Controversial Mayo councillor gives his side of story after FF 'defection'
by Conor Curran
Councillor Blackie Gavin has spoken publicly for the first time about why he walked away from the Fianna Fáil grouping on Mayo County Council in the aftermath of last June's local election.
In an interview with The Connaught Telegraph, he explained: “It’s very simple what happened. I wasn’t happy with the deal between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael and I have no regrets.
"I wasn’t forced by anyone. I was asked if I would join the technical group so that we could get extra positions on the county council once they reached a membership of ten members.
"Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were just wiping out the independent grouping and giving them no positions at all. Now, we’re a third of the county council.”
The technical group in question consists of himself, seven independents, Sinn Féin’s Gerry Murray, and Independent Ireland’s Chris Maxwell.
“For the last 10 years, the independents were good to Fianna Fáil, and I didn’t think it was good enough what they planned to do to them at the annual general meeting. I just could not stand over it, so I let them know and left.
"That's the height of it. The decision I took was in the best interests of Castlebar and people will realise that in time," stated Blackie.
Councillor Gavin made it clear that he still has Fianna Fáil’s support - and they still have his.
Reaffirming his position as a member of Fianna Fáil, and pointing to his nomination to the national executive of the Association of Irish Local Government (AILG), it’s clear that no bad blood lies between them.
Thirty years on from his first election to the town council, Blackie has much to reminisce on.
His constant presence in the politics of Castlebar and the wider Mayo area has left him with both wins and losses, but his desire to represent his constituents has kept him going.
Councillor Gavin was born in the town, to a staunch Fianna Fáil family.
This roots, among other factors, have kept him in the party despite his defection, which party HQ has opted to ignore, apart from taking down his profile from the party's national website.
A general election challenge as an Independent/FF candidate is also a possibility, but far from a guarentee.
“You’d never say never,” he stated.
“I’m a proud Castlebar man. I love Castlebar and I love Mayo. I don’t know what’s going to happen because there are so many candidates going forward. Michael Kilcoyne might decide to go, he’s a very popular poll topper.”
It seems, though, that Blackie’s priorities are set.
“I have a job to do for the next five years, to represent the people of the Castlebar Municipal District, and I intend to do that as best as I can.”
At the most recent Castlebar Municipal District meeting, it was Blackie, along with Councillor Kilcoyne, who voted to propose a different location for the skate park in Castlebar after residents of St. Patrick's Avenue raised concerns.
While their motion failed, Blackie stands by his vote. “We’re elected to represent the people. You have to listen to the concerns of the community.”
Doing right by Castlebar was much easier, according to Blackie, in the era of the town council. “The town council was more community based. There’s an awful lot of admin in the county council.”
He added that the council doesn’t have the same “bounce” to it since the introduction of the municipal districts, as well as the loss of pay-and-display income.
“We had our own authority, we could make our own decisions and they were acted upon.
“It’s very frustrating now. We received over €11 million in funding four years ago for the military barracks and the Imperial Hotel, and we haven’t touched a cent of it to date.”
Blackie’s hopes for the military barracks have been quite set since 2014, when he asked former Taoiseach and Castlebar native Enda Kenny to transform them into a centre of excellence for apprenticeships.
“It could happen yet. It would be a game changer for the town.”
His plans also include an area designated for Horror in the Barracks, carnivals, circuses, and public events.
Not far from the military barracks, a disappointing announcement came with the news that investors for a major housing development adjacent to Castle Street car park had pulled their application, citing frustrations with the planning system.
Blackie called this "a huge disappointment.”
“I was born in a house not far away. That would’ve been massive for the town of Castlebar. If the town council was still in place, we would have all that sorted.
"This nonsense is very frustrating. We should have our own planner, our own engineer, our own architect.”
According to Councillor Gavin, the lack of housing developments is one of multiple reasons that young people struggle to stay within Castlebar, or even Ireland.
He elaborated: “We need to build up our towns and villages.
“Young teachers are only getting a couple of hours. They’re not being made permanent in their jobs. They can go to another country and get permanent jobs, accommodation, holiday pay, and more perks. Nurses are facing the same thing.
“I know everything is modern, but sometimes the old way is the best way. We had houses provided for nurses, for the gardaí. If we don’t provide these perks, our skilled workers will find them in another country.”
Still, he’s proud of the battles won and the improvements made to Mayo’s county town. He considers the works around Lough Lannagh to be “the best money that was ever spent in this town.”
“The Lough Lannagh leisure complex is the best facility in Connaught at the moment. If we get the money for the climbing wall, it will be the best facility in the country.”
He has previously called the lack of inaction with the climbing wall “absolutely scandalous.”
The improvement of sports facilities is clearly high on Blackie’s agenda, having a long history of supporting sporting endeavours in the county.
Just recently, he attended the opening of Westport United’s new playing grounds, having attended Castlebar Celtic’s centenary celebrations the night before.
He has also been staunchly supportive of the proposed footpath to Castlebar Golf Club.
Hindsight turned out to be on Blackie’s side, when he supported the motion to install a 50-metre swimming pool in Castlebar. The motion was defeated by one vote.
“One of the biggest mistakes ever made in this county was the failure to pass the motion for a 50-metre pool. I visit facilities all over the world, they’re top class and they attract people to these towns.
"We could have had that. Now they want more 50-metre pools built, when back then we had the whole of Connaught behind us.
“If you build it, they will come.”
An eight-lane running track and more playing pitches for football are just some of the sporting developments Blackie wishes to see around the town.
Maybe the most topical one at the moment is Castlebar Celtic’s planned acquisition of the old swimming pool in Castlebar.
“They need it and the sooner the better. The building is falling into decline.”
Blackie isn’t quick to forget the history of the town.
“Believe it or not, that belongs to the people of the town. It doesn’t belong to the county council.
"The people of Castlebar went out and raised thousands. The old swimming pool facility belongs to the people of Castlebar, and it ideally suits Celtic. We’ll be raising it at the September meeting in the hope that the chief executive will hand over the property to Castlebar Celtic.”
Blackie’s legacy in Castlebar is certainly secured. But he’s not finished yet.