Dingle to have a new playground by next summer

DINGLE will have a new playground by next summer following the grant of €184,000 to the long-planned project through the CLÁR programme.

Séamus Cosaí Mac Gearailt, chairperson of the Am Spraoi playground lobby group, said they are in the final stages of making an agreement with a contractor and ordering equipment. And with last week’s announcement of Clár funding they hope to have the playground up and running for the summer.

The announcement was welcomed by Am Spraoi group member Mark Greally who said that they were “delighted and excited when the announcement of funding came out of the blue on Thursday”.

“We now have sufficient funds to build the playground,” he added.

Mark was full of praise for the work of Vincent Foley from Kerry County Council, who “was on his hands and knees looking at drawings on Monday night”.

Mark explained that an initial plan to develop the playground on a site at the head of the pier was rejected following an appeal to An Bord Pleanála in January 2014.

He said the group had also considered developing the existing playground site in the town park but felt this was not suitable because of child protection legislation that requires a playground to be situated in a place where Gardaí can drive past to keep an eye on activities.

The group felt the town park presented other prooblems as well: “Who was going to put €200,000 worth of equipment in a place where it would be vandalised?” he said.

A small plot of land owned by Kerry County Council beside Hudson’s Bridge was subsequently identified as a suitable site and that has now been leased to the Am Spraoi group.

There were initial objections to the proposed development, most notably from Cúilín residents, but planning permission was granted at the end of August and there were no appeals to An Bord Pleanála. Full planning permission was granted at the start of October.

Am Spraoi was established six years ago with the aim of developing a new playground in Dingle. The current members are Chairperson Séamus Cosaí Mac Gearailt, Tor Cotton, Claire Galvin, Neasa Moran, Geraldine Walsh, Laurence Wetterwald, Eibhlín Uí Lúbhaing and Mark Greally.

The site between Cooleen and the Mall River where work is soon to start on building a children’s playground.