Work commences on new Dromiskin park
DROMISKIN is noted for its heritage value being home to a monastic site containing a Round Tower dating from 6th Century, a Celtic Cross and Church and Monastic ruins.
The local Tidy Towns committee recognised the potential to brand Dromiskin as a heritage village a number of years ago and have undertaken a number of impressive projects, funded by Louth LEADER Partnership under the previous Rural Development Programme, over the last number of years.
The sixteen point Heritage Trail, heritage lighting standards and fingerpost signage, heritage flags and banners as well as the iconic Viking Ship combine to leave nobody in any doubt of the special heritage to be cherished in Dromiskin.
The committee has gone one step further in recent weeks with work commenced on the development of a Heritage Park on a site on Chapel Road owned by the Parish with permission kindly given by Parish Priest Fr. Pat McEnroe for the specific purpose of respecting the heritage associated with the Parish.
Pat Mulligan, Chairman of Dromiskin Tidy Towns commented ‘as a committee we are indebted to Fr. Pat for his support and also to Louth County Council and the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs for approving our application for financial assistance under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme which helps us achieve a long term objective of developing a Heritage Park to honour our rich historical past’.
Dromiskin Tidy Towns received a grant of €30,600 for phase one of the project which includes the fencing off of the site from the remainder of the landholding, the realignment of the entrance and installation of new gates, provision of loose bound Whinstone pathways within the park and installation of electricity ducting as well as the planting of forty native Irish trees in clusters around the perimeter of the site. It is hoped that some funding may be available within the overall grant, when the necessary civil works are complete, to commence the interpretation aspect of the project with the first priority being the Christian Heritage including Darver born Fr. Nicholas Callan and his role in developing the electricity induction coil.
The Heritage Park will be a work in progress for a number of years with the hope that some further funding might become available under the Rural Development Programme 2014 – 2020 with an expression of interest already made to Louth LEADER Partnership for consideration to help undertake further interpretation on the site.
Dromiskin Tidy Towns want to particularly thank local resident Kevin Halpenny for making his expertise in design and project management available to the committee as well as for his many hours of work with the other volunteers in completing the civil works to date.