Litir Chumhdaigh
I am a long term resident and mother living in Ashbourne since I was born. I have subsequently purchased my home in Ashbourne and all my children live and school here.
I have always stood up for the town when anything negative was said about it previously and have loved living here. However in the past 5 years seeing how badly managed it is, with no park at all for residents, no where safe to walk or have a picnic, the playground is so unfit for use it upsets me to even think about the costs associated with building it. All of this was made even worse since last March when we were forced to stay in Ashbourne 24/7 with nowhere safe to walk or be outdoors with our children, shops forced to close the doors even with more people shopping locally, due to rent and rates increases, all the nice roads being dug up and destroyed again, and every single green space being built on with more and more and more housing ( for which there is nothing for the people moving into them to do). The town is being destroyed by greed and an belief that because there is a housing crisis it gives acceptance to just endless building of properties in every green space imaginable with no consideration for what its doing to a town and its population.
Ashbourne needs a safe clean green space large enough for its population to enjoy and walk - I shouldn't have to keep getting my my car for 30 mins just to find somewhere to walk with my family.
I ask that the County Development Plan 2021-2027 incorporate an unequivocal commitment to a Community Park of at least 80 acres. In support of this I contend that:
- On 21 Jan, 80 acres minimum was the outcome of the democratic process.
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Based on Ashbourne’s population alone, all the research on Health and Wellness benefits supports an 80-acre minimum. Some examples:
- The Future Analytics report, commissioned by Playspaces Network, recommends 33.4 ha (80 acres).
- The World Health organization parameters give a recommendation of 160 acres.
- The formula in Dublin City Council’s Parks Strategy would recommend between 90 and 130 acres.
- The Fields in Trust (UK – used by >75% of Local Authorities) standard (6 acres per 1000 pop. comes out at 90 acres plus. All of the above assumes the Park serves a population of 15,000.
- In reality, the Park will be serving a far wider catchment area than just Ashbourne (South-east Meath and indeed North-west Fingal), perhaps as many as 50k citizens all told.
- On the question of cost constraints, multiple alternative funding models are available but do not appear to have been considered. In any case, the timescale for the delivery of the Park can be ‘flexed’ to suit resource availability (People, Funds, Benevolent suppliers, etc).
- The Ashbourne Community has an excellent track record for delivering large projects.
The Community and Councillors of Ashbourne support the 80-acre minimum scale. They have marshalled and delivered extensive evidence supporting their case. Many challenges will emerge on the journey towards this great goal for Ashbourne. I sincerely ask that unity of purpose not be one of them. It is essential that we all, Community, Councillors and Executive, present a united front to those who may seek to frustrate this project. Therefore, please ensure that the County Development Plan 2021-2027 be 100% clear in its unanimous support for the 80-acre minimum for the Community Park, the future heart and lungs of Ashbourne.