Leisure park to be discussed

The question of the renewal of a lease for Hope Castle and the Lough Muckno Leisure Park in Castleblayney, which is owned by Monaghan County Council, is expected to be raised at a meeting of the council in Monaghan today. There are fears that public protests over proposed developments may cause the developer to withdraw, and the council would then sell the property to a private buyer. A council spokesperson said that if the property goes outside the council's control there could be no guarantee of public access to the beauty spot in the future.Last Friday several hundred people participated in a rally in Castleblayney to protest over the building of a holiday village at the Muckno Leisure Park by Harinbrook Properties, which has a short-term lease on the estate, and which planned to spend £20 million on the project.A Harinbrook spokesman said yesterday it felt the rally was "a bid to sabotage" the plans for the firm's investment.