Human Resources, Ms. M. T. Daly, Director of Corporate, Communications

6 and Governance, Ms. D. Lawson and Director of Community and Cultural Development and Director of Municipal Services and Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

Division E - Environmental Services

The Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division E – Environmental Services. Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development, Mick Mangan, A/Director Infrastructure and Climate Change, Tom McHugh Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services, Mr. A. Bains, Senior Executive Officer Infrastructure and Climate Change and Director of Municipal Services and Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive responded to questions and issues raised by the Members. C/649/19 Division F - Recreation and Amenity

The Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division F – Recreation and Amenity. Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development, Tom McHugh Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services and Ms. D. Lawson, Director of Community and Cultural Development responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

C/650/19 Division G - Agriculture, Education, Health and Welfare

The Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division G – Agriculture, Education, Health and Welfare. Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development, Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive Therese Langan, T/Director of Service and Tom McHugh Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Municipal Services responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

C/651/19 Division H - Miscellaneous Services

The Director of Finance and Economic Development gave an overview of the Draft Budget in relation to Division H – Miscellaneous Services. Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development responded to questions and issues raised by the Members.

C/652/19 Formal Proposal of Adoption of Budget

The report of the Chief Executive was CONSIDERED.

Proposed Amendments to Draft Budget

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan advised the Members that the a number of motions had been handed up from the floor and advised Members that they will be debated in order that they were received and voting will be held on all motions will be held after debate.

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan advised Members that Motion (2) and Motion (6) from the floor was ruled OUT OF ORDER.

7 Motion (2) from the floor:

It was proposed by Councillor M. Halpin and seconded by Councillor D. Quinn:

“That this Council agrees to ringfence €40,000 in F0403 to continue the funding of the supervised playground on Library Road in Dún Laoghaire.”

A discussion took place during which M. T Daly, Director, Corporate, Communications and Governance responded to Members queries.

Motion (6) from the floor

It was proposed by Councillor S. Mc Loughlin, and seconded by Councillor J. O’Leary:

“That this Council agrees to ringfence €30,000 in F0401 to Mens Sheds in the County.”

Motion (1) from the floor:

It was proposed by Councillor C. Devlin and seconded by Councillors D. Quinn C. Smyth, M. Hanafin, D. Smith, S. Brennan, D. O’Callaghan, O. Smyth, D. Kingston, M. Clark and D. Donnelly.

“That this Council agrees to make the following amendments to the draft Budget 2020 while keeping in mind the intention of encouraging recycling of green waste and safe disposal of hazardous waste that we propose to alter the charges of the green waste and hazardous waste charge by reducing E0201 (Recycling Facilities Operations) by €75,000.

There will be no rate increase in 2021 with the possibility of no rate increase in 2022, in the mean while acknowledging that funding is in place for improving the streetscapes and to support small businesses in both, the County Town of Dún Laoghaire and Dundrum and the other towns and villages across the County.

We further propose to reduce E0901 (Cemetery Income) by €90,000 and increase D0101 (Statutory Plans and Policy) by €90,000 and increase expenditure in B0501 (Public Lighting Operation Costs) by €20,000 and H0303 (Refunds and Irrecoverable Rates) by €327,000 (Bad Debt Provision) and reduce H0303 (Refund and Irrecoverable Rates) by €855,000 (Vacancy Rate Refund).

Finally, we reduce the Annual Rate of Valuation in Table A from 0.1740 (4%) to 0.1732 (3.5%) in Commercial Rates for 2020.”

A discussion took place Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive responded to questions raised by the Members and clarified that there will not be any increase of rates by the Council in 2021 and in relation to 2022 it would be our aim to keep all increases as low as possible.

Motion (3) from the floor:

It was proposed by Councillor M. Halpin and seconded by Councillor S. McLoughlin:

“That this Council agrees that in order to address the problem of vacant commercial properties across the County to abolish the rate refund grant for 2020

Funds raised from this (estimated at €1 million) should be reallocated as follows:  €200,000 to A01 to reinstate the fund for retrofitting Council homes and increase it by €100,000  €400,000 to Division B so that parking charges are not increased  €90,000 to Division E so that there are no increases in cemetery charges  €60,000 to Division F03 to increase and improve maintenance of our beaches  The remainder to Division H to a scheme to bring empty business properties back into use.”

