Monthly Archives: May 2012

Blackrock Historical Walking Tour, Sunday 13 May 2012

Cork History, Kieran's Council Work, S.E. Ward Local History, Uncategorized, Ward Events

Dundanion Castle, Blackrock, May 2012

As part of ongoing research project into the local history of the south-east ward, Cllr Kieran McCarthy will conduct a historical walking tour of Blackrock Village on Sunday 13 May 2012, 6.30pm, leaving from Blackrock Castle (approx 1 ½ hours, free event).

The earliest and official evidence for settlement in Blackrock dates to c.1564 when the Galway family created what was to become known as Dundanion Castle. Over 20 years later, Blackrock Castle was built circa 1582 by the citizens of Cork with artillery to resist pirates and other invaders. In the early 1700s, the prominent Tuckey family, of which Tuckey Street in the city centre is named, became part of the new social elite in Cork after the Williamite wars and built part of what became known in time at the Ursuline Convent. The building of the Navigation Wall or Dock in the 1760s turned focus to reclamation projects in the area and the eventual creation of public amenity land such as the Marina Walk during the time of the Great Famine. The early 1800s coincided with an enormous investment into creating new late Georgian mansions by many other key Cork families, such as the Chattertons, the Frends, the McMullers, Deanes and the Nash families, amongst others. Soon Blackrock was to have its own bathing houses, schools, hurling club, suburban railway line, and Protestant and Catholic Church. The pier that was developed at the heart of the space led to a number of other developments such as fisherman cottages and a fishing industry. This community is reflected in the 1911 census with 64 fisherman listed in Blackrock.

Cllr Kieran McCarthy noted: “A stroll in Blackrock is popular by many people, local and Cork people. The area is particularly characterised by beautiful architecture, historic landscapes and imposing late Georgian and early twentieth century country cottages; every structure points to a key era in Cork’s development. Blackrock is also lucky that many of its former residents have left archives, census records, diaries, old maps and insights into how the area developed, giving an insight into ways of life, ideas and ambitions in the past, some of which can help us in the present day in understanding Blackrock’s identity going forward.”

Kieran’s Speech, Ballinlough Community Association AGM, 24 April 2012

Kieran's Council Work, S.E. Ward Local History, Uncategorized, Ward Events

Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Ballinlough in Silouette

Ballinlough Community Association AGM, 24 April 2012

Thanks for the invitation here this evening.

Many, many years ago, the good people living in Ballinlough chose to erect a stone monument in a wooded glen area overlooking the estuary.

It was the popular thing to do at the time. With an absence of official information on the stone, assumptions can only be made on its relevance.

To begin with…the stone opened an enormous debate…

The older generation questioned the monument on its relevancy; it was an addition; why do we need it? What benefit is it? the younger generation argued that this was all part of change and that the monument provided a fresh way of thinking about everyone’s place in the area.

But the older generation’s argument on why this should be done stumped the younger generation who knew it was important but did not enough experience to comment on it or compare it to any previous experience of a project.

But it was agreed after much debate and negotiation to erect the stone but from the beginning a great debate ensued on many issues amongst the young and old….and perhaps many questions such as…

How positive or negative is this project?

What type of stone should it be?

How high should it be?

How intrusive should it be?

What direction should it face?

Who is going to source the stone?

Who is going to move the stone into position?

What is my part in all of this?

How will this stone add to the sense of place in Ballinlough?

How would do this monument fit into the everyday routine of life? What type of people will live around this stone?

Who is going to mind this stone?

 

But many of these questions were negotiated as were the logistics and the stone was put in place.

Many many many years later, the good people living in Ballinlough chose to build a housing estate around the stone; again many questions ensued…

Should we take down the stone?

What type of houses should they be?

How high should they be?

How intrusive should they be?

What direction should they face?

Who is going to source the materials?

Who is going to construct the houses?

What is my part in all of this?

How will the houses add to the sense of place in Ballinlough?

How would do this monument fit into the everyday routine of life? What type of people will live in these new houses?

