6 December 2023
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
A community display of Skibbereen’s draft Town Centre First Regeneration Plan will be held on Wednesday, December 13th at Skibbereen Town Hall. The event will be hosted by consultants Cunnane Stratton Reynolds and A Playful City, supported by Cork County Council as well as members of the Skibbereen Town Team.
Part of the national Town Centre First initiative, the Regeneration Plan for Skibbereen is at draft stage and the community display event will present the ideas that have emerged through the consultation process. Since the launch of the initial consultation survey in August of 2023, there have been 930 submissions from the general public, as well as a number of public meetings and focus groups.
The initial information meeting in September saw an attendance of approximately 80 people with a focus group or ‘town team’ of eight community representatives emerging from that event. In October, despite adverse weather fifteen participants alongside representation from the plan design team and the Council undertook a Walk and Talk workshop.
A further four Town Team workshops have taken place over the past two months, as well as meetings with Elected Members of Cork County Council to allow for more focussed engagement between the design team, the community and the Council. This engagement has been invaluable toward guiding the design team through the process of developing a shared vision for Skibbereen.
Welcoming the next stage of the plan, Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Frank O’Flynn said, “It’s an exciting time for the community in Skibbereen as a shared vision for the town is brought to life. I commend all who contributed their views and worked to identify solutions to the challenges that are common across many towns. Your collective voice will truly be reflected in this exciting new plan for Skibbereen.”
Chief Executive of Cork County Council, Valerie O’Sullivan added, “The aim of the Town Centre First Policy is to create town centres that function as viable, vibrant and attractive locations for people to live, work and visit, while also functioning as social, cultural and recreational hubs for the local community. While Skibbereen is the initial Town Centre First ‘pathfinder’ town for County Cork, we are actively progressing a range of regeneration measures across towns in the county, covering areas such as sustainable travel, property activation and public realm enhancements.”
Registration for this event is essential in order to plan appropriately for numbers attending. Drop in consultation is available from 6:00pm to 8:30pm A presentation of the Draft Plan will take place at 6.30pm to 7.00pm. Register your interest by visiting www.corkcoco.ie
A copy of the draft plan will be made available at Skibbereen Library after the event.
Queries can be addressed to townregenerationoffice@corkcoco.ie