New Our Balbriggan survey, another chance to have your say.
Balbriggan locals and stakeholders have been invited to take part in a survey to gather
suggestions and feedback on two key elements of the Our Balbriggan Rejuvenation Plan.
The new survey was launched after a successful webinar on Tuesday evening, exploring the
two strategies, which deal with the Public Realm and Active Travel and Transportation.
The webinar was the culmination of a huge amount of work completed by urban design
consultants, planners and engineers engaged by Fingal County Council.
The development of the Balbriggan Public Realm Strategy was informed by public
consultation in 2021, where more than 1,000 residents gave their views.
The webinar heard an update on the findings from that consultation from master planner
James Hennessey of consultants The Paul Hogarth Company, as well as information on the
next steps for the strategy.
“Our job as landscape architects and urban designers is to help to provide some consistency
and to look at the ‘glue’, the public realm and the streets and spaces that join these
different projects and parts of the town together,” he said during the webinar.
“And it’s hugely important for Balbriggan that the public realm is as good as it can be.
“Placemaking is fundamental to the plan for Balbriggan – it is the idea that different
buildings and spaces make a contribution to the quality of a place.
“Critical to placemaking is the involvement of people – and that's been critical in Balbriggan,
in making sure that local voices are clearly heard through the course of the project.”
Meanwhile, Kevin Burke from active travel consultants outlined the Active Travel and
Transportation Strategy, which is being developed to provide a new sustainable model for
transport within the town.
It will identify interventions to encourage a transition to sustainable and low carbon
transport modes and support climate action.
And it will look at the application of the 15-Minute Town concept, where the majority of
Balbriggan residents’ living needs are met within a 15-minute safe walk or cycle from their
homes.
The Active Travel and Transportation Strategy will also seek to identify Safe Routes to
School opportunities to ensure that more children can walk or cycle safely to school.
And it aims to maximise the ability of the town’s natural and built assets, such as Mill Pond
Park and the Harbour, to facilitate safe walking and cycling.
During the webinar, Aoife Sheridan, Senior Executive Officer with Fingal County Council, said
that the two strategies “sit above and guide all of the public realm improvement work
projects that we're planning to do here in the town.
“The objective of the strategy is to make sure that all the work that the Our Balbriggan team
is delivering all makes sense and works together.
“Taken together, these strategies represent a comprehensive 360 degree approach to
ensuring effective forward planning, improving quality of life aspects in the town and
making sure the opportunities in the planned public investment are fully realised.”
Following the webinar, the Council ran an in-person pop-in session for the public at the Our
Balbriggan Hub in George’s Square on Wednesday and Thursday, where the team and
consultants were on hand to discuss the strategies in more detail and answer questions.
The new survey will progress the goals and development of the Public Realm and Active
Travel and Transportation strategies.
To take part in the survey, click the button below