Tramore Valley Park won’t open until May 2019

A NEW roundabout and new parking spaces are set to be introduced in Tramore Valley Park to make the amenity ready for use by next summer.

City officials have now indicated that May 2019 is the most likely opening date.

The full opening of the massive park on the city’s southside has been beset by issues in recent years. Tramore Valley Park has been developed on the site of the remediated former Kinsale Road dump on the South Link Road.

However, access issues have prompted the cancellation of a number of events, resulting in a limited use of the facility to date. Several proposed opening times have been missed.

The ringfencing of supervision costs in last year’s Council budget prompted hopes of a summer 2018 opening, though it has now emerged that ‘an engineering solution’ for full public access is required, with city officials estimating that this could cost up to €6 million.

The full development of the park was one of the projects included in City Hall’s application for funding under the government’s Urban Regeneration Development Fund last month.

The minutes of a special meeting of Cork City Council’s environment and recreation functional committee held on Monday, September 24 note that ‘tenders have now been received in relation to a new traffic design solution for the entrance for health and safety reasons, with work to commence shortly.’

A spokesperson for City Hall’s environment and recreation department has since confirmed the nature of these works.

“There will be a new safer access and egress from the site, reconfiguring the existing road, segregating visitors to the site, whether going to the recycling centre or the internal park car parks for those who wish to use the park,” he said.

“There will be a new roundabout on entering the site, with new lanes leading either to the recycling centre or the car parks and with two lanes exiting the park (this is currently one lane.) “In addition, extra car parking spaces will be provided at the north-west of the park and near the existing weighbridge, near the entrance area.”

Officials have stated that ‘it is expected that all works will be completed and the park will open by May 2019.’