Who is going to mind the new estate?

 

Indeed the questions of why, how, where are age old questions asked of any community but the answers or debates arising out of some of these questions can change the attitude of a community for years.

In the two examples I have chosen, they are I feel are positive examples.

The stone has remained in place for over 4,500 years, insitu. Indeed Ardmahon Estate was built around it –it is testament to the history that Ballinlough has had a community and a strength of purpose since those centuries B.C. plus all the questions that go with it.

But we don’t live in 2,500 BC but perhaps one can learn from their experience.

Passing the area today, there is the sense of building on what has gone in the past to build into the future, that sense of a conversation with the past and future


The stone shows in a sense the immortality of community in Ballinlough, the experience of community in a time we cannot relate to temporally or in a time sense

 

However, like the stone and the housing estate Ballinlough enters another time of change – a time when Ballinlough once again has to take stock of where it’s at and again reflect on the type of mark we want to put on the community in our time. There are now new debates, financial, unemployment, youth issues, provision of adequate services for older people. Perhaps it may be apt to focus some of the questions on our own community structures?

How positive or negative is what we are doing?

What type of community should we have? Conformist to inspiring?

How high should our community aim? Low to high?

How intrusive should be our efforts on the wider community?

What direction should our community take? Forwards or backwards

Who is going to source the community to that? Who is the team?

Who is going to manoeuvre the debates into position? Who is the listener and negotiator?

What is my part in all of this?

How will this work add to the sense of place in Ballinlough?

 

And as this community in its multiple housing estates are evolving, there are multiple questions to ask; perhaps I am zooming in on just one important foundation, the identity itself of this area.

There are no easy answers but guaranteed hard work and ability to have the patience of jobe and an interest in making things happen.

There are responsibilities on all of us to move the various projects within our community forward.  But I do wish to commend all the work that is being done.

I would also like to thank the people of Ballinlough for their interest and support in my own community projects,

the enterprise workshops,

artist residency programme,

the Design a Public Park, art and public space art competition,

the community talent competition (auditions again for which are on next Sunday, between 11-5 in the Lifetime Lab),

the history in action programme or the re-enactment programme that takes place in Our Lady of Lourdes N.S on Sunday 13 May at 2pm

The Make a Model Boat Project on the Atlantic Pod (on Sunday 10 June 2012),

and the walking tours through this area, the one of eastern Ballinlough looking at big houses, market gardens, the 1911 census, amongst others and the standing stone, and the other of the western side of St Finbarre’s Hospital and environs. I intend to run these again in June.

As these are part of a larger heritage project, my new walking tour of Blackrock I have set for Sunday 13 May leaving from Blackrock Castle and exploring the myriad of memories in this area from the 400 year castle to the fishing village, the Victorian houses, the two churches, the graveyard to name just a few. Ballinlough Church was a chapel of ease in the parish of Blackrock to 1956, so there is abit of a connection there.

Best of luck in the year ahead, it is not easy in these times, so certainty the more positivity that radiated from this hallowed community space and grounds the better in these. As those who are here a long time will have realised by now, people will give out before they will say thanks. So in these AGMs, there should always be the sense of thanks and renewal of spirit.

Thank you for your work,

Go Raibh Maith Agaibh

Kieran’s Speech, Re: Cork City Centre Enterprise Hub Proposal, Cork City Council Meeting, 30 April 2012

Kieran's Council Work, Uncategorized

Blackrock Harbour, fieldwalking for new historical walking tour, May 2012

Where this programme is welcome, one kind of gets the impression, it kinda ticking the box of what needs to be done in terms of marketing the city to business leaders.

The hub proposal rightly outlines that

(a) The growing problem of office vacancy in the city centre

(b) The perception that the city centre is difficult and expensive place to do business

(c) The need to diversity the business offer of the city centre

(d) Improving the city centre’s profile and identity as a dynamic and innovative business centre

And those last words should be the words written over City Hall for the next ten years as we travel through this economic storm, because the settlement that thinks it can stay the same and not be dynamic will be further taken away by the economic storm

Whereas, providing an incentive is all very good and very positive, I think the time does need to be taken to grasp a sense of where the city centre is going. And we need to move it forward.

