Fingal News- Issue 26- Winter Edition

Fingal By Numbers

Taoiseach tours new large scale housing development underway in Fingal

Christmas countdown begins this weekend in Fingal Winter in Fingal Libraries

Fingal Libraries Additional Services Big Push for Pedal Power

Fingal Coastal Way Reaches New Milestone Festive Season in Fingal

Swords community begins to help shape future of major park

Sustainable Festive Season

Fingal County Council congratulates Tidy Towns Groups on another successful year in 2022

Nine for Fingal at the Irish Landscape Institute Awards

Chief Executive’s Message Mayor’s Message

The Christmas period is in full swing now and it is wonderful to see so many people out and about enjoying all the wonderful events that are happening across the County. I would like to extend a heartfelt gratitude to my staff for making these opportunities take place and for their efforts delivering so many other initiatives across 2022.

While there have been many projects undertaken this year, one of the major focuses of our work has been around the Fingal Draft Development Plan (2023-2029). This will help shape Fingal for the future when it comes to important issues such as housing, economic development, community and heritage. We are now moving ever closer to the final version of this being adopted, and I would like to thank Councillors and Fingal staff for tireless efforts throughout the entire process.

Alongside this, I was pleased to welcome the approval by Councillors of the Swords Cultural Quarter. This is one of the most significant projects in our Capital Programme and will help deliver a new state-of-theart County Library as well as an art gallery and exhibition space, a café, a civic area, studios and rehearsal rooms, and a much-needed theatre.

Meanwhile the Council’s Active Travel team continues to take action on environmental change as they progress through several projects like the ‘Safe Routes to School’, expansion of TIER bikes across all areas in Fingal and the Light Up Your Bike initiative.

As we are in the festive period, I’d like to take this opportunity to highlight some holiday reminders:

Over Christmas, our offices will close to the public at 4.30pm on Friday, December 23, 2022 and reopen at 9.00am on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. Please note the customercareunit@fingal.ie inbox will not be monitored during this period, so for emergencies during these times please ring 01 8905000.

Details including opening times for Libraries, Recycling Centres and Christmas Tree Collection Points can also be found here.

Finally, on behalf of Fingal’s staff I’d like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a happy and safe New Year

-AnnMarie Farrelly

This is a time of year that many people look forward to and it is made particularly special by all of Fingal’s towns beautifully decorated in holiday finery, I’d like to say many thanks to everyone who has helped make the Christmas markets and tree lighting events that I’ve had the pleasure to attend such a success

As we look to usher in a New Year, I have been reflecting on the number of opportunities I have already had to travel around the county and engage with so many residents as part of my role. There are so many people across Fingal who are thoroughly deserving of our continuing gratitude for the work they have do and the commitment they have for helping other. For these people especially, may you find time to relax and be fully re-energized as we move into 2023.

Housing is one of my major priorities, so I was delighted to be able to recently welcome the Taoiseach to officially open the Ladyswell social housing scheme in Mulhuddart which consists of 65 properties, a third of which are dedicated age-friendly homes. We were also able to tour the Council’s largest housing development at Church Fields which will deliver around 1,000 new affordable and social homes on this publicly owned 37-hectare site.

This year I’ve been also been stressing how important it is that we look to not only embrace the power of community partnership, but that we take the time to consider views and experiences that are different from our own. I was delighted to celebrate this year’s Inclusion Week, when many events took place to highlight the excellent work the community groups and the Council have been doing to deliver a wide range of community initiatives and services, be it to support older people, members of ethnic minority communities, young people and children.

Of course, Christmas is not just about receiving gifts and spending time with loved ones, but a time when we should all be inspired to reach out to others. Please be kind to one another, especially those who may not have family and friends around or who just need that little extra support, particularly at a time when it is so cold.

I would like to thank the people of Fingal for the opportunity to represent them, and my fellow Councillors for all their support throughout what has been a busy six months. May I also take this opportunity to commend the Council staff who work so hard to improve the lives of those around them.

