Official opening of Kilkenny's new Riverside Gardens and Skate Park to take place next week

Kilkenny's new Riverside Gardens and Skate Park will be officially opened by Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council, Andrew McGuinness, next week.

"I'm delighted to confirm that we will be officially opening our new Skate Park and Riverside Garden on June 9th. Unfortunately it cannot be a public event due to restrictions but we will be streaming it online for everyone to see.

"I'm particularly happy to be doing the official opening as Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council because delivering a skate park for Kilkenny is long overdue and something close to my heart as its the first thing I campaigned for when first elected almost 20 years ago.

"The new Riverside Garden will also be a fantastic addition to the city centre for everyone to enjoy and will greatly enhance our outdoor amenities. The whole project is very impressive and a credit to all those who worked on it despite the challenges that came due to Covid restrictions. I want to thank all of our Council engineers and staff for going above and beyond to deliver this project as soon as possible.

"It's very encouraging to see such a positive reaction to our skate park and so many young people using it already. We wanted to get it open as soon as possible because our young people have lost out on so much over the last year so we opened it as soon as we could and agreed to have the official opening once the Riverside Gardens were complete and restrictions eased.

"This is a great day for Kilkenny to open two fantastic outdoor projects that combine to make an impressive amenity space that will be enjoyed for generations to come. Its been such a tough time for everyone so this positive news is very welcome at a time when we need it most."