I’m very taken at the moment by the Belfast and Northern Ireland ad

A year of exceptional opportunities, our time to turn the tide, a chance to change perceptions, your invitation to be part of it, NI 2012, Your Time, Your Place

Followed by “Northern Ireland 2012 is going to be amazing! With so many events, celebrations, commemorations and amazing projects coming to completion, this is our time to turn the tide and confidently put Northern Ireland on the global tourism map”.

Now that video package is not all about tourism, there are also vibrant business street shots

But it does pitch questions, is this city at the races in a regional sense or a national sense? I’m certainly not happy to let a city such as Belfast or Limerick to pass us.

So when I look at the Hub proposal, I’m saying to myself, what does this say about Cork, yes it says we’re innovative but are we just ticking the box, saying yep we’re innovative but strongly innovative enough

 

With the hub proposal, what’s the difference this proposal and CIT Rubicon Centre’s project. Why are we not working with CIT to roll out their work into the city centre? Why are we double jobbing what has been developed?

Their rubiconcentre.ie programme does the job of what the hub enterprise programme promotes plus so much more:

· Training in all areas of business including financial management, market research & validation, business process, patenting, product development, sales training.

 

· Mentoring from experienced business advisers and practitioners.

· Office space in the Rubicon Incubation Centre.

 

· €15,000 from Enterprise Ireland for individuals participating in Phase 2 (Income tax liability will be the sole responsibility of the participant, and individuals are encouraged to seek professional advice in relation to potential liabilities).

 

· Networking with other entrepreneurs and business development agencies.

· Introductions to seed and early stage capital investment networks.

 

· Access to entrepreneurship best practice, both national and international.

 

· Peer-group learning from participants in the region and across the country.

 

· Access to the expertise in Enterprise Ireland through our market research centre.

 

· Expertise from the Institutes of Technology and the supportive environment of their business incubation centres.

 

The list goes on, why are we re-inventing the wheel here? I think there is enormous scope here to bring CIT and UCC into the loop here.

 

Kieran’s Motions and Question to the City Manager, Cork City Council Meeting, 30 April 2012

Kieran's Council Work, Uncategorized

Kieran’s Motions and Question to the City Manager, Cork City Council Meeting, 30 April 2012

 

Question to the City Manager:

What is the manager’s response to the remarks made by Diarmuid Gavin on a recent Late Late Show interview and his reference to the staff of Cork City Council as “something from Fr. Ted”? (Cllr Kieran McCarthy)

 

Motions:

That the Museum be closed once a week to the general public to accommodate a schools’ programme on that day (Cllr Kieran McCarthy) 

 

That the City Council work with the Gardaí to address the problem that the area of Mary Street and Red Abbey Street has become a meeting place for large groups of youths bringing with it disruptive behaviour including under age alcohol and substance abuse resulting in a free-for-all attitude and a disrespect of the residents and the historical site. The residents are concerned about the disturbance to local residents as it causes disruption of the peace and interference on an ongoing basis. It is an intrusion and inconvenience causing residents constant distress, annoyance and worry as there is the potential for disorder, unruliness and physical conflict on their doorsteps.

The Abbey is a tourist attraction being Cork’s oldest surviving historical structure and is part of the tourist route but the surrounding areas are continually being vandalized and littered due to the activity in the area. The use of the Abbey grounds as a recreational assembly site is inappropriate and unacceptable in their neighbourhood. Local families, their children, friends and residents passing through the square feel intimidated and unsafe when these gangs have gathered. They wish to expose this problem and bring it further to find a resolution to restore safety and peace to our neighbourhood and community. This will also ensure that tourists can appreciate this historical site as it is a designated national monument and should be given due consideration (Cllr Kieran McCarthy)