Martin Farren & Council move fast to apply for shore path money
Wrecked Shore Path
The storm was only a week ago and the situation for the wrecked shore path looked very bad. However, Martin Farren phoned the Director of Services for Roads & Transportation on the Council last Friday night and they walked along the shore on Saturday morning together to see the effect of the storm on the shore path.
The Council realise that this was a high priority for Moville & Greencastle and that two senior engineers would be asked to assess the damage and how much it would cost to fix and how long it would take.
Quick Off the Mark
I phoned Martin to see if the senior engineers had had a look yet. It seems that not only have they had a look but they have already made an assessment and produced their report.
Not only that but the application for Emergency Funding from the Government for the storm damage across Donegal, including the shore walk path, has already been lodged by the Donegal Council.
Martin wouldn’t say how much funding was applied for but Craicon understands it was in the range of €50,000 – €60,000 for the shore walk path at both the Moville & Greencastle ends.
Delighted
Said Councillor Farren “I’m delighted with the speed that the Council have worked to get the application in. It’s crucial for Moville & Greencastle and the economy of this area that we get the shore walk open again. It’s my highest priority”.
CraicOn assumed that this would all take ages but it seems that they expect a decision, one way or the other in a very short period of time – possibl ywithin the nextweek or so.
So, I asked Martin, if we got the funding, would the shore path be ready for the summer tourist season? “I would work hard to make sure that happened and Donegal Council do realise the importance of it to our area” said Martin.
Lobbying for Moville
To reinforce the application, Martin has already had several conversations with Alan Kelly, the Labour junior Minister for Roads & Transportation in the Dail.
Said Martin “I just got off the phone with him half an hour ago and I stressed how important the Emergency Funding would be not only for the shore path in Moville but for all the storm damage in Donegal.
“He was sympathetic to what I was telling him. I told him how important the shore walk path in Moville & Greencastle is, especially from a tourism perspective but also for the health and well-being of the whole community.”
So, it seems we will hear very shortly whether we are going to get the money for the shore path to be fixed. That would be great news if we got it. Said Martin “It’s imperative that we get the shore walk path up and running as quickly as possible”.