A discussion took place during which Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive responded to questions raised by the Members.

Amendment to motion (2) from the floor

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan advised the Members an amendment to Motion (2) from the floor had been handed up.

Councillor M. Halpin amended her motion to read as follows:

Amended Motion:

It was proposed by Councillor M. Halpin and seconded by Councillor S. McLoughlin:

“That this Council agree to take €40,000 from the increased allocation to D0101 (Statutory Plans and Policy) and put it into F0403 to continue the funding of the supervised playground on Library Road in Dún Laoghaire.”

Ms. D. Lawson and Director of Community and Cultural Development and Director of Municipal Services responded to Members queries.

Motion (4) from the floor:

It was proposed by Councillor J. Carroll MacNeill, and seconded by Councillors J. Gildea, L. Hall, J. O’Leary, K. Ahmed, A. Grainger, M. Fayne, B. Ward and J. Kennedy:

“We request that this meeting be adjourned for one week in order to have more time to consider the draft budget.”

A discussion took place during which Ms. H. Cunningham, Director of Finance and Economic Development responded to Members queries.

Motion (5) from the floor:

It was proposed by Councillor A. Colgan, and seconded by Councillors C. Devlin, O. Smyth, C. Smyth, D. Donnelly and D. Quinn:

“MOTION: Government Funding For Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council to address the financial burden falling on the Council arising from the taking in charge of Dún Laoghaire Harbour. This Council calls on the Chief Executive to hold talks with the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government to agree the level of financial support to be provided to Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council in respect of the huge financial burden and risk falling on this Council currently, and the ongoing burden of costs arising from the taking in charge of the Harbour, and to reach urgent agreement in order to provide certainty to

9 the Council regarding its financial position in time for the preparation of the capital budget 2020-2023.

NOTE This Council notes and acknowledges Minister of State John Paul Phelan’s recent Oireachtas statement (22/10/19) regarding the prudential responsibility of his Department to ensure the financial sustainability and integrity of the Local Authority’s finances, and his further statement that in the case of a port transfer, a Local Authority should not be unduly encumbered or exposed to financial risk by the transfer of a commercial body to its control. We further note and acknowledge his statement that ‘there can be no question of all the costs [of the Harbour transfer] falling on the Local Authority, in this case, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown’.”

A discussion took place during which Ms. P. Poole, Chief Executive responded to questions raised by the Members.

An amendment to Motion (5) from the floor was requested by Councillor B. Ward in respect to “more than one Minister being written to”

A discussion took place during which Councillor A. Colgan responded to the request to amend her motion.

Councillor B. Ward WITHDREW the amendment to motion (5) from the floor.

Motion (5) from the floor was AGREED.

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan advised the Members that they would be proceeding to vote on Motions now that debate had finished.

A roll call vote on Motion (1) from the floor took place the result of which was as follows:

Votes: Yes 26 65% No 12 30% Abstain 0 0% Not Voted 2 5%

Voting Breakdown:

Fine Gael Kazi Ahmed No Marie Baker No Emma Blain No Jennifer Carroll MacNeill No Mary Fayne No Jim Gildea Yes Anna Grainger No Lorraine Hall Yes John Kennedy No Maeve O'Connell No Jim O'Leary No Barry Saul No Barry Ward Yes Fianna Fáil Shay Brennan Yes

10 Michael Clark Yes Cormac Devlin Yes Kate Feeney Yes Mary Hanafin Yes Tom Murphy Yes Dónal Smith Yes Labour Deirdre Kingston Yes Lettie McCarthy Not Voted Peter O'Brien Yes Denis O'Callaghan Yes Juliet O'Connell Yes Carrie Smyth Yes Green Party Eva Elizabeth Dowling Yes Daniel Dunne Yes Deirdre Ní Fhloinn Yes Séafra Ó Faoláin Yes Una Power Yes Ossian Smyth Yes Independent Anne Colgan Yes Deirdre Donnelly Yes Michael Fleming Yes Lynsey McGovern Yes Sean McLoughlin No People Before Profit Melisa Halpin No Hugh Lewis Not Voted Social Democrats Dave Quinn Yes