So, as the celebrations begin, I’d like to wish everyone in Fingal a Happy Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year.

-Cllr Howard Mahony

Fingal By Numbers

community groups participated in the Fingal Safer Halloween Programme, providing fun recreational and diversionary activities for young people during the midterm week.

of all lights switched to LEDS in 2022. The Public Lighting Section will continue with the LED Programme into 2023

episodes of the Inside Fingal podcast produced over the past two years and they have attracted a total of 9,486 listeners with 4,862 downloads and 4,624 internet listens

eBikes

Taoiseach tours new large scale housing development underway in Fingal

Fields development is just one the Council’s ambitious construction programmes currently in place, with others including those at Cappagh in Dublin 11, Hayestown in Rush, Ballymastone in Donabate and Hacketstown in Skerries.

Housing construction underway in one of the country’s fastest growing regions

Located in Mulhuddart, Church Fields is one of the largest developments that Fingal is currently taking forward. Whilst around 100 social homes are now nearing completion.

Homes on offer will consist of one- and two-bedroom apartments, along with threeand four-bedroom houses. Properties will be available as a mix of affordable purchase, cost rental and social housing. Retail and community amenities will also be incorporated at the development. The overall development is focused on

creating and fostering sustainable communities. Viewing the development, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: “The delivery of social housing to meet the current and future needs of all our citizens continues to be a challenge in the current climate. That is why I am delighted to be able to see an exciting scheme like this moving ahead at pace, particularly as it helping to”

Fingal has a good record in the delivery of social homes to those on its housing list and aims to deliver around 3,300 new build social homes before 2026, as well as a further 1,000 affordable purchase and cost rental homes over that same period. The Church

AnnMarie Farrelly, Fingal’s Chief Executive, commented: “We have good track record on building new housing in Fingal. Since 2015 we have been able to deliver over 9,200 social and affordable homes for residents. Together with our partners, we are committed to bringing a further 4,300 high-quality homes with a range of amenities and green spaces online over the next four years.”

Work is also be carried out on the construction of the Church Fields Link Road and Cycle Network, a project which includes Ireland’s first Dutch-style roundabout. This is expected to be completed in 2023.

Following the Church Fields visit, the Taoiseach went to officially open Ladyswell social housing scheme. Developed by Clúid Housing and built on Fingal land in the heart of Mulhuddart, Ladyswell consists of 65 properties, a third of which are dedicated age-friendly homes.

Christmas

Christmas countdown begins this weekend in Fingal

Experience at Malahide Castle, family passes to heritage properties, and more

For further details on what Christmas events are taking place including opening times for Libraries, Recycling Centres and Christmas Tree Collection Points will be updated soon, please see https://www.fingal.ie/ or follow us on Facebook or Twitter – @fingalcoco.

As we come to the end of another year, To help shoppers, the Council will be providing free parking in the following towns across Fingal for three consecutive Saturdays in December in pay and display locations in Balbriggan, Rush, Skerries, Swords and Malahide (Bridgefield Park only). Pay and display areas in Clonsilla have free parking on Saturdays all-year round. For more information on free parking please visit: https://www.fingal.ie/news/christmasarrangements-2022-opening-times-freeparking-deadlines-etc

Mayor of Fingal, Howard Mahony said: “Local traders are set to showcase a range of gifts, crafts and plenty of delicious food to be enjoyed as people roam through from stall to stall.”

Fingal is once again pushing the “In It Together” campaign as a focus which is aimed at supporting local businesses. Residents and visitors will also be able to make use of free parking locations at key spots in the run up to Christmas.

Download the Fingal Connect app to win prizes that includes tickets to the magical Wonderlights

Libraries

Winter in Fingal Libraries

As we come to the end of another year, check out the free talks, workshops and services in Fingal Libraries that can inspire, motivate, and support you. We have a seasonal program of events in store for you, including Christmas story-time, family time at your library and winter and Christmas themed arts and crafts for children and adults.

