Community Climate Action Fund launches in County Monaghan

Posted on By niamhmurray

Monaghan County Council is delighted to announce the opening of a new community climate action fund which is being made available to community groups interested in developing projects and initiatives which relate to the challenge of addressing climate change. The programme is funded by the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications.

The overall objective of the Community Climate Action Programme is to support and empower communities to shape and build low carbon, sustainable communities in a coherent way to contribute to national climate and energy targets. The programme aims to support small and large, rural and urban communities to take climate action. This programme will help communities to both promote and assist in the scale up of community climate action from the respective starting points of the communities. The funding is for investment in small, medium, and large-scale community climate action projects.

There are two funding streams available:

  • Strand 1: Action: Building Low Carbon Communities:

Monaghan has been allocated a total of €392,000 under this strand to work in partnership with communities, small and large, rural and urban, within County Monaghan to build low carbon communities in a considered and structured way.

  • Strand 1a: Shared Island Community Climate Action:

In addition, a total of €3 million nationally is available to support cross-border and all-island community climate action partnerships between community organisations in County Monaghan and in Northern Ireland.

There are five themes that apply to projects. Community groups must carry out projects that fall under at least one theme but are encouraged to address as many of the five themes as possible.

The themes are:

  • Energy
  • Travel
  • Food and waste
  • Shopping and recycling
  • Local climate and environmental action.

The Community Climate Action Programme will support the delivery of the new five-year Climate Action Plan for County Monaghan, which is due to be adopted in February 2024. The plan aims to position County Monaghan as a national leader in climate action and strengthen the delivery of effective climate action at local and community levels, through place-based climate action.

The application process for the Community Climate Action Programme will be made available through the Monaghan County Council website from 9:00 am on the 13th of December.

Ahead of the launch of the Community Climate Action Programme, Cllr David Maxwell, Cathaoirleach of Monaghan County Council, said, “It is great to see application for the Community Climate Action Programme open. This programme places community leadership at the heart of local climate and environmental action. The programme will enable local community groups, supported by Monaghan County Council, to play a key role in helping Ireland to achieve its national target to become a climate neutral economy and resilient society by 2050.”

Chief Executive of Monaghan County Council, Robert Burns said, “The Community Climate Action Programme will aid community activation and will empower community groups to develop projects that will lead to real and meaningful climate action. We are looking forward to working alongside local communities in County Monaghan to drive the change needed to address climate adaptation and mitigation.”

For more information on the Community Climate Action Programme visit https://monaghan.ie/environment/community-climate-action-programme2/ or scan QR code below:

or, contact the Community Climate Action Officer on climateaction@monaghancoco.ie.

Taking in charge of Estates & Declaration of Public Roads

Posted on By niamhmurray

Section 180 of the Planning & Development Act 2000 (as amended) & Section 11 of the Roads Act 1993 (as amended)

Monaghan County Council propose to take in charge and make a declaration of the associated estate roads, footpaths, public lighting, storm water services and public open spaces at the following residential developments in accordance with the relevant sections of the above Acts.

  • Knocknamaddy, Ballybay.
  • Telayden Heights, Monaghan (latest phase).
  • An Crannog, Glen Road, Monaghan.
  • Glaslough Castle Leslie Estate (Main Street, Village Square, Village Green, Lough Lane), Monaghan.

Location maps of the estates and roads to be declared ‘public roads’ are available for inspection at the offices of Monaghan Council Planning Department, 1 Dublin Street, Monaghan during normal office hours, Monday to Friday, excluding Bank Holidays, for a period of one month commencing on the 07th of December 2023.  The Council will consider any objections / representations regarding the proposals which are submitted in writing to the undersigned.  Closing date for receipt of objections / representations is 5.00 p.m. on Monday the 05th February 2024.

Signed:

Cathal Flynn

Director of Services, Economic Development, Planning & Capital Projects

Monaghan County Council,

1 Dublin Street,

Monaghan.

