Govt set to fulfil Fermoy weir funding commitment
MONEY WILL SET THE BALL ROLLING ON €3 MILLION PROJECT TO REPAIR WEIR
THERE was some good news for Fermoy this week after it was confirmed the Government is to uphold a commitment to part fund a report into the condition of the dilapidated town weir.
Last August the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government agreed to cover half the cost, up to €175,000, of a consultant’s report into the protected structure, with a view to repairing the weir and its fish pass.
Deputy Stanton confirmed the one-off payment for initial planning and scoping works for repairs to the weir will be forthcoming within the coming weeks.
Cork County Council had previously confirmed it had commenced the tender process for consultants, but that would only be possible with financial assistance from the Government.
Cllr Noel McCarthy (FG) said he and colleagues had been in regular contact with department officials urging them to stump up the funding needed to kick-start the initial phase of the repair project.
“As the tender process has already been completed, the release of this funding means the council is now in a position to draw up a design, with full costings, for the repair of the weir and fish pass. I would anticipate this will take in the region of three to four months to complete,” said Cllr McCarthy.
It is understood the consultant’s report will cost in the region of €330,00 to complete, with the total cost of the repairs estimated to cost in the region of €3 million.
Cllr McCarthy said the next step will have to be securing the funding needed to complete the project.
He said the most likely scenario would be the sanctioning of a loan from central government to Cork County Council, to be paid back on favourable terms over a pre-determined period of time.
“Now the process is up and running, it is vitally important the momentum be kept up and the funding ring-fenced to complete the project as soon as possible. We simply cannot afford to let this drag on for much longer and run the risk of having to continually cancel river events such as the Fermoy Regatta,” he said.
Cllr McCarthy said that one way of fast tracking the project would be to carry it out on a phased basis by first repairing the severely damaged weir itself and then moving onto the fish pass once this has been done.
“This would be subject to approval from Inland Fisheries, who have insisted all along that both be done together. However, my fear is that the longer the weir is left in its current condition, the greater the chance that one flood event will destroy it completely,” he said.
“Time is of the essence here. Everyone needs to put their heads together to come up with a common sense solution that will ensure this iconic Fermoy structure is not lost for good. My hope is that a new Government will show the same commitment to this project as the current one has done.”