31 Years later: All Smiles at Our Neighbourhood Centre's First Open Day.

I was delighted to be present at today's very well attended and most enjoyable 'Open Day' for the Ballinfoile - Castlegar Neighbourhood Centre, six weeks after it opened its doors to the general public and 31 years after local community activists started a campaign to secure indoor and outdoor recreational facilities for the residents of the Ballinfoile Mór and Castlegar area.

The top photograph shows a happy bunch of politicians, community campaigners and local residents in the foyer of a very impressive state-of-the-art sports and community facility.
The bottom photograph shows a demonstration of people of all ages outside City Hall in June 1989 as a meeting of Galway City Council (then known as Galway City Corporation) voted on a proposal to provide outdoor and indoor recreational facilities in our neighbourhood. 

As a result of our campaign from 1987-1989, that evening the councillors (including Michael D. Higgins, now President of Ireland) voted in our favour. Within a 12-18 month period two playing pitches, changing rooms, a tennis court, a children's playground, car park and a most beautiful nature park with karst limestone outcrops and walking trails were provided.

Sadly we failed at the time to secure the construction of a sports and community centre. 

 

But over the next three decades in different shapes and guises we kept fighting and finally after many false promises and starts, January 2018 saw the fine building that we were in today open. In its short few weeks of existence under the auspices of the social enterprise entitiy SCCUL and supported by the community representative umbrella grouping Croí na Tuath (heart of the people/land) and Galway City, it has spawned and become home to a myriad of sporting, artistic, health and learning activities.
So many people have helped along the way; sadly some of them did not live to experience this afternoon's joyous coming together of a community. Today though was the start of the next phase in the ongoing development of the Ballinfoile Mór - Castlegar district. So we must grasp the positivity that today has meant to everyone living locally and build on this wonderful celebration of community to foster a true Sense of Place and a Sense of Purpose.
So, as they say, watch this space!

30 year Struggle for Opening of a Local Community Centre continues

As someone who actively campaigned for the Ballinfoile – Castlegar Neighbourhood (& Sports) Centre from 1987 until late 2016, I am frustrated and annoyed this much needed facility still remains closed.
I did not put my name forward for election in November 2016 to the new (with its inclusive representivity constitution) community centre committee as I (and indeed all local activists) felt that the campaign to secure its opening, after years of community activism, protests/lobbying, was finally completed as local residents and councillors were publicly informed by the CEO and other city officials at that month's council meeting in City Hall that the this neighbourhood and sports facility would be open in January. So I expect that all members of the excellent newly elected committee thought the same and were probably expecting to be working primarily on management and operational issues.
In fact it is worth noting that the facility was officially opened by Cllr Frank Fahy as Mayor of Galway City in May 2016. Frank was optimistic then that it would be available to the local community soon thereafter.

Yes, the centre did indeed open in January 2017 but only for ONE day (to facilitate a public consultation on the Kirwan Roundabout). Local residents heard nothing for months, though of course we expected that the community committee were working hard behind the scenes. Then at a public meeting in the Menlo Park Hotel on May 9th, residents and councillors were informed by a city council official that the terms of a management agreement had finally been agreed in principle with SCCUL and that it was expected to be signed off the following week with an opening date in late August at the very latest. So will this new date be honoured? At this stage there is no reason that I know off why there should be delays by the council’s solicitor in agreeing to have the contract signed. If it does not happen soon, I feel that this represents a breakage of trust with the Ballinfoile – Castlegar community and that the protest/lobbying campaign may need to be immediately reactivated.
Photo is from one of a number of regular resident protests on the centre held outside City Hall and the Ballinfoile - Castlegar Community Centre from autumn 2014 until winter 2016.

City Hall, Summer 1989

Celtic Cross Project: Volunteers Needed for Community Organic Garden

As well as the regular tasks that are undertaken in an organic garden such as weeding, sowing, pruning and repairing, the Ballinfoile Mór Community Organic Garden will this Saturday commence in laying the foundations of a large 16 meter long footpath designed in the shape of a Celtic Cross that will form a new pathway feature in this urban green facility. So lots of help is needed to create a structure that will give due recognition in a modern urban green setting to the cultural traditions of ancient Ireland and the Celtic people's strong affinity with Nature. The prominent 'Circle' in the Celtic Cross represents the 'Sun' whose different levels of light and heat though the four seasons of the year controlled their agricultural practices and associated annual communal festivals such as the Harvest Festival (Lughnasa), Samhain, Imbloc and Bealtaine. 