Join artist Kim Jenkinson in Howth and Donabate Libraries how to use felt, wool, ribbons, and bells to create colourful Christmas gnomes.

Get ready for Christmas by joining library staff for fun and interactive arts and crafts workshops in Baldoyle, Malahide, Swords, Blanchardstown, Garristown, and Rush Libraries. Not forgetting the adults, Aoife Munn will host workshops in Malahide and Rush Libraries demonstrating how to create your own Scandinavian style wreath using natural materials such as off cuts from Christmas trees, evergreens, hydrangea heads, holly, and seed heads cones. These beautiful pieces can be hung on the door or used as table centrepieces.

As a treat for the whole family, there will be Christmas Storytime sessions in Balbriggan, Blanchardstown, Garristown, and Rush libraries featuring heart-warming and cosy winter tales.

Free events and activities for families will be taking place in every library during the month of December. The whole family are encouraged to visit the library and join in the fun events and share stories.

Families can also access the large collections

of children’s books, eBooks and eAudiobooks.

Make sure to reserve a place in advance, please contact the library hosting the event.

Check out the full programme of events throughout Winter here.

Fingal Libraries Additional Services

Libraries

Fingal Libraries is adding to the range of services we offer to be responsive to the needs of everybody in our communities. In partnership with NOW Group, a social enterprise that supports people with learning difficulties and autism, we have introduced the Jam Card service into all Fingal libraries.

JAM Card© was created by NOW Group participants with learning difficulties and autism who wanted a discreet way of communicating they need ‘Just A Minute’ (JAM) of time / assistance in certain situations. It has since developed into a card and app that is used by people with any communication difficulty.

Fingal Libraries is also delighted to announce the introduction of a new inclusive technology, the C-Pen Reader.

The C-Pen Reader Pen is a portable, pocket-sized tool that scans and reads words and full lines of text aloud, supporting independent reading and literacy. The pen is ideal for people with reading difficulties such as dyslexia or those with vision difficulties. Adults and children who are learning the English language will also find the reading pen an extremely helpful piece of technology to use.

Visit your local Fingal Library branch to find out how to borrow a C-Pen Reader pen. Members of the public can borrow a Reader Pen for a period of three weeks and each Fingal Library branch will also have a Reader Pen available to use in the library.

Fingal Libraries has also received a very special donation of 100 books for children written in the Ukrainian language. Suitable for children aged from 0 to 15 years, these books will be available to borrow from any Fingal Library and it is hoped that they will provide comfort and joy to Ukrainian children and their families during their stay in Ireland.

A special thank you to Edel Finn who kindly donated the books.

Further information on upcoming library events and services is available at your local library, on the Fingal Libraries website https://www.fingal.ie/ fingallibraries and on Fingal Libraries social media: Facebook, Instagram @ librariesfingal and Twitter @fingallibraries

Active Travel

Big Push for Pedal Power

The people of Fingal are taking to the streets on TIER eBikes and Bleeper Bikes, which are now a feature of many towns and villages across the county. Following the recent expansion of the TIER eBike scheme to include over 300 eBikes in Fingal the company reported that since the scheme was launched in June of this year, Fingal residents have cycled over 2,500 hours on TIER e-bikes. The average trip distance is over 4.5km, a much further distance than the majority of towns and cities that TIER operates in.

Director of Environment, Climate Action and Active Travel, David Storey, says ‘Fingal residents and visitors have been enjoying this low carbon, convenient and affordable Active Travel

option since it arrived earlier this year and we expect to see lots more people give TIER eBikes a try in the coming weeks as their numbers increase.”

ESB eBikes also came into operation in mid-August and will run for a ten-month period. With 3 Fingal charging stations located in Swords, Malahide and Howth, these ESB eBikes add another convenient option for people choosing Active Travel to get where they’re going.

Bleeper will maintain and operate the eBikes with the charging infrastructure provided by ESB. Bleeper’s ESB eBikes scheme is available from today and is accessible via the Bleeper app.

