October 30, 2018

Carlingford Community Newsletter October 2018 Edition

This newsletter is jointly produced by the five bodies representing the Carlingford community, namely:

CCTA – Carlingford & Cooley Tourism Assoc.
CLHT – Carlingford Lough Heritage Trust
CRA – Carlingford Residents Association
CTT – Carlingford Tidy Towns
CCD – Carlingford Community Development (The Foy Centre)

Carlingford Community Forum News

The completion of the Public Realm Study by the mid November closing date is our priority at the moment. This will provide the Community with a discussion document in line with the sentiments expressed at our 2016 Public meeting which is also in line with the current County Development Plan. It will hopefully also provide the starting point for ‘A Design for Carlingford’ which we have discussed with Louth County Council on previous occasions.

The Forum recommends anyone who can, to attend the ‘ Reducing Waste’ Home and Business talk in the Foy Centre on Saturday November 17th at 1 p.m. by speaker, Timi Nicholson. This event is supported by Louth Tidy Towns Together.

Forum Members attended a Conference in Derry on Thursday October 11th. Entitled: ‘ Unlocking Prosperity Through Heritage-Led Regeneration’ The Conference addressed best practice and the outcomes for places where this type of regeneration has taken place. We are very fortunate in that in Carlingford we have used this approach previously, with successful outcomes.

Heritage News

French twins:

Our visitors from the village of Les Vans in Ardèche, eastern enjoyed their tour of Carlingford and the Cooley Mountains which has got some coverage in their local paper. Plans are afoot for a return visit to Les Vans in the spring for further discussions on a possible twinning arrangement.

For your diary

Sunday 18^th November, 4.0 – 6.0pm

The Father McNally Chamber Orchestra from Dundalk. When they were here before their concerts sold out, according to the Irish Independent – https://www.independent.ie/regionals/argus/entertainment/fr-mcnally-orchestra-returns-to- carlingford-30717983.html

Choral Festival 30/11-2/12

An Chór Chairlinne will hold its annual festival from Friday 30^th November to Sunday 2^nd December with a concert in the Heritage Centre on Saturday 1^st at 7.00pm.

Floral demonstration, 6^th December 8.0pm

This charity fundraiser will take place in the Heritage Centre.

Lorcán Ó Muirí

An tAthair Lorcán Ó Muirí (Fr Laurence Murray, 1883-1941) managed to cram a great deal of Irish-language scholarship into a busy clerical life which began rather badly. He was ‘asked to

leave’ Maynooth seminary around 1904 for what one gathers was ardent political activity and had to ship out to Minnesota to get ordained six years later.

When the first Irish summer college, Coláiste Bhríde, was set up in Omeath in 1912 he returned every summer to teach there, eventually returning to become religious inspector of schools in Armagh Archdiocese – he was remembered in South Armagh as a colourful figure, a priest on a motorbike.

In 1926 as the Omeath Gaeltacht declined he moved the college operations to Rannafast in Donegal where the college still thrives. Along the way he founded the Gaelic publication An tUltach, wrote a short history of Omeath and undertook some very substantial work in music and song collection. Perhaps his most outstanding work was his research on the life, poetry and songs of the poet-highwayman Séamas Mór MacMurphy who was hanged in Armagh in the 1750s following his capture in a shebeen near the Flagstaff. Lorcán Ó Muirí was born in Newry Street, Carlingford.

Carlingford & Cooley Tourism Association News

LATE AUTUMN SUNRISE OVER GREENORE PORT

With Winter approaching and the days getting shorter, we see reduced visitors’ numbers coming to Carlingford and Cooley. Despite this, many walkers, cyclists and daytime visitors continue to grace our streets and roads, particularly on those days where the winter sun shines low in the sky. Carlingford is particularly attractive at this time of the year with the multi-coloured leaves of many shades of green, gold and brown on the trees. This time of the year is traditionally quiet, and it allows the many businesses in Carlingford, most of whom are tourist related or tourist dependent, to take stock and reflect on the season just past, and prepare for Christmas and New Year, which is now rapidly approaching.

The CCTA welcomes the reopening of the Tourist Office in the Station House under the capable management of Visit Carlingford who have relocated their business under the same roof. The interior has been completely revamped and provides an attractive and informative destination for the visitor

seeking assistance. While still only in the development phase, the Tourist Office is already offering an excellent service to all those visiting our historic town and its environs.

THE NEWLY REOPENED TOURIST OFFICE IN THE STATION HOUSE

THE INTERIOR OF THE TOURIST OFFICE PROVIDES AN EYE-CATCHING DISPLAY AND AN IMPRESSION OF WHAT CARLINGFORD HAS TO OFFER THE VISITOR.

