Newry, Mourne, and Down District Council have agreed to look into the possibility of introducing a new strategy for parking arrangements of motorhomes and campers across the district, a report said.
After a spike in summertime use of council parking for motorhome parking, the new approach was introduced.
In the report, the council said that campervan and motorhome owners have free parking in the district. However, it is only for 12-hours. Overnight stays are prohibited.
The local authority stated that there had been many complaints in recent weeks about “dozens of motorhomes” being left in Warrenpoint and Newcastle for longer periods of time.
Willie Clarke of Sinn Fein, who introduced the motion in July, said he was happy with the rise in tourism but that it was creating tensions between residents and motorhome owners.
He stated that the motion called for a “strategic approach to motorhomes, campervans and other vehicles visiting our region.”
The report noted that an increasing number of campervans in the district was because of the pandemic, with people wanting to get out.
“But it has caused a lot of tensions among the local community, and it has meant residents have been prevented from using our car parks. Castle Car Park was home to around 70 motorhomes at one time,” he said in the report.
“We should look at what we can do with our car parks and green areas. We should place four bays in every one of them to distribute these motorhomes throughout the region,” he added.
He also said that it must be viewed as an economic advantage because tourists visit their district. However, he noted that while they spend a lot of money marketing their region and wanting people to enjoy Newry Mourne and Down, they also need to make sure that they don’t put too much pressure on daytime facilities.
SDLP Cllr Terry Andrews supported this motion and asked the council to adapt for the “ever-increasing demand for staycations.”
In the report, Cllr Andrews stated, “We must produce a roadmap to the future on that issue.”
“We should work to improve motorhome facilities in conjunction with local service providers, business owners, and residents. This will help us move this forward.
“I recommend that we invite a motorhome club to a meeting about this issue so that everyone can have an input. This is a critical issue we have at our disposal.”
According to the report, Andrew McMurray, Alliance Cllr, stated that he supported the motion but felt some people had shown a total disregard for the environment.
He said: “We don’t have a problem just with campervans, but we also have serious issues with tents using our public spaces and car parks.
“I could list you 20 sites that are frequently used and, unfortunately, abused daily by people who use them for overnight stays.
“This is about people and parties going out and degrading the environment. Recently, a social media post showed that it took four bags [large] to lift rubbish left behind by the people.
“This is a major issue, and it’s really retracting the environment and retracting the countryside.”
The councilors and officers agreed to meet with residents, tourism NI, and motorhome group owners to inform them about this strategy, the report said.
How great is it that the Northern Ireland District Council is coming up with cool strategies to tackle motorhome parking issues in Warrenpoint and Newcastle? They’re even thinking about introducing a permit system to manage long-term parking. Plus, teaming up with tourism agencies to support responsible motorhome use sounds awesome!