You don’t need to own a bike to get cycling - you can sign

up for Bleeper or Tier and unlock a bike or e-bike to use whenever you need one.

These bikes are ideal for daily trips to work, training or the shops as well as leisure use. So whether you’re thinking about a cycle to the seaside or a pedal to the park you should sign up today and get pedalling!

https://www.fingal.ie/ activetravel/bikes

Snugborough Gets Active Travel Ready

Fingal’s Department of Planning & Strategic Infrastructure recently began installation of cycle lanes and walking paths across the Snugborough Interchange. Significant work has been taking place on this major infrastructure upgrade throughout 2022 and details of progress, including timelapse videos, can be found at https://www. snugboroughinterchange.ie/

Active Travel

Fingal Coastal Way Reaches New Milestone

The emerging preferred route for flagship amenity the Fingal Coastal Way has been published and Fingal County Council is encouraging the public to review and comment on the route before December 22nd.

This 32km leisure and commuting route will stretch from Newbridge House in Donabate to north of Bremore Castle in Balbriggan. Taking in the stunning north Fingal coastline the route will connect Donabate, Rush, Loughshinny, Skerrries and Balbriggan allowing for safer cycling and walking between the towns, while also offering beautiful coastal views and scenic stops at landmarks such as Drumanagh Fort and Rogerstown Park.

Those interested in viewing the proposed route and sharing their opinions can do so at www.fingal.ie/fingalcoastalway, where they will also find details on the history of the project to date. All feedback received before Thursday, 22 December will be read by the project team as design work continues.

Following closure of this phase of consultation the Emerging Preferred Route design will be considered and comments from the public taken into account before the publication of a final route in 2023.

e programme Cllr Seána Ó Rodaigh said:

“This wonderful programme for Oíche Chultúir/Culture Night celebrates our rich culture through poetry, song, creative writing, including as Gaeilge, photographic exhibitions, opportunities to engage with artists in Ardgillan Demesne and Newbridge House, and much more. Well done to all involved and I am sure it will be a great success.”

Festive Season in Fingal

Swords

Swords community begins to help shape future of major park

River Regional Park

The first public engagement session on the future of Ward River Regional Park has taken place, with a range of ideas being shared by residents of the Swords community on what they would like to see in the park moving forward.

While around 70 people met with the project team as part of an interactive workshop recently held at Rivervalley Community Centre, over 650 people completed an online park survey that will help inform the overall design for the park and how it should be used in the future.

The in-person workshop allowed the community to see the existing conditions of the park, discussing what they would like to see as it is transformed park and how spaces

could be re-imagined for people of all ages. Activity sheets with pictorial guides were provided to attendees to help visualise how the park is used.

The project - led by Fingal’s Parks & Green Infrastructure Division - aims to deliver a sustainable vision for the development of the park. Protection and enhancement of the existing heritage, ecology and biodiversity is a key element of the park’s future, along with developing new links within the park and with the wider area. A public report on the findings of the first community consultation will be published by the Council shortly.

Building on the valuable contributions and feedback received so far, a second phase of consultation is scheduled to take place in the first half of 2023 to help develop the preliminary design proposals further.

For more information and to keep track of the project, please visit https://www. fingal.ie/WardRiverRegionalPark.

A range of ideas have been shared by residents on what they would like to see in place at Ward

Environment

Sustainable Festive Season

2. Allow your guests to serve themselves. This may seem like an odd thing to do when you have people over to your house for dinner, but by doing so you will prevent people being served larger portions and or food that they do not like.

3. Be sure to freeze any leftovers that you do not think will be eaten in the next few days. Freezing food will lengthen its lifespan and stop it from spoiling. You can also freeze bread to keep it fresh and then simply toast it when you want to eat it.

As you begin to get organised and start planning for this festive season, it would be good to consider how you can minimise your waste and reduce your carbon footprint over the Christmas season.