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan, declared Motion (1) from the floor CARRIED and that as a result of the this Motion (2) and Motion (3) from the floor FALL

A roll call vote on Motion (4) from the floor took place the result of which was as follows:

Votes: Yes 13 32.5% No 25 62.5% Abstain 0 0% Not Voted 2 5%

Voting Breakdown:

Fine Gael Kazi Ahmed Yes Marie Baker Yes Emma Blain Yes Jennifer Carroll MacNeill Yes Mary Fayne Yes Jim Gildea Yes Anna Grainger Yes Lorraine Hall Yes John Kennedy Yes Maeve O'Connell Yes

11 Jim O'Leary Yes Barry Saul Yes Barry Ward Yes Fianna Fáil Shay Brennan No Michael Clark No Cormac Devlin No Kate Feeney No Mary Hanafin No Tom Murphy No Dónal Smith No Labour Deirdre Kingston No Lettie McCarthy Not Voted Peter O'Brien No Denis O'Callaghan No Juliet O'Connell No Carrie Smyth No Green Party Eva Elizabeth Dowling No Daniel Dunne No Deirdre Ní Fhloinn No Séafra Ó Faoláin No Una Power No Ossian Smyth No Independent Anne Colgan No Deirdre Donnelly No Michael Fleming No Lynsey McGovern No Sean McLoughlin No People Before Profit Melisa Halpin No Hugh Lewis Not Voted Social Democrats Dave Quinn No

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan, declared Motion (4) from the floor DEFEATED.

Formal Proposal of Adoption of Budget

It was proposed by Councillor P. O’Brien and seconded by Councillor D. Smith:

“That the County Council adopts for the financial year ended 31st December, 2020, the Annual Budget set out in Tables A – F as submitted by the Chief Executive, as amended.”

A roll call vote on the Formal Proposal of Adoption of the Budget was requested, the result of which was as follows:

Votes: Yes 22 55% No 16 40% Abstain 0 0% Not Voted 2 5%

Voting Breakdown:

12 Fine Gael Kazi Ahmed No Marie Baker No Emma Blain No Jennifer Carroll MacNeill No Mary Fayne No Jim Gildea No Anna Grainger No Lorraine Hall No John Kennedy No Maeve O'Connell No Jim O'Leary No Barry Saul No Barry Ward No Fianna Fáil Shay Brennan Yes Michael Clark Yes Cormac Devlin Yes Kate Feeney Yes Mary Hanafin Yes Tom Murphy Yes Dónal Smith Yes Labour Deirdre Kingston Yes Lettie McCarthy Not Voted Peter O'Brien Yes Denis O'Callaghan Yes Juliet O'Connell Yes Carrie Smyth Yes Green Party Eva Elizabeth Dowling Yes Daniel Dunne Yes Deirdre Ní Fhloinn Yes Séafra Ó Faoláin Yes Una Power Yes Ossian Smyth Yes Independent Anne Colgan Yes Deirdre Donnelly Yes Michael Fleming No Lynsey McGovern Yes Sean McLoughlin No People Before Profit Melisa Halpin No Hugh Lewis Not Voted Social Democrats Dave Quinn Yes

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S.Brennan declared the Formal Proposal of Adoption of the Budget CARRIED

C/653/19 Change in order of Agenda

It was AGREED to take Agenda Item 4 “Formal Determination of Rates on Vacant Premises” at this time.

13 C/654/19 (Agenda Item No. 4) Formal determination of the Rates on Vacant Premises

It was proposed by Councillor K. Feeney and seconded by Councillor M. Clark:

“That in accordance with the provisions of Section 31 of the Local Government Reform Act 2014 and Part V of the Local Government (Financial and Audit Procedures) Regulation 2014 it is hereby resolved to reduce the level of Rates refunds on vacant premises within the administrative county of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown that applies to eligible persons to 35% for the financial year ending 31 December 2020.”

