Too expensive to repair water feature in town park

The much loved water feature at Lloyd Town Park may not be restored to its former glory.

At the January meeting of Tullamore Municipal District, Senior Executive Engineer, John Connelly said the council was considering options for the space.

''Originally our intention was to get the water feature back as it was, but as we delved into that, we found the original designs were inadequate for today's standards.''

Mr Connelly continued, ''to get the whole water feature back the way that it was will be extremely expensive, we are looking at what options are available and what to do with this space.''

Councillor Sean O'Brien said, ''we need to get a budget somewhere for it. I would hope we will find funding for it. We simply have to find it. It's not just for the town, but for the whole county.

The water feature was an extremely popular aspect to the park and was enjoyed by many visitors. The fountains which rose and fell at various intervals were a joy and children loved to jump through them on summer days.

However, it was vandalised and left in a state of disrepair. Last year it was announced that funding of €20,000 had been secured to carry out repairs to the facility. The funding came from the Department of Rural and Community Development.

However, it now appears that €20,000 will not be enough to restore the feature.