Over the Christmas season we tend to overbuy food and as a result we create 2530% more food waste than normal. Food waste emits methane as it rots away, and it is estimated that globally 8% of this greenhouse gas is created by food waste. To learn more about the link between food waste and carbon emissions you can read a previous article on P8 and 9 of this issue of the Fingal News here

Before doing your Christmas

food shop think about what you need and what you will use. Decide how many people you will feed and write out a shopping list to help avoid over buying.

Consider the type of packaging, if any, that is on food and where possible avoid buying food that is packaged in plastic. If you cannot avoid plastic, recycle it correctly in the green bin or even better still, reuse it!

Below are 5 Key Tips that will help you to prevent creating avoidable food waste.

1. Plan your festive food menu. Planning what you will cook will allow you to create a food list when doing your grocery shop. This will stop you overbuying ingredients you don’t need.

4. Make big batches of food when you have the ingredients and just freeze the extra portion for another day. This will not only save food from being thrown away, but it will also save you time, and over the Christmas period it is always good to use your time as efficiently as possible.

5. Use up leftovers by incorporating them into other recipes. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) has created a ‘Christmas Recipe Cookbook’ to stop food being wasted over the holiday period. Click here to see the gorgeous range of free recipes.

Fingal County Council congratulates Tidy Towns Groups on another successful year in 2022

As the Tidy Towns results were announced Fingal County Council took the opportunity to thank all the wonderful Tidy Towns Committees in Fingal and their volunteers for the fantastic work they do to enhance our towns & villages. It was another very successful year for Fingal with Gold, Silver and special award winners and increased points for all groups. The SuperValu Tidy Towns competition saw Trim in Co Meath named as the overall winner in the first in-person awards ceremony since the onset of Covid-19.

Baldoyle won the national Tree Project Award in just their 2nd year in the competition. Rush won two special awards, a Climate Action Award and a Sustainable Goals Award in the Large Town Category while Skerries were the Large Town Regional winner in the Pollinator Award.

Skerries won a County 2nd award and also received a gold medal with 354 points in Category F (population between 10,001 and 15,000). Malahide again received a gold medal with 347 points in the G category (populations between 15000 and 25000). Swords was awarded a silver medal in its Category H (populations 25000 and over) with 339 points.

Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Howard Mahony commented “The Tidy Towns Awards are an opportunity to celebrate the work of the Tidy Towns committees in Fingal and throughout the country. You can see this hard work and community spirit in action every week in our towns and villages with enthusiastic volunteers planting and litter picking, enhancing the appearance of their areas and having a hugely positive effect in their

communities.”

Fingal County Council Chief Executive AnnMarie Farrelly said: “ I really appreciate our Tidy Town Committees across the County who work so hard for their local areas and for Fingal. The continued excellent marks achieved recognises their contribution not only in keeping areas litter free but also their pollinator friendly initiatives and tree planting which contribute to biodiversity and climate action. Fingal’s Operations Department look forward to continuing to support the volunteers as we work together towards sustainable development in Fingal.”

Announcing the National Winner Minister Heather Humphreys congratulated Trim and all of its TidyTowns volunteers for being crowned Ireland’s tidiest town for 2022 and continued:

“I want to pay tribute to all the winners today but, above all, I want to say a huge thank you to the thousands of TidyTowns volunteers across the country. The time and effort that you put in to making your town or village a better place says so much about your commitment and dedication to your community. Your hard work and enthusiasm is nothing short of inspiring.”

For full details of results and individual reports visit https://www.tidytowns.ie/

Council

Nine for Fingal at the Irish Landscape Institute Awards

Landscape Institute Awards 2022 including the President’s Award for the Howth Head Goat Grazing Project.

Five of the Fingal projects won Best in Section awards while two were highly commended and one was commended under the five categories of Heritage Landscape, PlaySpace, Landscape Planning, Landscape Theory/Policy & Management and Landscape Policies and Initiatives.