Hence we are appealing to as many volunteers as possible to come along at 11am on Saturday. At the end of the communal work, there is of course refreshments for all.
Google Maps location:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zy2xJB2YGAaU.kvWEedMz4s8A&usp=sharing

Thousands Sign Petition over Neighbourhood Centre

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Over 2,100 people from the Ballinfoile Mór and Castlegar areas have already signed a petition demanding that the new Ballinfoile/Castlegar Neighbourhood Centre be maintained as a public facility to serve the needs of the local residents. So well done to all the local activists that made this happen and who stood yet again outside City Hall last Monday to make the feelings of their community on the centre known to councillors.

The issue which has been on the agenda of the city council for the last three monthly meetings is finally expected to be voted upon by councillors on March 14th.  Representatives from the local community have had discussions recently with council officials and a number of our key concerns over peak hours, board of management community representation, discounted rates and prioritising jobs in the centre for local people, as well as an absolute guarantee that there will be no privitisation of the Ballinfoile/Castlegar Neighbourhood and Sports Centre have been acceded too.  However our focus is still to keep the facility under local government management/staffing in association with the local community as well as to ensure that its annual council budget is not reduced. Hence we will continue to campaign on these demands and a public meeting is being planned to discuss the proposals on Social Enterprise from the council officials and associated costings of the centre once they are finalised after further consultations.

But we can learn a lot from experiences of the Knocknacarra area where there has been a similar publicly-owned facility in operation for a number of years but with quite limited hours of opening. The council now wish to put both centres out to tender under a Social Network enterprise. The Knocknacarra community have years of experience on the issue of public ownership and are presently putting their own counter proposal together. In a conversation with Gerry Corbett, chairperson of the Knocknacarra Sports and Facilities Co-Op, their approach as outlined seems very advantageous in serving the needs of local residents. So it makes total sense to, as well as show the council’s proposal on tendering of the centre, to invite Gerry and his team to outline the plans of their co-operative to our proposed public meeting as well as to invite Tommy Flaherty from the Ballybane Centre to give us his opinion.  A gathering of local centre activists will be called upon soon to discuss this approach.

The people of Ballinfoile Mór have fought for 30 years for this indoor community complex. We owe it to those who stood with us over many decades; to those thousands of people who signed our recent door-to-door petition and to future generations not yet born to ensure that the centre will always serve, be owned, managed and used by the local people.

Tomorrow Roisin is organising an informal get-together of local residents at 7pm in 50 Baile an Chóiste. Thanks Roisin! 

Residents' Protest outside City Hall tomorrow (Mon) on new Sports & Community Centre

Many thanks to all those residents and supporters that took part in the packed meeting of local residents called to discuss the Ballinfoile-Castlegar Sports and Community Neighbourhood Centre on November 30th in the Menlo Park and who attended the action committee gathering on Monday last. The attendance at both events was a great morale booster to all campaigners!

Packed residents' meeting in Menlo Park Hotel

The next step in our campaign is to ensure that we have a good turnout on our peaceful protest that will take place at 2.30pm (to 4pm) tomorrow (Monday December 14th) outside City Hall in advance of a crucial meeting of Galway City Council when the management structure of the centre will be voted upon.
It is a now-or-never scenario for us on this key facility. So please if you are available make every effort to attend and encourage others (family, friends and neighbours) to take part. Even if you are not from our area, we would appreciate your support as this issue is about ensuring that every citizen of Ireland has a basic right to community and recreational facilities which is increasingly threatened due to the draconian cutbacks to public services as a result of the last government’s decision to force taxpayers to pay for the gambling debts of a rich well connected elite of bankers and property speculators.

Protestors from Ballinfoile, Tirellan, Sandyvale, Castlelawn district protesting outside City Hall in 1989

Demands
We as concerned residents are demanding that councilors ensure that the new state-of-the-arts sports and community complex that we fought for since 1987 to obtain serves the needs of and is controlled by the local community.
After the welcome news last September that the government had agreed to allow Galway City Council to break the local government jobs embargo in order to hire staff for the centre, it was disheartening to hear at last month's council meeting, called to decide the city budget for 2016, that only 50% (€300,000) of the finance needed to operate the centre (& that of Knocknacarra) as a fully fledged public enterprise would come from local authority sources. For this meant, according to Brendan McGrath council CEO, that they would have to bring in an outside contractor to form a public-private partnership to run the centre. For it is our fear that this arrangement could mean that privatization could occur sooner or later to the detriment of the local community as profit would take priority over social needs.