Dated this the 07th of December 2023.

Clones Marina – A Vision for Waterside Development – Prospectus & Questionnaire

Posted on By niamhmurray

Waterways Ireland and its partners, Monaghan County Council and Fáilte Ireland, are seeking to engage with those who might be interested in delivering a high-quality visitor experience(s) and community resource, with a focus on both on-water and land-based activities, from a new facility being developed in Clones, and are keen to encourage innovative and creative activities at and around the canal basin which will contribute to the overall vision for the site.

The Market Soundings will provide an opportunity to engage initially with interested parties who may have ideas on potential uses, and this will inform the next stage of the process.

At this stage, interested parties are invited to outline details of how their business might operate at this site by completing and returning the attached questionnaire to procurement@waterwaysireland.org before Wednesday, 20th December 2023.

The Prospect and Questionnaire are available to view and completed via the following links:

Clones Marina – Prospectus

Clones Marina – Questionnaire

Have your say on the draft Town Centre First Plan for Carrickmacross

Posted on By monaghan

The public is warmly invited to have their say on draft plans for the future of Carrickmacross Town Centre through a consultation process taking place between 30 November and 4 January 2024.   

Carrickmacross is the first town in County Monaghan to participate in the national Town Centre First programme. This aims to create Town Centres that function as viable, vibrant and attractive locations for people to live, work and visit, while also functioning as the service, social, cultural and recreational hub for the local community.

The process for Carrickmacross has been led by a newly formed local Town Team with the support of Monaghan County Council and the assistance of consultants, The Paul Hogarth Company.   To inform the plan a first round of public consultations took place in October 2023 with over 500 responses received.

Welcoming the launch, Cllr Aoife McCooey, Cathaoirleach  of Carrickmacross-Castleblayney Municipal District said “I am delighted to see this Draft Plan being launched today and would like to congratulate the Town Team for all their hard work to date.  It is clear to me that together with the consultants, they have listened very carefully to the people of Carrickmacross and drawing upon their considerable knowledge of the town, have identified a series of compelling draft projects.”

The chair of the Town Team is local businessman Jim Hand. In launching the Draft Plan, Jim explained “We are now eager to hear again from everyone in Carrickmacross. We are inviting people to take a look at the draft plan and projects, to let us know what they think and to share their further ideas.  It is very important that this plan reflects the priorities of local people, so please take this opportunity to help us get it right for the town”.

Once complete in 2024, the Town Centre First Plan be used to inform funding applications for project delivery by a range of parties, from the public, community and private sectors. It will also be used to guide future policy and decision making in relation to the town centre.

Plans will available to view:
Consultation Responses via the survey can be made between
  • Thursday 30 November 2023, and
  • Thursday 4 January 2024
Drop in consultation event will be held at the following times and locations:
  • 4pm – 8pm, Wednesday 6 December 2023, Carrickmacross Civic Offices
  • 11am – 2pm, Thursday 14 December 2024, Market Square Shopping Centre

For further information please contact

Kevin McNally

Town Regeneration Officer,

1 Dublin Street, Monaghan.

Email: TRO@monaghancoco.ie

Posted on By niamhmurray

Ba mhian le Comhairle Contae Mhuineacháin a chur in iúl go bhfuil eolas maidir leis na bóithre atá sé i gceist a dhúnadh agus na bóithre ar aontaíodh iad a dhúnadh ar https://www.mapalerter.ie/monaghan agus ar ár suíomh gréasáin https://monaghan.ie/roadtransport/category/notices/

Má tá aon cheist agat maidir le dúnadh na mbóithre seo, déan teagmháil le hoifig chuí an Cheantair Bhardasaigh

Ceantar Bardasach Mhuineacháin (047) 73777 nó ríomhphost monaghan@monaghancoco.ie

Ceantar Bardasach Bhéal Átha Beithe/Chluain Eois (047) 51018 nó ríomhphost clones@monaghancoco.ie

