Birr's New River Walk Unveiled
Thursday, 12 January 2012
Pictured at the opening of the new walkway at Bridge Street, Birr on Monday.
BIRR'S impressive new Camcor River Walk was officially opened to the public this week, adding an exciting new feature to the town's ever growing myriad of attractions and outdoor pursuits.
The new feature, which blends in perfectly with the town's architecture while successfully opening up the beauty of the river area to pedestrians, complements the recently opened Active Age Park and offers a new route for local people to leisurely amble along, or for joggers and cyclists.
It is hoped the new walk will eventually stretch even further, providing a walkway from Birr Castle all the way to Syngefield House alongside the picturesque Camcor River.
Officially unveiled by Birr Town Council Chairman, Councillor Noel Russell (FF), on Monday, the new river walk might never have happened if not for an anonymous donation made to the Town Council for the explicit purpose of kick starting work on the feature.
'This project might never have happened at all, if not for the anonymous donation of €7,000 to Birr Town Council three years ago and we would like to thank them very much for making the project possible,' Cllr. Russell told a small gathering who assembled for the opening.
'We received funding of €50,000 for the construction of the walkway and a further €30,000 to install the lighting under the Smart Travel programme from the Department of Transport and Tourism,' Cllr. Russell said.
'When we sit down to the do the Town Plan every five years many people say the work we have planned is too aspirational. But a lot of the work that has been done around the town recently is through the Town Plan,' Cllr. Russell said.
Cllr. Russell also thanked several people involved in the project, particularly designer of the walkway, Padraig Hessan and local man Dermot Ward, who cleared the site.
Cllr. Russell also extended thanks to Martin Coughlan and Jim Ferguson for their participation in laying the ground works for the project and extended congratulations to Joe Cahill and Peter Grennan on completion of their final project with Birr Town Council before retirement.
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