“Positive” meeting with council on collapsed building in Mitchelstown

A spokesperson for The Crumbled Building Committee in Mitchelstown has described recent engagement with Cork County Council as “positive”, and that a recent meeting with an engineer for the council had desirable outcomes, including the enhancement of the previously maligned pedestrian crossings in the area.

Claudia Matassa, speaking on behalf of the committee, welcomed the news that the Brother’s Path is to be reopened shortly, opening up accessibility on Upper Cork Street.

It was initially feared by the council that reopening the Brothers’ Walk would create a safety risk if many students were exiting the path onto Upper Cork Street. However, it was explained after an on-site meeting that “hordes” of students do not use the path at once, so that fear is allayed, and the reopening of the path will greatly benefit residents and others who use the Leisure Centre carpark. However, the reopening of the path is on a monitored basis to assess the safety of such a move.

This week, red anti-skid road markings were applied to the road on Upper Cork Street, which is intended to highlight the presence of a pedestrian crossing to motorists. A new pile of concrete blocks have been installed outside of the building, and the older ones will be removed eventually, thus widening the road. It is the council’s intention to place metal hoarding in front of the blocks to enhance the safety of the location.

Since the recent protest by members of the community on Upper Cork Street, an engineer for Cork County Council has come to the town, and the engagement has been described as positive, and that it was “good to talk”. The new measures were described as a positive, albeit a temporary measure for the area over the Christmas season.

(Pic: Marian Roche) Enhancements have been made to the pedestrian crossings both north and south of the building at Upper Cork Street following a “positive” meeting with council staff.