Ballinfoile - Castlegar Sports & Community Neighbourhood Centre

So we want to ensure that councillors on Monday keep by the commitments made by Brendan Mc Grath at the November budget meeting that:
a) peak hours would be retained for local groups/individuals
b) Low rental fees would be charged to local groups/individuals
c) People from the locality must be well represented on the oversight/management board.
Furthermore we request that:
d) local community representation makes up at least 50% of the oversight board
e) the new jobs that will accrue in this facility will be given to local people where possible.
f) consideration is given to social enterprise partnership programmes as an alternative to taking in private contractors.
If these just demands are not meet, it will represent a betrayal of decades of struggle by a local community and raises questions over who our political system serve.

Finally, we are asking all residents and supporters to attend the public meeting that will take place at 8pm on Tuesday December 15th in the Menlo Park Hotel to hear what was decided at Monday’s council meeting and what actions need to be undertaken.

Help Save a Willow Tree Sculpture!

Volunteers are needed on Saturday morning to help in moving a large beautiful living Willow Tree Tunnel from a school garden to the Ballinfoile Mór Community Organic Garden in the Terryland Forest Park, Galway city.

Rendevous: 11am Sat, Ballinfoile Mór Community Organic Garden

This transplanting work has to be done as a matter of urgency as the present site of the tunnel will be bulldozed later next week due to a school building extension programme.
Scoil Náisiúnta Cholmcille Castlegar has generously offered the community group the trees in order to save the tunnel from destruction. The willows will be relocated to the Ballinfoile Mór facility to form part of an existing three tunnel network. 

Over the years the teachers, parents, pupils and Fás workers at Scoil Cholmcille have created a green oasis within the school grounds. 

Most of the garden will be left untouched by the new building. In fact it has being tastefully developed over the last six months with the addition of new murals, bug hotels, native Irish trees, wooden seating and raised beds. 

The transplanted trees will be still be available to the school children to harvest for sculptures and hopefully some day to be used to recreate a new tunnel outside their classrooms.

New Greenway Route to Link Seven Castles in Galway City & County

Cloonacauneen Castle

New Greenway Route to Link Seven Castles in Galway City and County

Years of community grassroots initiated activity will finally bear fruit on Sunday October 7^th when Slí na gCaisleán (‘The Way of the Castles’) will be launched which it is hoped will form the basis for a network of Greenways (scenic pedestrians and cycling routes) linking Galway city with the rural landscapes of east county Galway.

Carrowbrowne

The event takes place as part of National Trails Day, a special time of the year to celebrate Ireland’s wonderful variety of trails and a chance for everyone to enjoy some of our most beautiful countryside, forests, mountains and lakes.

Ballindooley Castle

A milestone in the development of the ‘Off the Beaten Track’ guided heritage cycle tours that are now in their third year, this event will cover a route that encompasses seven castles on the north and eastern side of Galway city and into Galway county. ‘Slí na gCaisleán’ will start (10am) from and finish at Terryland Castle in a 25mile looped cycle route that will include castles at Menlo, Cloonacauneen, Killeen, Ballybrit, Castlegar and Ballindooley.

Carrowbrowne Bog Road that has been cleared of debris by conservation volunteers

Ballybrit Castle at the famous Race Course

Three of these castle are lived in, with one being a hotel.

This leisurely cycle will journey over through a picturesque idyllic landscape of hills, botharins, abandoned farms, karst outcrops, bogs, lakes, dykes, turloughs and meadows.

Carrowbrowne farmland

The vision and hard work to make this Greenways network become a reality encompassed many different groups and individuals including university students, farmers, environmental campaigners, city residents, cycling advocates, heritage groups, local authority officials and politicians.

Terryland Castle: Starting point for the '7 Castle Looped Castle Route'

Menlo Castle

Start time: 10am, October 7^th
Rendezvous point: Terryland Castle, Terryland Forest Park, Dyke Road.
Organisers & Supporters: Terryland Forest Park Steering Committee, Conservation Volunteers Terryland Forest Park, Cumann na bhFear and Galway City Council (Recreation and Amenity), City Planning & Greenways office, GTU and the HSE.

