Carnew playground is nearly ready to go

CARNEW’S new community playground at the Back Alley is just about ready to open.

The facility, which will be ready in February, includes swings with a disability seat; a self-propelled wheelchair carousel; zip wire; a four tower overhead ladder with slide; a junior play unit with double slide; a macro space net; a spinner bowl; a see saw; and something called a crazy hen.

The site was visited recently by Councillors Pat Doran and Vincent Blake, Wicklow County Council director of services for community development Michael Nicholson and his colleague Richella Wood, as well as Dermot Kenny, manager of Old Coolattin Country CLG.

Michael said he was delighted with how well the playground turned out, and commented that it has something for children of all abilities. He said that the site has the potential for further development, and that it could become a hub of activity for the entire community.

He said he had promised to build a playground in Carnew within a year if a suitable site was found, and recalled that it was less than a year since Cllr Doran showed him the site which had come into the possession of Old Coolattin Country CLG.

Pat is a trustee of Old Coolattin Country and played his part to ensure that the site was made available. Pat thanked everyone in Wicklow County Council, councillors of all parties, and especially Michael, Richella and the council staff who assisted in securing funding for such an ambitious playground.

He acknowledged Old Coolattin Country CLG’s pivotal role and thanked his fellow board members and the manager, Dermot Kenny, for their generosity and vision to get the project to this point. He also complimented the far sightedness of the original owners of the plots who donated their land in the 1960s for the long-term good of the community.

He praised the fundraising efforts of the Back Alley Community Playground Project committee over the last year, which had added greatly to the facilities and thanked the community, voluntary groups, and businesses that supported them.

He complimented the contractors Komplan and RSS and looked forward to the official opening in the new year.