Residents must be at the heart of South Parish improvement scheme, Cork city councillor says

Residents must be at the heart of a proposed €10m improvement scheme for the South Parish area, a local councillor has said.

Independent councillor Paudie Dineen also expressed concern at the impact the plans could have on parking and traffic.

The proposed development will comprise upgrading and widening of footpaths and realignment of junctions to provide traffic calming measures and pedestrian crossing points. Douglas St, White St, Meade St, Drinan St and Cove St will be converted into one way streets.

A landscaping area between Abbey St and the southern end of Travers St will be introduced, as well as a shared active travel facility and a small city park on the eastern end of Douglas St, with seating, bike parking, and enhanced lighting to also be included in the scheme.

Mr Dineen said that while much of the scheme is welcome, there are several elements that concern him.

“Overall, it’s fantastic, the plans look absolutely amazing, especially the south end of Douglas St and the new park.

“But there are some negatives that residents and local businesses have been contacting me about, mainly the loss of parking and concerns about access for vehicles making deliveries to businesses in the area.

“There’s issues with parking in the area for residents as it is, removing so much parking is just going to push the problem out to other areas in the city.”

Mr Dineen added: 

“Another concern is that if you divert the traffic, it’s going to cause more congestion in other areas, but because those areas are outside the remit of this plan it’s not part of the discussion — I think this all needs to be looked at simultaneously.”

He welcomed that the plans were now out for public consultation, saying that he hoped the process would lead to these issues being addressed and encouraging people to make a submission to the consultation, concluding “the residents must be the priority — we have to make sure we listen to them.”

Public consultation is open until August 7, and submissions can be made at consult.corkcity.ie/en or in writing and addressed to: Senior Engineer, Infrastructure Department, City Hall, Cork City, T12 T997.