Ceantar Bardasach Charraig Mhachaire Rois/Bhaile na Lorgan (042) 9661236 nó ríomhphost carrickmacross@monaghancoco.ie

Rockcorry Vision Plan – Monaghan County Council

Posted on By niamhmurray

The Rockcorry Vision Plan has been funded by the Department of Rural & Community Development and Monaghan County Council under the Town & Village Renewal Scheme & was officially launched by Minister Heather Humphreys on November 16th.  The plan concentrates on a long-term vision for Rockcorry Village and its hinterlands and to identify and help prioritise projects from the development of Rockcorry to 2030 and beyond.

This plan identified 36 actions and has the potential to developed these under the plans overarching 6 themes.

  1. Community Spaces – Social, Leisure and Recreation.
  2. Economic Development and Employment.
  3. Digital Transformation.
  4. Built Heritage for future generations.
  5. Natural Heritage and Biodiversity.
  6. Places for People – Rockcorry as a Destination.

See plan here: Rockcorry Vision Plan Book

 

Drum Vision Plan – Monaghan County Council

Posted on By niamhmurray

The Drum Vision Plan has been funded by the Department of Rural & Community Development and Monaghan County Council under the Town & Village Renewal Scheme & was officially launched by Minister Heather Humphreys on November 20th.  The plan concentrates on a long-term vision for Drum Village and its hinterlands and to identify and help prioritise projects from the development of Drum to 2030 and beyond.

This plan identified 39 actions and has the potential to developed these under the plans overarching 6 themes.

  • A Vibrant and Sustainable Village centre
  • A Place to Live
  • Community Spaces for All
  • A Biodiverse and Sustainable Community
  • Digital Transformation
  • A Place to Visit

See plan here: Drum Vision Plan book

Design of the N2 Clontibret to Border Road Scheme recommences

Posted on By niamhmurray

After being suspended for almost two years, the N2 Clontibret to Border Road Scheme has secured EU and Department of Transport funding and is now back up and running.
The N2 Clontibret to Border project is a 28km road scheme which will upgrade this section of the N2 Dublin-Derry Road to make it safer, reduce journey times, and to bypass towns and villages along the route. It is an important project to enhance key North/South and Regional connectivity. At the Northern Ireland border, the project will tie-in to the A5 Western Transport Corridor, which proposes to upgrade 85km of the Dublin-Derry Road to a dual carriageway standard in Northern Ireland.

The project first commenced in 2008, but was suspended in 2012 due to a lack of funding during the economic downturn. Funding then became available in 2018 to progress the planning and design of the scheme again, however due to changes in environmental legislation, design standards and the Public Spending Code it was necessary undertake all stages of the planning and design process again.

Jacobs Engineering Ireland (Jacobs) was appointed as the engineering consultant for the project, and in late 2018 they started the design of the project, following a framework set out by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) called the ‘Project Management Guidelines’. The guidelines break the design of major road projects into phases, and by early 2021 Phase 1 and 2 of the design process were complete, and a 400m wide Preferred Route Corridor was published. The project proposes a new road alignment, which will bypass Monaghan Town, Emyvale Village and the settlement of Corracrin. In the early stages the cross-section design was anticipated to be a dual-carriageway, however this has yet to be confirmed through the design process.

The Phase 3 design process (Design & Environmental Evaluation), commenced in Spring 2021. This phase of the design process would have seen the road alignment designed, the landtake identified and an Environmental Impact Assessment Report prepared for the scheme, and was scheduled for completion in late 2022. The 2022 TII allocations noted ‘There is a need to balance available funding across the national road’s programmes, projects and operations having regard to the NDP. The rate of progress on the delivery of Major Projects is dependent on the availability of funding resources on a multi-annual basis….’, and the scheme received no funding to progress the design in 2022 and 2023. This resulted in a suspension of the project, and no design work has taken place since the early 2022.