A roll call vote on the Formal determination of the Rates on Vacant Premises was requested, the result of which was as follows:

Votes: Yes 22 55% No 16 40% Abstain 0 0% Not Voted 2 5%

Voting Breakdown:

Fine Gael Kazi Ahmed No Marie Baker No Emma Blain No Jennifer Carroll MacNeill No Mary Fayne No Jim Gildea No Anna Grainger No Lorraine Hall No John Kennedy No Maeve O'Connell No Jim O'Leary No Barry Saul No Barry Ward No Fianna Fáil Shay Brennan Yes Michael Clark Yes Cormac Devlin Yes Kate Feeney Yes Mary Hanafin Yes Tom Murphy Yes Dónal Smith Yes Labour Deirdre Kingston Yes Lettie McCarthy Not Voted Peter O'Brien Yes Denis O'Callaghan Yes Juliet O'Connell Yes Carrie Smyth Yes Green Party Eva Elizabeth Dowling Yes Daniel Dunne Yes Deirdre Ní Fhloinn Yes Séafra Ó Faoláin Yes Una Power Yes

14 Ossian Smyth Yes Independent Anne Colgan Yes Deirdre Donnelly Yes Michael Fleming No Lynsey McGovern Yes Sean McLoughlin No People Before Profit Melisa Halpin No Hugh Lewis Not Voted Social Democrats Dave Quinn Yes

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan declared the Formal determination of the Rates on Vacant Premises CARRIED

C/655/19 Change in Order of Agenda

It was AGREED to take Agenda Item 5 “Formal determination of Parking Pay and Display Resolution 2020” at this time.

C/656/19 (Agenda Item No. 5) Formal determination of Parking Pay and Display Resolution 2020

It was proposed by Councillor O. Smyth and seconded by Councillor D. Ní Fhloinn:

“Section 36 (11) (a) of the Road Traffic Act, 1994, specifies that parking fees from a Pay Parking Scheme shall be disposed of in such a manner as the Road Authority may, by resolution, determine.

The Council determines that income in the sum of €6,969,200 from the pay and display scheme be included in the annual budget for the financial year ended 31st December 2020 and that this sum be used for works in Division B including the Footpath Improvement Programme as set out below:

Maintenance & Management of Car Parks 281,500.00

Operation of Street Parking 761,100.00

Parking Enforcement 919,200.00

Footpath Improvement Programme 700,400.00

Road maintenance – materials 89,500.00

Public Lighting 2,392,700.00

15 Signing & Lining Contract 260,000.00

Traffic Management Signal Maintenance 896,300.00

School Warden Service 668,500.00

TOTAL €6,969,200

A roll call vote on the Formal determination of Parking Pay and Display Resolution 2020 was requested, the result of which was as follows:

Votes: Yes 22 55% No 16 40% Abstain 0 0% Not Voted 2 5%

Voting Breakdown:

16 Ossian Smyth Yes Independent Anne Colgan Yes Deirdre Donnelly Yes Michael Fleming No Lynsey McGovern Yes Sean McLoughlin No People Before Profit Melisa Halpin No Hugh Lewis Not Voted Social Democrats Dave Quinn Yes

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan declared the Formal determination of Parking Pay and Display Resolution 2020 CARRIED

C/657/19 Change in Order of Agenda

It was AGREED to take Agenda Item 6 “Approval of transfers to Capital 2020” at this time.

C/658/19 (Agenda Item No. 6) Approval of transfers to Capital 2020

It was proposed by Councillor D. Kingston and seconded by Councillor C. Devlin and RESOLVED:

“That the County Council approves of the transfer to the Capital Account of the sums listed below as provided for in the Annual Budget for 2020 as adopted:

Sub service Nature of Expenditure Amount € Funding ongoing / future expenditure A0101 Planned maintenance reserve 1,100,000 A0201/A0301 Housing IT system reserve 60,000 A0402 Tenant training 1,500 A0601 Housing voids 30,000 A0601 Benamore sinking fund 7,800 A0601 Brehon Grove sinking fund 15,000 B0304 Bridge Surveys 5,000 B0603 Traffic projects match funds 100,000 D0101 Development Plan 110,000 D0201 E-planning 25,000 D0404 Moran Park House 7,000 D0901 Village Renewal Fund 200,000 D0905 National women's enterprise day 15,000 E0602 Smart Bins 203,700