In addition, a number of complimentary brochures and maps covering Carlingford, Cooley, Carlingford Lough and wider afield are available to visitors to Carlingford to increase their knowledge and enjoyment of the spectacular area they are visiting.

VISIT CARLINGFORD MAPS

MAP OF CARLINGFORD LOUGH PRODUCED BY THE LOUGHS AGENCY

Following the resignation of Thomas McArdle as chair of the CCTA, a meeting of the CCTA Committee was held on Tuesday 6th October. The meeting reviewed the situation and a number of resolutions were discussed and approved in the course of the meeting.

Of primary importance to the efficient running of the CCTA as the organisation, representing tourism in Carlingford and Cooley, was the appointment of a new Chairman to oversee the Committee. Frank O’Brien, who had been a previous Chairman of the CCTA offered his services, as an interim Chairman until the AGM in March 2019, and this was gratefully and unanimously accepted by the Committee.

The CCTA Committee is very appreciative of his generous offer, given freely, despite his many other commitments to the Community in Louth. James Byrne remains as Vice-Chairman.

Of particular note, the meeting agreed to seek increased engagement with the Carlingford residents’ groups, with a view to creating a greater interaction between the residents and tourism interests, to ensure that the interests of residents are served and understood, while at the same time, allowing for the promotion of responsible tourism in Carlingford and Cooley.

The CCTA was represented at the recent meeting of the Louth Joint Policing Committee held in the Four Seasons Hotel on 2nd October. Many important issues affecting Carlingford and the Carlingford Community were raised by those attending and it was felt that these concerns were duly noted, to be acted upon, by both the senior Gardai and Local Authority Officials and Representatives who presided at the meeting.

The re-lining of the tennis courts and the replacement of the tennis nets has led to a renewed interest in the use of this facility, overlooked by Taaffe’s Castle. This development is to be greatly encouraged as this facility for the enjoyment of residents has been seriously underutilized in recent years. As a recreational and tourist attraction it is to be hoped the use of the tennis courts will increase in the future, for the enjoyment of adults and children alike.

TENNIS COURTS WITH TAAFFE’S CASTLE IN THE BACKGROUND.

The CCTA looks forward to the completion of renovations to King John’s Castle, which are hopefully nearing completion and expects that 2019 will see the reopening of the Castle to visitors. The Castle is an important part of the history of Carlingford as a Norman and Irish medieval settlement and is a major tourist attraction for the town.

KING JOHN’S CASTLE

The Foy Centre

Tennis Academy

You may have seen the Tennis Courts being used lately with many locals keen to learn the sport.

We were pleased to have the children avail of our facilities in the Foy Centre the last few weeks of the Academy.

Great fun was had by all. They will be starting up a winter academy soon as the kids enjoyed it so much.

Carlingford Knights Rugby Launch

Carlingford Knights Junior Rugby Club had its official launch this month with Rob & Dave Kearney coming along to the Foy Centre to meet the kids and participate in their training session. A fantastic morning was had and a day to be remembered by all. It even made the front page of the Argus!!

World ‘Restart a Heart’ Day

A training session on how to carry out CPR and use a Defibrillator was held in the centre on 16th October 2018.

This was a very informative, useful and enjoyable course.

All funds raised in attending the course will go towards buying a Defibrillator for the Foy Centre.

Orchard Bakery

Orchard Bakery are now taking bookings for Christmas Party Nights.

Check out their Facebook page and have a look at their tasty Christmas Menu. Availability is limited – so get booking!

Upcoming Events

Winter Kids Tennis Camp
How to reduce waste and save money – Talk from ‘Zero Waste Guru’ – Timi Nicholson

If there’s anything you would like to see happening in the centre or on the pitch please contact

Debbie Hamilton on 083 8013777.

Announcing a new Whist Group

WEEKLY WHIST CLUB STARTING Monday, November 5th @ 7.30pm AT THE CARLINGFORD ARMS

BRING YOURSELF AND A DECK OF CARDS!

Carlingford Tidy Towns

The Louth Looking Good Awards will take place in The Crowne Plaza Hotel in Dundalk on Thursday 8th November.

Following on from the video on our Facebook page where we highlighted some obstruction spots in Carlingford on MakeWayDay, we would like you to consider where you put your bins out for refuse collection, as there are people in the community who require space to move along the footpath and may not have the ability to move large items that are in their way.

Carlingford and the Cooley Penninsula, with its rich medieval heritage is one of Ireland’s 8 Gardens of Eden (i.e. European Destinations of Excellence). The EDEN Awards promote sustainable tourism models in the EU.

