Call for 'beautiful' glass bridge in Tipperary to be repaired
Overgrowth at either side of bridge 'should also be removed'
The broken glass panels on the Glass Bridge at the Old Bridge in Clonmel should be replaced, Cllr Pat English stated at a meeting of Clonmel Borough District.
He said that this beautiful bridge had already been destroyed twice.
The unsightly overgrowth at either side of the bridge should also be removed.
Cllr English said that the maintenance of the river was the responsibility of the Office of Public Works (OPW) but no maintenance was being carried out, “full stop”.
He said that the council wasn’t getting value for money. They should seek a meeting with the OPW to iron out the problems when it comes to funding to maintain streams and the Glass Bridge.
Cllr English said that the streams in the Old Bridge area needed to be maintained because there was a fear that the Cascade Park estate might be flooded again, as had happened some time ago.
In a written reply to Cllr English’s request, District Administrator Carol Creighton said that the broken glass panels on the Glass Bridge had been replaced previously, only to be vandalised and broken again.
The Borough District had raised this issue with the OPW and requested that the glass panels would be replaced with a suitable alternative material.
She said that maintenance of the River Suir within the Clonmel environs was within the remit of the OPW as part of their role under the Clonmel Flood Relief Scheme.
Prior to the commencement of maintenance works on the Suir, the OPW is required to prepare an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR). The Borough District is currently liaising with the OPW, who are in the process of appointing a consultant to prepare this report.
Once this is completed, the Borough District will be in a position to arrange the required maintenance works, Ms Creighton added.
Council engineer James Murray said that the OPW is very supportive of the flood relief scheme in Clonmel. The OPW understood these problems and the council staff had regular correspondence with them, as well as meeting their officials a couple of times a year, he added.