Limerick City and County Council facilitated an introductory workshop to GoGreenRoutes on 11th November 2021 (online). The purpose of the workshop was to share ideas for ‘greening’ the Castletroy Urban Greenway, local experiences of using the greenway so far, and to confirm members of the project’s local taskforce.
‘A tree per family initiative’.
At the introductory workshop to GoGreenRoutes on 11th November 2021 (online), a total of 35 people registered for the workshop with 20 people attending. A pre-event survey gave a better understanding of the stakeholders involved and their interests in relation to the greenway. The survey found that the majority of the 35 respondents use the greenway daily, for leisure, and live within 1km. In answering the question, "Do you have any ideas for how we can 'green' the Castletroy Urban Greenway?", many suggested planting native trees, wildflowers and plants, areas for biodiversity, benches, nature trails, edible paths and maintaining current hedgerows. This helped to inform the content of the workshop but also gave an indication as to who would be actively involved in the project (taskforce).
All participants agreed that the Castletroy Urban Greenway is a great amenity for leisure, recreation, biodiversity, and learning. Ideas for the seedbed interventions that involve the community and schools, for example, an event for all was welcome - a way to stay in the space as opposed to moving through it.
Other points of discussion included:
- Parts of the greenway are narrow with insufficient lighting, users feel unsafe
- Future development can negatively impact on wildlife
- Importance of maintaining and keeping people engaged in the project
- Established hedgerows could be surveyed to monitor and preserve the plant species
- History/culture of Castletroy included in the project
- Anti-social behaviour
- Tree felling and tree planting
- Flooding and drainage (SuDs)
- Rubbish