Ballindooley Lough

Note: Participants should bring along their own bicycle, suitable clothing and packed lunch. There will be a stop over at Cloonacauneen Castle where participants can purchase food and beverages. Any children twelve years or under must be accompanied by an adult. All participants must sign a form agreeing to abide by the rules of the tour.
For further information, contact Brendan Smith at speediecelt@gmail.com

Picnic along the banks of the Corrib river, Menlo

Castlegar Castle

The Grotto, St. Peter & Pauls' Church, Coolough

'High Nelly' bicycle enthusiasts, Terryland Forest Park, Lus Leana

Menlo Botharîn

Cyclists enjoying lunch at Cloonacauneen Castle

On the road to Cloonacauneen Castle (background)

Spelman's Botharîn, Castlegar

Exciting New Community-based 'Greenways' Network to Link the Castles of Galway City & County

Repairing Old Bog Road, Carrowbrowne

University students, farmers, environmental campaigners, city residents, cycling advocates, heritage groups, local authority officials and politicians are joining forces to develop an ambitious network of ‘Greenways’ that will link up castles on the east side of Galway city with historical mansions and castles in the north and east of the county.

Shane Foran, Cllr Frank Fahy & Oisín Ó Nidh in Community Clean-Up, Carrowbrowne Bog

Community & Environmental Efforts Finally Bearing Fruit

After years of campaigning and activity, the combined efforts of the Friends of Galway's Forests, Castlegar Connect, the Terryland Forest Park committee, the Off the Beaten Track heritage cycle scheme, visionary  local authority officials (Marie Mannion, Rosie Webb, Cathy Joyce, Sharon Carroll, Stephen Walsh) and one lone city councillor Frank Fahy are finally starting to bear fruit as Galway may yet benefit from a network of pedestrian and cycle trails to rival that of Kerry, Wicklow, Scotland and rural England.
Such an initiative could become be the most important eco initiative in Galway city for decades and will help in securing the future of the Terryland Forest Park and in supporting the growth of the community organic garden movement in the city. 

Cloonacauneen Castle

Network of Greenways to Link Galway's Castles

Rosie Webb, Greenways Advocate at Galway City Council, on 'Off the Beaten Track' Heritage Cycle Tour to Menlo

It is envisaged that this exciting community-based initiative under the working title of Slí na gCaisleán (‘The Way of the Castles’), supported by both councils in Galway city and county, could give a whole new dimension to local tourism by providing a wonderful network of scenic pedestrian and cycling trails that will commence at Terryland Castle, continue on through the Terryland Forest Park to Castlegar Castle with one route branching off towards Menlo Castle. An alternative route will wind its way through Carrowbrowne Bog towards Cloonacauneen Castle. 

Botharín, Ballybrit

This trail will connect into an old right of way that  linked Castlegar Church to the Ballybrit Race Course. Known as the Castlegar Mass Path, it is presently been developed and maintained by residents in Parkmore and Ballybrit as well as the Castlegar Connect NGO.  A mosaic of ancient ancient tracks known as botharíns exist all across the country that local people are finally becoming aware off once again after decades of non-use due to modern society's over reliance of cars and main roads. 

Summer Garden Festival, Claregalway Castle

There are plans to develop links to Claregalway Castle, with further routes over time going into the heartlands of north and east Galway county. 

Beautiful Countryside of Carrowbrowne

May 12th: Volunteers Needed for Repair Work on Old Bog Road in Carrowbrowne

An important step in making this ambitious city-county Greenway a reality will take place on Saturday May 12^th when volunteers will gather together at 11.30am beside the Carrowbrowne graveyard before commencing the re-surfacing and cleaning up of a lovely old bog road. This event is being coordinated by Conservation Volunteers Terryland Forest Park and environs with city councillor Frank Fahy who has secured the support of local land-owners and has led similar clean-ups in the area over the last year. Participants include NUIG business students operating under the ‘CKI Alive’ programme as well as conservationists and local residents. The students are particularly interested in developing the community and tourism aspects of the Greenways. Everyone is welcomed to participate in this conservation work. 

Michael Tiernan using a 'Grabber' traditional implement that he made himself to clean up a ditch in Carrowbrowne

Galway's Green Heroes

For the event, members of the Ballinfoile Cumann na bhFhear (Men’s Shed) under the guidance of Michael Tiernan are making replicas of special traditional implements ('grabbers) used in bogs in bygone days to remove vegetation and debris from water channels. 

Anne McCabe in a cleaning operation to re-open the old Castlegar Mass Path

Different organisations are involved in different tasks at different stages along the route including Conservation Volunteers Terryland Forest, Galway Civic Trust, Castlegar Connect, VEC, Cumann na bhFear and the Ballinfoile Mór Community Organic Garden. Within Galway City Council, we are supported by Cathy Joyce of the GTU and Stephen Walsh at City Parks whilst Rosie Webb is the senior official responsible for designing the city’s Greenways network.