The nine award winning projects were: Ardgillan Glasshouse Restoration (Commended), Shackleton Gardens (Best in Section), Skerries Town Park Playground (Best in Section), Bremore Regional Park (Highly commended), Lanesborough Park (Best in Section), Fingal Tree Strategy (Highly commended), Fingal Play Policy (Best in Section), and Howth Head Goat Grazing Project (Best in Section and President’s Award).

In selecting the Howth Head Goat Grazing Project for the highly prestigious President’s Award for the Landscape Policies & Initiatives category, the judges said: “Highimpact, interesting and valuable project, astutely posing professional evolution ongoing in our changing world.”

The Mayor of Fingal, Councillor Howard Mahony said: “I would like to congratulate Fingal County Council on having nine winners in the Irish Landscape Institute Awards 2022, particularly the President’s Award for the ‘Howth Head Goat

Grazing Project’. These projects are making an invaluable contribution towards further enhancing public amenities throughout the county. It is a testament to the commitment, dedication and hard work Council staff are doing to enhance Fingal for the benefit of all the community. I believe the number and range of awards received reflects very positively on the work of the Council.”

The Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, AnnMarie Farrelly commented: “We in Fingal County Council really value the work done by our Parks & Green Infrastructure Division and they are very worthy winners of nine Irish Landscape Institute Awards. This is wonderful news and reflects the considerable energy and work across a number of departments within the Council. It is a great honour to receive these accolades in recognition of our efforts, and to get nine winners is a tremendous achievement and great credit must go to all the staff who were involved in the various projects”.

Cllr. Grainne Maguire Independent grainne.maguire@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 943 6650

Cllr. Adrian Henchy Fianna Fáil adrian.henchy@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 681 4485

Cllr. Brian Dennehy Fianna Fáil brian.dennehy@cllrs.fingal.ie 085 229 8201

james.humphreys@cllrs. fingal.ie 083 8560832 18. Cllr. Eoghan O’Brien Fianna Fáil eoghan.obrien@cllrs.fingal.ie 086 858 0562 19. Cllr. David Healy Green Party david.healy@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 617 8852 20. Cllr. Brian Mc Donagh Labour Party brian.mcdonagh@cllrs.fingal.ie 086 385 8979 21. Cllr. Jimmy Guerin Independent jimmy.guerin@cllrs.fingal.ie 086 014 3346 22. Cllr. Aoibhinn Tormey Fine Gael aoibhinn.tormey@cllrs. fingal.ie 087 754 6258 23. Cllr. Anthony Lavin Fine Gael anthony.lavin@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 993 1329

24. Cllr. Joan Hopkins Social Democrats joan.hopkins@cllrs.fingal.ie 083 1031541

25. Cllr. Ted Leddy Fine Gael ted.leddy@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 327 6630

26. Cllr. John Walsh Labour Party john.walsh@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 648 6228

27. Cllr. Howard Mahony Fianna Fáil howard.mahony@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 0506146

28. Cllr. Natalie Treacy Sinn Féin natalie.treacy@cllrs.fingal.ie 085 128 5493

20. Cllr. Pamela Conroy Green Party pamela.conroy@cllrs.fingal.ie 086 8462891

30. Cllr. Siobhan Shovlin Fine Gael siobhan.shovlin@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 3984778

33. Cllr. Daniel Whooley Green Party daniel.whooley@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 397 8024 34. Cllr. Kieran Dennison Fine Gael kieran.dennison@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 259 5949

35. Cllr. Angela Donnelly Sinn Féin Angela.donnelly@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 6730137

36. Cllr. Mary McCamley Labour Party mary.mccamley@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 650 1441

37. Cllr. Breda Hanaphy Sinn Féin breda.hanaphy@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 162 0917

Cllr. John Burtachaell Solidarity john.burtchaell@cllrs.fingal.ie 087 102 9372

31. Cllr. Tania Doyle Independent tania.doyle@cllrs.fingal.ie 085 780 9292

32. Cllr. Tom Kitt Fianna Fáil tom.kitt@cllrs.fingal.ie 086 199 5801