Tender due for design of long-awaited flood relief scheme in Wicklow
The planning application was lodged in May 2021 and an oral hearing was held in January 2022.
In 2023 Wicklow County Council, funded by the Office of Public Works signed contracts with consultants to progress a detailed design and construction review.
The scheme is part of the government's €1.3bn investment in flood relief measures under the National Development Plan.
The overall aim of the scheme is to provide flood relief measures along the Avoca River and estuary to combat flooding while protecting residential and non-residential properties from flooding and subsequent damage.
Site investigation works took place towards the end of 2024, which included a geophysical survey of the Arklow Town Marsh and the excavation of slit trenches along South Quay, the Harbour area, Harbour Road, and Bridge Street.
Following a query from Cllr Peir Leonard at the July meeting of Wicklow County Council, director of services Theresa O' Brien said the project is moving towards a tender process.
'The flood protection scheme has its permission, so it won't be coming back before the Council. Full permission has been received for that.'
Cllr Leonard asked if it could come back before councillors to have a look at the plans before they go out to tender for the design stage.
Her request comes after a planning application was submitted to build a new public boardwalk/bridge for pedestrians and cyclists across Arklow marsh and the Avoca River to the Arklow Riverwalk.
It forms part of a wider application to build a new 666 housing development on a site in Kilbride that includes a local centre, crèche, and 999 car parking spaces.
The bridge element across the river will be constructed atop the concrete columns permitted as part of the scheme.
Cllr Leonard said the bridge will play an important part in connecting the northern part of the town to the heart of the Main Street.
'It will bring much needed footfall for local traders.' she added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
21 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Wicklow chef crowned winner at National Catering Awards
The award in particular recognises the catering company's sourcing of local Wicklow produce for their menus, featuring food and drink grown and produced by fellow Wicklow Naturally members. Críoch Catering was founded by Arklow chef Tadgh Byrne in 2019 and was nominated for five awards at the inaugural Gold Medal Catering Awards, held on June 26 at Clontarf Castle. The team took the gold medal for menu provenance for their use of local produce and their work with Wicklow Naturally. Críoch was also shortlisted for awards for best public sector catering (at Wicklow County Council), sustainability, small events catering, and rising star. The Gold Medal Catering Awards was created to shine a spotlight on the standards being set across the Irish catering landscape, from large-scale contract providers and healthcare caterers to niche event specialists and rising individual stars. The awards programme received over 150 entries in its first year, a testament to the vibrant and competitive spirit within the industry. After winning the award, Tadgh said: 'Putting Wicklow on the plate was one of Críoch's founding goals, so I'm thrilled that this has been acknowledged on a national scale. I hope that other contract catering companies will start to give Irish ingredients more attention in the coming years.' Wicklow Naturally extended its congratulations to Tadgh and his team at Críoch and acknowledged his consistent support of Wicklow food and drink producers. Chairperson Paul Smith said that Tadgh has been 'an active and valuable member of the network since its inception and has always endeavoured to champion local and sustainable produce from the Garden County'. Críoch also caters at the Wicklow County Council head office and for An Tairseach Ecology Centre. Meanwhile, the Q Cafe Company, which operates at Wicklow Hospice, won four awards on the night – Outstanding Customer Service of the Year, Catering Company of the Year, Public Sector Food of the Year and the Special Recognition Award.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Irish Independent
Tender due for design of long-awaited flood relief scheme in Wicklow
The scheme was first initiated in 2002 following major flooding in 1986, 1989 and 2002. The planning application was lodged in May 2021 and an oral hearing was held in January 2022. In 2023 Wicklow County Council, funded by the Office of Public Works signed contracts with consultants to progress a detailed design and construction review. The scheme is part of the government's €1.3bn investment in flood relief measures under the National Development Plan. The overall aim of the scheme is to provide flood relief measures along the Avoca River and estuary to combat flooding while protecting residential and non-residential properties from flooding and subsequent damage. Site investigation works took place towards the end of 2024, which included a geophysical survey of the Arklow Town Marsh and the excavation of slit trenches along South Quay, the Harbour area, Harbour Road, and Bridge Street. Following a query from Cllr Peir Leonard at the July meeting of Wicklow County Council, director of services Theresa O' Brien said the project is moving towards a tender process. 'The flood protection scheme has its permission, so it won't be coming back before the Council. Full permission has been received for that.' Cllr Leonard asked if it could come back before councillors to have a look at the plans before they go out to tender for the design stage. Her request comes after a planning application was submitted to build a new public boardwalk/bridge for pedestrians and cyclists across Arklow marsh and the Avoca River to the Arklow Riverwalk. It forms part of a wider application to build a new 666 housing development on a site in Kilbride that includes a local centre, crèche, and 999 car parking spaces. The bridge element across the river will be constructed atop the concrete columns permitted as part of the scheme. Cllr Leonard said the bridge will play an important part in connecting the northern part of the town to the heart of the Main Street. 'It will bring much needed footfall for local traders.' she added.