Councillor Frank Fahy repairing a drystone wall in Carrowbrowne

 Marie Mannion, in her capacity as Heritage Officer of Galway County Council and prime mover behind the ‘Golden Mile’ projects, is providing much needed inspiration, professional expertise and guidance. Plus of course the redoubtable Councillor Frank Fahy!

Old Bog Road, Carrowbrowne

May 20th: Launch of  'Off the Beaten Track' Cycle Heritage Route for Carrowbrowne

On Sunday May 20^th, an “Off the Beaten Track” heritage cycle tour will go through the enhanced Carrowbrowne Bog to celebrate the work of the volunteers on the previous weekend. Starting at 11am from the Centra Foodstore on Bóthar an Chóiste, it will include a stop-over for hostelry refreshments at Cloonacauneen Castle.

These trails will open up an oftentimes hidden side of Galway city to both tourist and locals alike who, by taking to the bike or by walking, will enjoy a fascinating landscape of ancient castles, hedgerows, farmlands natural beauty and rich biodiversity that commence only a few minutes from the hustle and bustle of the city’s streets.

 For further information, contact speediecelt@gmail.com

See previous articles on
Ballinfoile Mór Community Organic Garden - bringing healthy food & biodiversity to an urban area
Cumann an bhFear (Men's Shed) - a men's movement in Galway city that encourages men from all walks of life to help each other to learn and/or teach skills, particularly traditional Irish crafts and skills that can benefit themselves and the wider community.
 Off the Beaten Track - guided heritage cycle tours through the picturesque rural landscapes of Galway city, landscapes that are unknown to the majority of the urban population.  

'Off the Beaten Track' Heritage Cycle Routes & 'Greenways' for Galway city

'Off the Beaten Track' Cycle Route through the rural landscapes of north eastern Galway city

Every cloud has a silver lining. The sudden but inevitable demise of the building boom-based Celtic Tiger has meant that the greedy property speculators and so-called 'developers', supported by friends amongst the banking, political and civil service hierarchy, thankfully did not have the time required to bulldoze all of the Irish countryside and cover it with tarmac and concrete! Hence there is still much to enjoy in our legendary natural heritage even in the urban sprawl suburbia of Galway city.So once again, I am organising, as a joint Galway City Council/ Galway City Community Forum venture, a cycle tour of the stunning beautiful rural countryside of Galway City as part of Ireland's National Cycle Week.

Entitled 'Off the Beaten Path' it will commence at 11am sharp on Sunday June 20th from the Centra Foodstore on Bóthar na Choiste, Headford Road.

The event will be a 4 hour leisurely cycle stroll through some of the most interesting historical scenic landscapes on the east side of the city. It will hopefully be a journey of discovery for many of its participants.We will ignore the hustle and bustle of housing estates, shopping centres and highways.Instead we will travel along secondary roads to enjoy the sights and sounds of an increasingly threatened but none-the-less vibrant countryside dominated by small farms and natural features such as lakes and bogs.
Commencing on Bóthar an Choiste (Irish = Coach Road), I will bring participants through townlands whose ancient names reveal hidden landscapes and reflect the respect that Irish people once had for Nature -Ballinfoile (Town of the ridge), Ballindooley (Town of the black lake), Killoughter (High Wood), Menlo (Small Lake), Coolough (Hollow at the base of the cliff)...
We will journey over hills, along botharins, past abandoned farm buildings, ruined castles, karst outcrops, bogs, lakes, dykes, turloughs and meadows.
We will stop off in Menlo to enjoy a picnic along the banks of the River Corrib.
To liven the journey up, I will recount tales of headless horsemen, ancient battles, haunted ruins, tragic drownings, lost gardens and of the great forests and the majestic wolves that once roamed the area.

Though I have ongoing battles with City Hall over a myriad of community and environmental issues, nevertheless I can only heap praise on the city officials who contributed to the success of this event, particularly Cathy Joyce.

So I hope that Galwegians will take to their bicycles on Sun June 19th and enjoy the remaining vestiges of our once glorious natural environment, with its rich native flora and fauna.
For further information, email me at speediecelt@gmail.com

Developing an Online Mapping Network of
Cycle & Walking Greenways for Galway city

Finally, the event is part of an ambitious programme by the Friends of Galway's Forests NGO and associated community environmental groups such as Castlegar Connect and Birdwatch Galway to map out over the next few months exciting new walking and cycling leisure routes through areas of rural ambiance and outstanding beauty that are located on the periphery of Galway city. It is hoped that this process will re-engage Irish people once again with Nature, protect biodiversity and ultimately ourselves as a species. Click here for further information on the development of eco-tourism in Galway city