By Andy Spearman
You know how it is – you wait ages for a bus and then three come at once. It was a bit like that at yesterday’s Drogheda Borough District Council meeting it was one good news story after another.
Yes there was the usual pleas from Councillors reporting potholes and asking that they be repaired, calming ramps at various locations and traffic lights were mentioned by several councillors.
To be honest it was difficult to stay awake and the job of reporting was made even more difficult by the fact that the proceedings were barely audible to reporters at the back of the Barbican Hall, which is the temporary Council meeting place as councillors spoke to the chair which meant they had their back to us.
I just might have nodded off for a while but suddenly I was jolted out of my daydreams when representatives from a company called Turley embarked on a presentation of their vision for the future development of the Westgate area of Drogheda which, after many years of neglect, is currently in a sorry state.
If Turley get to implement their ambitious plans it will be the beginning of a new era for the town.
Their presentation started by outlining their desire to recover the streetscape, transform Westgate and establish a positive regeneration dynamic in the broader town centre.
I was awake now and the man from Turley, I believe his name is Seamus Donohoe continued: “The objective of this project is to be a catalyst for positive regeneration in the WGV area through the enhancement of the public realm and creation of a new transformative gateway/arrival space.
He said that the emphasis of the plan is to bring the river Boyne back to the focus of attention in Drogheda using creative, people centred design to make Drogheda a location second to none.
The plans include boardwalks, cycle ways markets and a bold plan to create a covered area at the Old Abbey which looks very interesting.
Mr. Donohoe’s final words brought everyone back down to earth however. He cautioned that all of the above were of course subject to funding and public consultation.
I may be a tired, cynical old hack but that to me translates as “don’t hold your breath, this will take years – the debate was after all taking place in a temporary meeting room because the Council’s own chambers in Fair Street burned down 12 years ago in January 2009.
The second piece of good news to come along was the announcement of almost 10kms of new cycle/pathways for the town.
They are:
- Leonards Cross to Rosehall roundabout – 2.1kms
- Rosehall Roundabout to Windmill Lane – 1.7kms
- Rathmullan Road to Bridge of Peace 1.2kms
- Dominic’s Bridge
- Bridge of Peace to train station and Marsh Road – 2.0kms
- Train station to Meath boundary – 1.6kms
- Ballymakenny Road 0.7kms
- Termonfeckin Road 1.0 kms
The third good news story was the presentation of a five year plan form Drogheda Tidy Towns which I will report on in separate article when I’ve had a chance to read it.
