Clifden set for whole new look

IT’S full steam ahead with plans for the regeneration of Clifden as ‘Connemara’s capital’ in what will be a three-pronged plan to make the town a lot more people- and visitor-friendly.

Connemara Area councillors heard at their meeting on Friday in County Hall that plans for the ‘Clifden Regeneration Programme’ were being advanced with funding being provided under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF).

The programme of works envisaged for Clifden will focus on three locations – the town centre, a new Harbour Park and Beach Road Quay.

Senior Galway County Council Engineer, Ciaran Wynne, said that the three parts of the project were all interlinked and would involve an extensive consultation process with the local community.

He added that one of the aims of the project would be to relocate a lot of the car-parking from the centre of the town to other locations, in order to give greater pedestrian access to green space areas.

“We will be consulting extensively with local people and businesses in the town with a view to having full designs completed by the end of this year. We will then be in a position to apply for Category 1 RRDF funding,” said Ciaran Wynne.

In a consultant’s report presented to councillors, some of the key improvements to the city centre that were required, included better connectivity between the town centre and other key areas of Clifden such as the former railway station.

Narrow footways and lack of civic space in the town centre as well as the ‘disconnect’ between this area and the coastline – including the quayside – also needed to be addressed in the regeneration, the consultants recommended.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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