The project remains a priority for Monaghan County Council, and alternative sources of funding have been explored. In January 2023 the Council made an application to a European Union fund called the ‘Connecting Europe Facility’ (CEF), which aims to promote growth, jobs and competitiveness through targeted infrastructure investment. The project passed the evaluation stage in June 2023, and in October 2023, CEF funding of €2.335m was approved through the fund, with match funding to be provided by the Department of Transport. This will allow the Phase 3 design process to recommence, and subject to match funding should ensure the Phase 3 design is completed.

Jacobs continue to be the engineering consultant, and the Jacobs team will remobilise in the coming weeks to recommence the Phase 3 design process. Due to the time that has lapsed since the project was suspended, Jacobs may need to review or repeat some previous work, for example environmental surveys may need to be updated. The project team will be in contact with landowners along the route to request access to lands for these surveys.

Another important element of the design work is undertaking ground investigation. Ground investigation provides important information about whether land can support a new road or bridges, or whether rock or stone can be used as building materials for the new road. As ground investigations typically involve some element of disturbance, landowners are entitled to compensation payments, in line with rates agreed between TII and the Irish Farmers’ Association. The project team will be in contact with relevant landowners in Spring 2024, and will provide details of any ground investigation proposed and the likely compensation payment that might be due.

After the N2 Project Team has substantially completed the necessary surveys/investigations, they will prepare an initial design of the proposed road and will be in a position to meet with directly affected landowners to discuss the potential impact of the scheme. Feedback will then be considered before a design is finalised. Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) documentation and an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) can then be completed – it is expected that this element of the project will be complete by Q4 2025. Subject to further funding, approval and Government consent, the project could then be submitted to An Bord Pleanála as part of the statutory approval process.

Monaghan County Council and Jacobs would like to thank all of the landowners and stakeholders along the route for their co-operation to date, and the project team is looking forward to recommencing and progressing this important infrastructural project. Over the coming months more updates and news about the project can be found on www.N2MonaghanLouth.ie

 

 

Call to Action – Join the 16 Days of Activism Campaign from 25th November to 10th December

Posted on By niamhmurray

The ‘Orange the World’ logo was created by UN Women to symbolize a brighter future free from violence for all women and girls. Each year, UN Women and its UN partners use it during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, from  25 November to 10 December, in the context of the UN Secretary General’s UNiTE to end Violence against Women Campaign.

The 16 Days campaign commences on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and ends on 10 December, Human Rights Day.

Violence against Women and Girls remains the most widespread and pervasive human rights violation worldwide affecting more than an estimated 1 in 3 women, a figure that has remained largely unchanged over the last decade. The most recent global estimates show that, on average, more than 5 women or girls are killed every hour by someone in their own family.

Gender-based violence also includes violence directed at persons which is motivated by how they choose to identify sexually.

The colour orange continues to be a UN tool unifying all activities to bring global attention to the ‘Orange the World’ initiative. However, in light of the energy crisis, this year we are not calling upon partners to illuminate buildings and landmarks in orange or to do so for a limited period on 25 November. We invite partners to consider different ways of painting the world orange including through decorating buildings, wearing the colour orange and oranging digital spaces throughout the 16 days.

More info:  https://www.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/unite

Lots of social media content: https://trello.com/b/dHz04eiF/16days-of-activism-2023-noexcuse

Monaghan Joint Policing Committee is asking you to show your support for those who have suffered violence because of their gender in our community, and to send a strong message to those who carry out this abuse that it has no place in our society. That there is NO EXCUSE for it.

A simple way you can show your support for the campaign for the 16 days is to Orange your social media profiles on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn by downloading the #NoExcuse cover image and changing your banner.  You can get the banners for Twitter, FB and LinkedIn here:

https://trello.com/c/GB3xkvJ8/6-banners-social-media-covers

You can also:
-Add an orange heart 🧡 next to your name
-Add the hashtags #NoExcuse #OrangeTheWorld and #16Days in your bio.

-Use the logos below – originals available at the links provided above:

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