Ireland’s ‘medieval capital’ hit by health and safety ‘eyesore’
KILKENNY locals are outraged after the council installed a garish metal rail along a laneway that is almost 400 years old.
The city is promoted by Discover Ireland as Ireland’s medieval capital, and with its ancient arches and cracked stone steps The Butterslip has always been a favourite among tourists, prompting glowing reviews on the website tripadvisor.com, with one visitor describing a ramble down it as ‘like walking back in time’.
‘We woke on Wednesday to find it had been installed’
The city is already the centre of protests, with more due this week after the council removed the chimney of a protected historic house as part of a controversial new bridge.
Campaigners have already written ‘not in my name’ on the hoarding outside the building site, with numerous signatures added since.
But a new row over the city’s heritage erupted midweek over the surprise installation by the council of black bollards and a silver handrail up the middle of the picturesque passage.
Margaret O’Brien and other locals have started a campaign to have the ‘eyesore’ removed. She said: ‘We woke on Wednesday to find these bollards had been installed. There was no discussion or consultation. That laneway is the top attraction in Kilkenny. It’s a protected structure so nobody ever imagined you could do anything like this.’
The Butterslip was built in 1616 and was once flanked by stalls selling butter, hence the name. Despite its age, the council have argued that the railing was necessary for ‘health and safety reasons’ because people had slipped on the steps. However, it could only confirm ‘two or three’ such incidents had happened.
Asked about it on local radio station KCLR on Friday, a council spokesman described the railings as ‘temporary’.