Last year it was agreed that free parking would be offered in all Council charged off street car parks on two weekends prior to Christmas, equating to a loss of income just shy of £9,500.  

Following on from last year mixed views in relation to the initiative have been aired. One main issue brought to the fore was that some drivers were using this to avail of free parking all day, however, this was mainly felt in Omagh. In Enniskillen feedback from the free parking was more positive with traders expressing their views that they would like to see the return of free parking again this year.

Councillor Adam Gannon in backing the return of the initiative this year said, “Enniskillen traders found the free car parking beneficial and we should 100 percent be supporting the businesses again by having this again the two weekends in the run up to Christmas. At the end of the day businesses are rate payers. It’s important to keep our High Street and town centre alive.”

Noting that some issues in regard to all day parking had been raised he added, “We may need to make a few adjustments in terms of putting a time limit on the it to resolve the issue of all day parking.”

Remarking that this brought economic benefits to Enniskillen Cllr Gannon said, “Businesses are competing with online shopping. We live in a world focused on convenience where you could probably sit down and do your Christmas shopping in one go without getting up off the sofa. It is vital that we continue to encourage people to come to our town centre.”