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Businesses plead for Christmas help

Thursday, 17 December 2009

THE business community in Dún Laoghaire has made another desperate plea to their local authority to reduce parking charges and commercial rates in a bid to prevent the closure of more businesses and halt further job losses in the town. A letter drafted by the Dún Laoghaire Business Association (DLBA) claims that most companies in the area are facing a drop of between 25 and 50 per cent in revenues this year. It further warns that some businesses will not survive into next year. The letter was sent to all county councillors in Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council and the County Manager Owen Keegan in advance of the local authority's budget, which will be voted on later this month. The DLBA has urged the council to immediately reduce parking charges that currently stand at e2 per hour to a maximum of e1 per hour for a pilot period until the end of the January sale period. Promotional “This would help us to keep our customers in Dún Laoghaire and compete with other more modern and popular shopping destinations that also offer special promotional parking charges,” the letter states. “We have also asked that the traffic wardens who administer the law show goodwill towards our customers. Every customer who receives a parking fine is unlikely to want to shop here again.” The letter also calls on the council to reduce commercial rates by a considerable 20 per cent. This comes on top of a call the association made during the summer to reduce commercial rates by 12 per cent. However, they are now urging the council to cut the rates even further because of their deteriorating financial position. “Businesses are struggling to pay their basic overheads, particularly staff costs,” the association claims. “We are trying to manage day to day by reducing our running costs in whatever way we can. We have all taken reductions in income, as have most of our staff. “There is a realisation by all business people and staff that sacrifices will have to be made if we are to survive this difficult period. We appeal to our local representatives to remember this when the rateable valuation multiplier [commercial rates] is debated. “We have already requested a minimum reduction of 12 per cent. In light of the continuing deterioration in trade, this is not now in line with the reducing revenues and we now request a minimum 20 per cent reduction be applied.” Increase In late 2006, following lobbying by business groups and local politicians, the council agreed not to increase commercial rates for 2007. But last November they increased the charge by 2.75 per cent for the current financial year. Now the association has called on councillors to act on the recommendations in the letter immediately. “The next five weeks will account for over 20 per cent of most retailers’ annual turnover so you [councillors] must act now,” it pleads. “We cannot afford to wait until after Christmas as the damage will have been done.” In response to the letter, a spokesperson from the council's finance department said it was “conscious” of the need to keep rates low. "As is the case in the preparation of all budgets, the council, while under pressure to maintain the current range and quality of services, is also conscious of the need to support the business sector as much as possible,” he said. A spokeswoman for the council's transportation department said the local authority did not have any plans to change the pay and display parking payment system over the Christmas period. However, she added: “As of this week a notice will be affixed to each pay and display machine in Dún Laoghaire advising motorists of a grace period of one quarter of an hour, which amounts to the first 15 minutes free. “The council has introduced a campaign to reduce parking charges, whereby you can park all day for just e3 or e5 in selected locations around the county.”