KINGSLEY PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE AND NEARBY ACROSS THE LEE NORTH CHANNEL NEAR THE KINGSLEY HOTEL
[UPDATE] Not long after I uploaded this series of images I was contacted by a person who zoomed in on a notice in one photograph which indicated that the bridge was sponsored by the Kingsley Hotel in May 2009. They also mentioned that the Kingsley was forced to close because serious of flood damage in November 2009. It reopened under different ownership in July 2014].[]
According to various guides there are ten bridges spanning the North Channel of the River Lee in Cork but it would appear that I have used one that is not on any of the lists.
When I visited the area in 2017 A gentleman that I met on the trail mentioned that I might see an a coypu and I had no idea what he was talking about. Later, on my return to the hotel, I checked online and found the following “The public has being asked to report sightings of any coypus, sometimes mistaken for otters, after one was spotted in or near the River Lee near the Lee Fields in Cork City recently”. I never did find out what happened to the coypu.
Adjacent to The Kingsley Hotel there is walkway along the banks of The River Lee. There is a footbridge which appears on Google Maps as the “Kingsley Bridge”. But I cannot find any information relating to this bridge and cannot confirm the name … maybe it has a different name?
The bridge is interest as it allows one to visit an interesting memorial to Brian Quillingan [I will publish photographs of the sculpture later] and then walk on past the Missionaries Of The Sacred Heart to the Mardyke Pavillion.
The Lee flows from the lake of Gougane Barra as a fast-paced torrent, but by the town of Ballingeary it eases and flows into Lough Allua. Departing the lough, running east, it again becomes a rapid flow before running into The Gearagh, and Carrigadrohid feeder reservoirs, and then into the large Inniscarra reservoir created by Inniscarra Dam. Moving on, it flows down from the dam, in normal conditions a gentle river until it comes to Ballincollig Weir in Ballincollig Park; here it is dangerous to swimmers when in high water.
The Lee then flows into the city under Inniscarra Bridge and flows parallel to the Carrigrohane road. Along this section gauges monitor the water levels from the Inniscarra Dam. The river flows over the Lee weir and then is split into the north and south channels at a sluice (it historically occupied the city area as a maze of channels). This area is popular for recreation, kayaking and fishing. The two channels join again at the Cork docks and enter the extensive estuary and harbour, south of Glanmire, passing either side of Great Island (Cobh lies on the south coast) to fill the outer harbour, and reaching the open sea between Whitegate and Crosshaven.
City area tributaries include the combined Maglin (from Ballincollig) and Curraheen (occasionally Curragheen) Rivers, capturing the Glasheen River also and joining at the western end of the UCC complex, and the Kiln River (sometimes Bride River) which joins by the Christy Ring Bridge in the city centre, a little west of St. Patrick’s Bridge (formed in turn from a Bride River and the Kilnap or Glennamought River, later joined by the Glen River).
THE RIVERSIDE GARDEN – ABBEY QUARTER PROJECT KILKENNY
Kilkenny’s new Riverside Garden and Skatepark opened to the public in June 2021 however the skatepark has been operational since the beginning of May and has proved to be very popular. While the Riverside Garden project provides a significant extension to the riverside walkways through the city, plans to extend this further to provide connectivity under Greens Bridge, connecting with the Linear Park at Bishops Meadows/Riverside Drive are also currently being progressed with funding from the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund.
The Abbey Quarter, site of the former Smithwick’s Brewery, is a strategic city centre site located on the banks of the river Nore in the heart of Kilkenny City. The 300 year old brewery was closed by Diageo in 2013. Kilkenny County Council then purchased the site and produced a detailed masterplan for the brewery site and adjacent lands, totalling about 20 acres. With St Francis Abbey at its core, this regeneration project aims to create an attractive, well-designed urban quarter with a mix of uses. These include commercial, residential, enterprise development, recreational and community.
The masterplan’s vision is to develop the Abbey Quarter as a seamless complement to the medieval city. It envisages the quarter being an inclusive place for an inter-generational community to work, live and play. The masterplan supports objectives in the Government’s National Planning Framework such as compact growth; enhanced regional accessibility; sustainable mobility; a strong economy, supported by enterprise, innovation and skills; and enhanced amenities and heritage.
The project links the old and the new. A brownfield site (a disused site envisaged for redevelopment) will be transformed through new buildings and the re-use of old buildings. Certain empty spaces will be converted into public spaces. The regenerated area will enhance the city’s Medieval Mile.
The Government has given approval in principal to provide €6.15 million through its Urban Regeneration Development Fund (URDF) to fund significant public realm areas (that is, areas that the public can access) and community and cultural infrastructure projects in the Abbey Quarter. The funding allocation is 75% of the total cost of these works. These include:
a riverside park a two and half acre urban park around St Francis Abbey other community and cultural infrastructure, including a public library in the Mayfair building. The public spaces and parks will become a backdrop to Kilkenny’s many outdoor festivals.
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