An Independent councillor in Killarney is following through on election promises to the local Asian community by sourcing a cricket ground for games and a larger facility for Muslim prayers.
Mr Niall O'Callaghan, who was a first-time candidate in the recent elections, says he won a seat on Killarney Town Council with the help of some 80 votes from the town's 500 Malaysian and Bangladeshi communities.
He got to know the Asian people who work in the town's hotels and in a factory on the Cork-Kerry border mainly through his work as a local DJ. However, he says most of his 522 first preferences came from sporting and social clubs in the town.
While canvassing for votes, it came to his attention that the Muslim community, who prayed in "a room over a shop" down a laneway in the town, were in need of a larger prayer facility. The question of a mosque did not arise, he said. Mr O'Callaghan has now arranged for them to rent the Killarney Cultural Centre from the town council for some hours each week so they can meet and pray together.
A local doctor also contacted him about the possibility of finding a cricket ground for the community. "Cricket is their number one sport. These people are adding a lot to the town. They are here working. They are paying their taxes and they are good people. They are here to stay. Quality of life is what this is about," Mr O'Callaghan said.
St Brendan's College in Killarney has now agreed to allow one of their playing fields, alongside the leafy Port Road opposite Killarney National Park, to be used as a cricket ground for the summer. A club is being established and insurance is being sorted out, Mr O'Callaghan said. The club would be open to all and would provide a place for all communities to meet, he said.