Westmeath County Council, Offaly County Council, TOBIN Consulting Engineers and LUC consulting are hosting a drop-in consultation event on Tuesday, October 12 for the communities of both counties to have their say on a new greenway between Athlone and Shannon Harbour via Shannonbridge.
The workshop is being run by consultancies TOBIN and LUC in partnership with both local authorities to help inform the route of the greenway. The event will be held between 12pm and 8pm at the Ballinahown Community Centre. All are welcome to drop in at any point within these times, for as long as convenient. Covid-19 protection measures will be in place, including a clearly identifiable Covid-19 Compliance Officer.
The project, which is funded under the 2020 Carbon Tax Fund, will involve extensive public consultation and participation and is starting with a ‘blank sheet’ in the examination of possible route corridors. We would very much appreciate your thoughts on where you think the greenway should be routed and the issues/opportunities which are evident. Response from this initial consultation will be translated into a number of greenway route options for further consultation later in the project.
The greenway will aim to link the Grand Canal Greenway at Shannon Harbour and the Old Rail Trail (Dublin Galway Greenway ) at Athlone, via the industrial heritage peatlands in west Offaly, and the internationally important monastic site at Clonmacnoise. The project is being project managed by Offaly County Council, but the study area will encompass parts of both Westmeath and Offaly.
This is your opportunity to get involved in your local community and its future. Westmeath County Council, Offaly County Council and TOBIN look forward to welcoming you at the event. Please also visit our Consultation Hub https://shannon-monastic-greenway-luc.hub.arcgis.com/ for further information and to leave your feedback.
If you would like any further information regarding this project, please contact TOBIN via the Project Manager Brian Gallagher E: [email protected].
Welcoming the greenway workshop, Athlone Deputy Mayor, Cllr Aengus O’Rourke, encouraged members of the local public to engage with the greenway consultation process.
“As one of the most outspoken members of the council in favour of a greenway route from Athlone to Clonmacnoise and Shannon Harbour, I am delighted to see the start of a process that will in my view deliver this wonderful project in time.
“I would urge the public to participate in this process starting with a public consultation event which is open all day on October 12 in Ballinahown Community Centre. Please come along on the day, have your say, and help make this amazing prospect a reality.
“This new greenway ‘spur’ would add immeasurably to our greenway ‘product’ in Athlone and the Midlands region as it proposes to use the Pilgrims Route, through our natural peat-lands landscape and on to our internationally renowned monastic site at Clonmacnoise,” Cllr O’Rourke stated.