CTT has taken delivery of some of the items mentioned in last month’s newsletter. Recent acquisitions to make our work around the town a little easier, include a road sweeper’s trolley and a STIGA power sweeper. This machine comes with a collection box and a snow blade and is powerful enough to lift moss and weeds from hard surfaces.

Before During

After

This task proved to be a useful exercise in the dark art of laying tarmac for some of our new TUS workers resulting in the elimination of trip hazards for the town.

A number of the tree bases on the promenade needed a little attention some three years after we first laid resin coated gravel around them. We topped them up where the surface was dented or the gravel had become loose and they should now be sound for the next number of years.

Despite attempts to shore up one of the trees on the green after the first storm, the second storm on the night of 11th October saw it downed again. The only course of action was therefore to remove it and replace it with a sapling of the same Sorbus species (with the agreement of the Council).

Our TUS workers prepared the ground and laid a concrete base ready to locate a brand new Big Belly Bin on the little path from the car park to the main road.

Big Belly Bins are mounted with solar cells to provide power to operate a compactor plate which will compress the waste whenever it reaches a certain height. The bin has the capacity of 5 times a normal bin. When the bin is completely full, its own in-built telemetry sends a message to the Council to come and empty it. The initial purchase cost of the bin was covered by sponsorship and CTT have agreed to cover the annual maintenance charge for the time being.

CTT was delighted to see that The Orchard Bakery are now offering paper straws instead of plastic ones. We note that the Sailing Club has also followed suit – another small step in the right direction for our fragile planet!

It was also great to see these reusable takeaway coffee cups being given out at the Foy Centre on Saturday 13th October when the Leinster Branch of the RFU’s Rob and Dave Kearney came to watch the Carlingford Knights Juniors training session. Remember if you use a reusable takeaway cup you will receive a discount at any Conscious Cup Café in town.

We are supporting Warrenpoint who recently held a public meeting in their Town Hall to campaign against dredging waste being dumped in Carlingford Lough since the Lough is already a fragile environment for wildlife and the local fishing industry. Check out the amazing video entitled

‘Carlingford Beneath the Waves’ posted on our Facebook page by Love Your Lough showing the amazing diversity of creatures in our waters.

We recently took part in a beach survey on wildlife and litter as part of the CoastWatch Inituative.

We have restocked our MuttMit container on the promenade and are pleased to report that we have clean footpaths at present. Thank you to everyone who cleans up after their pet.

CTT have refilled all the containers in Tholsel Street with winter flowering plants to give us all a little cheer throughout the dark winter months.

With much concerted effort comprising CTT, our TUS workers and Benny Carolan, we have managed to remove brambles and roots and then shore up much of the wall between Connelly’s Cottage and the Castle Arch. The wall was a dry stone one when it was originally built and so was prone to collapse. We had made previous attempts at repairs, but this time it was necessary to do a better job by setting the stone in cement.

We will soon replant the top with pollinator friendly and attractive shrubs.

An Appeal for Sponsorship

Carlingford Tidy Towns would like to make an appeal for sponsorship to replace the picnic tables on the green whilst retaining the ‘family friendly’ look of our best amenity area. The current stone tables are considered unhygienic by many as you cannot wipe them down very easily and the wooden benches to either side were always a cheap temporary solution using builder’s planks.

What we would like to do is replace them with Heritage style furniture like the ones shown below (but in black).

Pictured are the Eastgate Picnic table at €868 and the Eastgate Anti-vandal Seat at €620 each, with metal slats.

Cheaper alternatives, including wooden slats, are available but we believe anything we buy must be able to withstand the level of vandalism we experience rather than deliver a short-term saving.

We are making this request as we do not know how long it could be until we are successful in another bid for funding. Ideally, we would like to purchase two picnic tables and three seats for location along the roadside edge of the green, to replace the existing arrangement prior to the next summer season.

CTT would be happy to display the name of sponsor(s) on these items.

Well done to the folks of Harbour Cottages who planted mixed narcissi in their estate on Sunday 22nd October. We look forward to them blooming in the spring.

If you are doing anything to improve your estate, from planting bulbs or trees, planting to attract butterflies or if you are planning something big, like a sculpture or landscaped area, do please let us know and send in a photograph so that we can include it in the Residential Section of next year’s Tidy Towns Competition application.

Find us on Facebook.com/CarlingfordTidyTowns

Carlingford National School

CTT assisted the children of St Oliver’s to plant butterfly and bee friendly pollinating plants in the school garden on Tuesday 9^th October. Hopefully in years to come they will be able to spot some of the insects shown below.