17 E0901 Cemeteries - machinery replacement 15,000 E1002 Dangerous Buildings 20,000 F0101 Leisure centres sinking fund 70,000 F0201 Library internet services 10,000 F0201 Libraries self service projects 20,000 F0201/F0501 LexIcon sinking fund 180,000 F0301 Sports pavilions / changing rooms 20,000 F0303 Beach accessibility 100,000 F0403 Community sinking fund 30,000 F0501 Pavilion Theatre repayment 25,000 F0501 Mill Theatre repayment 6,000 F0504 Heritage reserve 49,000 F0505 Marlay park reserve 10,000 H0102 Fleet replacement 350,000 H0401 Register of Electors 45,000 H0402 Local elections 70,000 H0907 Councillors' gratuity scheme 75,000 H1199 DLRP Interest 690,300 J0101 County Hall fund 447,500 J0101 Storm damage reserve 45,500 J0301 IT Replacement Programme 100,000 Total Funding ongoing / future expenditure 4,258,300

Compliance with specific accounting treatment A0602 Capital Loan & Subsidy Scheme loan charges 2,902,500 A0701 RAS Surplus 400,000 A0801 Land Aggregation 165,800 E0301 Dublin Waste to Energy loan charges 684,200 Total Compliance with specific accounting treatment 4,152,500

2019 Outturn Transfer A0401 Estate Management 10,000 B0304 Bridge Surveys 1,000 D0901 Village Renewal Fund 200,000 F0201 Dundrum Library match funds 50,000 F0501 Ballyogan Community Arts Project 37,500 H0102 Fleet Replacement 247,200 H1199 DLRP Interest 670,500 Total 2019 outturn transfer 1,216,200

Overall Total €9,627,000” C/659/19 Change in Order of Agenda

It was AGREED to take Agenda Item 7 “Deferral of the report on the Programme of Capital Projects 2020 - 2022” at this time. C/660/19

18 (Agenda Item No. 7) Deferral of the report on the Programme of Capital Projects 2020 - 2022

The report of the Chief Executive was CONSIDERED.

It was proposed by Councillor K. Feeney, seconded by Councillor J. Carroll MacNeill and RESOLVED:

“Deferral of the report on the Programme of Capital Projects 2020 - 2022 to the February 2020 Council Meeting is hereby approved.”

C/661/19 Change in Order of Agenda

It was AGREED to take Agenda Item 3 “Formal determination of Annual Rate on Valuation” at this time.

C/662/19 (Agenda Item No. 3) Formal determination of Annual Rate on Valuation

It was proposed by Councillor K. Feeney, seconded by Councillor O. Smyth

“That in accordance with the Budget for the service of the financial year ending 31st December 2020, as adopted in the foregoing resolution, it is hereby determined that the general annual rate on valuation for the several purposes specified in such Budget for such financial year is as follows:- General Annual Rate on Valuation 0.1732”

A roll call vote on the Formal determination of Annual Rate on Valuation was requested, the result of which was as follows:

Votes: Yes 22 55% No 16 40% Abstain 0 0% Not Voted 2 5%

Voting Breakdown:

Fine Gael Kazi Ahmed No Marie Baker No Emma Blain No Jennifer Carroll MacNeill No Mary Fayne No Jim Gildea No Anna Grainger No Lorraine Hall No John Kennedy No Maeve O'Connell No Jim O'Leary No

19 Barry Saul No Barry Ward No Fianna Fáil Shay Brennan Yes Michael Clark Yes Cormac Devlin Yes Kate Feeney Yes Mary Hanafin Yes Tom Murphy Yes Dónal Smith Yes Labour Deirdre Kingston Yes Lettie McCarthy Not Voted Peter O'Brien Yes Denis O'Callaghan Yes Juliet O'Connell Yes Carrie Smyth Yes Green Party Eva Elizabeth Dowling Yes Daniel Dunne Yes Deirdre Ní Fhloinn Yes Séafra Ó Faoláin Yes Una Power Yes Ossian Smyth Yes Independent Anne Colgan Yes Deirdre Donnelly Yes Michael Fleming No Lynsey McGovern Yes Sean McLoughlin No People Before Profit Melisa Halpin No Hugh Lewis Not Voted Social Democrats Dave Quinn Yes

An Cathaoirleach, Councillor S. Brennan declared the Formal determination of Annual Rate on Valuation CARRIED

C/663/19 (Agenda Item No. ) Conclusion of Meeting

The meeting concluded at 2.08 a.m.