Extra.ie
a day ago
- Extra.ie
Major row dividing the coalition over income for artists
A major row is simmering in the Coalition over plans to abolish a scheme that provides a guaranteed income for artists. understands that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER), led by Fianna Fáil's Jack Chambers, and the Department of Culture, led by Fine Gael's Patrick O'Donovan, are at loggerheads over plans to scrap the Basic Income for the Arts (BIA) pilot scheme. Under the scheme, initiated by former arts minister Catherine Martin, of the Green Party, the State pays €325 a week to around 2,000 artists to address the financial instability faced by many working in the sector. Successful applicants were notified in September 2022 and the pilot runs over three years from 2022 to 2025. Media Minister Catherine Martin was first told of a potential golden handshake to RTÉ's head of content Jim Jennings at the end of May. Extra has learned, however, that the scheme barely escaped the budgetary knife during a DPER review of spending in the Culture Department. As part of the build-up to the revamped National Development Plan (NDP) and Budget 2026 – which the Government has warned will be a difficult one – DPER have been reviewing the spending of all departments. One minister noted: 'It is like a home invasion. They [the DPER] are going through everywhere like a dose of salts; a lot of ministers are feeling very bruised.' This is especially the case within the Department of Culture, where sources told Extra: 'The artists scheme barely survived; the minister had a battle to get a six-month extension.' One senior figure noted: 'The DPER accountants were not impressed. They were using phrases like 'strong reservations' on any future schemes.' A departmental source added: 'The suggestion was made was that it was a measure that doesn't need repeating. Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos 'That's civil service speak for taking the scheme to the vets to be put down.' The DPER accountants are believed to have met stern resistance from Minister O'Donovan. One Government figure noted: 'The minister has strong personal views on this: he will not accept losing a penny or a single artist. The minister will react very vigorously to any attempts to trim this scheme.' They added: 'There has been significant research into the operation of this project. There is a comprehensive report. All artists were, as part of the process, questioned over its impact.' One furious senior Fine Gael figure lambasted the move, noting: 'It's politically stupid. You would think we would have far better things to be doing than taking on a few starving artists.' They warned the Government is 'kicking over a whole series of hornets nests' to save money for the budget, alluding to the ongoing row over whether to scrap a €1,000 reduction in student fees that was introduced as a cost-ofliving measure. Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers. Pic: Fran Veale Another Fine Gael source warned: 'Jack [Chambers] would want to be very careful. 'Culture is a small department but sometimes in these matters it's not the size of the dog in the fight, but rather the size of the fight in the dog that matters, and Patrick likes fighting.' They warned that the Fine Gael TD for Limerick County would not 'tolerate any incursions like this on his patch'. Another Fine Gael source noted: 'It is a classic example of Fianna Fáil knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing. 'All these words by Micheál Martin and others about the value of and pride in Irish culture sound very hollow. Pic: Shutterstock 'Pride has to eat, you know.' Responding to queries on the issue, the Department of Public Expenditure said: 'Any matters relating to decisions for Budget 2026, including the below mentioned scheme, will be considered as part of the normal budgetary process.' Given the perceived success of the scheme, Culture Minister Mr O'Donovan received some criticism when he announced a short six-month extension of the current arrangements. Labour arts spokesperson Rob O'Donoghue sharply criticised the scenario where artists had been left with a 'six-month Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads'. Pic: Shutterstock Mr O'Donovan has already signalled that he expects a full renewal of the scheme in Budget 2026, noting at the announcement of the six-month extension of the current scheme: 'I intend to bring proposals for a successor scheme to Cabinet as part of Budget 2026.' He added: 'The extension I am announcing today will provide time to finalise the research programme and to undertake stakeholder engagement, which will provide the Government with a comprehensive evidence base upon which to base future policy decisions about the Basic Income for the Arts (BIA).' Mr O'Donovan added that evidence collected to date indicates 'the BIA payment is having a consistent positive impact across almost all indicators'. Cairn Community Games ambassador Jack Woolley with children Helena Casey and Joseph Farrell at the launch of Cairn Community Games in the Gate Theatre. Pic: Julien Behal He said artists in receipt of the support are typically able to 'devote more time to their art, produce more pieces of work, experience a boost to their wellbeing through greater life satisfaction, experience reduced anxiety, and are protected from the precariousness of incomes in the sector to a greater degree than those who are not receiving the support'. The Basic Income for the Arts pilot scheme was launched in 2022 with two funding streams: one for newly qualified artists and one for more established ones. Some 2,000 eligible applicants were chosen through random selection, having met the criteria. No means test was applied to applicants.
