Protests over plan for Kilkenny city's Parade

Controversy over a plan to give Kilkenny city centre a major facelift shows no sign of abating. For its millennium project, Kilkenny Corporation decided to rejuvenate the Parade, the open space which links High Street to the city's castle.

An international competition to find the best design attracted 36 entries, many from abroad, but the judges opted for a proposal from a pair of young Dublin architects, Grace Keeley and Michael Pike.

The two say the Parade is potentially "one of the finest open spaces in the country", but their proposal, first shown to city councillors in January, met with opposition on a number of points. A modified design unveiled this month has gone some of the way to placate the critics.

The initial proposal involved the removal of the Mayor's Walk, which is sectioned off to one side of the Parade, and the erection of a row of nine illuminated steel and glass columns, up to 15 metres in height.

Councillors objected to the removal of the Mayor's Walk and said the columns were visually obtrusive.

In a letter to the Kilkenny People in January, Ms Una Hughes, the president of Kilkenny Archaeological Society, described the proposals as "an abomination".

"Retain the Gravel [Mayor's] walk with its seats and railing; replace the horse and dog water trough (a unique item) to its rightful place at the bottom of the Parade. Away with the kerb and parking up the centre. Restore the roadway to its full width and have the Parade as it was meant to be, an imposing sweep up to the majestic castle," she wrote.

Dr Declan Murphy, in a letter to the corporation on behalf of the Kilkenny association of An Taisce, was also highly critical of the original proposals. "We strongly suggest that any new design would be simple, uncluttered, retain the existing railings, gates and Gravel walk, and be in keeping with the existing ambience of the street."

The modified design goes a long way towards meeting the concerns raised. The Mayor's Walk would be retained and its railings restored, and the height of the light columns would be reduced, to a new range of 6.7 to 12 metres.

The architects, in a statement of design objectives presented to the corporation this month, say they are seeking to recognise the inherent qualities of the space, which tapers towards the entrance to Kilkenny Castle and opens out at the High Street end.

"The objective is to make the whole space into a single cultural entity, a horizontal place of communication for the city."

Traffic through the area would be kept to the south of the light columns and there would be no car-parking. "The vehicle route could then be closed off for major cultural or political events. The intention is to restore the Parade as a place for people rather than just for motor cars."

Neither Ms Hughes nor Dr Murphy had had time to study the revised plan in detail, but both said yesterday they would continue to have a problem with the row of lights, even at a reduced height. "That's a unique vista and the columns would be totally inappropriate, in my personal view," said Dr Murphy.

And not everyone, it seems, is happy with the proposal to prevent cars from parking on the Parade. The most recent letter to the Kilkenny People, from Hilary Roche, a solicitor, claimed parking could be retained in a sensitive manner.

"Most people to whom I have spoken about the matter are firstly not aware of the proposal to remove parking from the Parade and secondly are shocked at the idea that it might even be considered," she said.

However, Mr Joe Gannon, the chief city engineer, says there is ample replacement parking since the 800-space multi-storey car-park was opened in the city. The Parade, in contrast, has only 85 spaces. Redesigning the Parade has been on the corporation's agenda since the 1970s, he said, "but what always held it up was the lack of alternative car-parking".

"It's now felt that the Parade should return to being what it was: an open pedestrian area."

Mr Gannon, a member of the judging panel which chose the winning entry, said it was its "simplicity" which appealed most. "It would be one continuous, homogenous floor, and that's what attracted the judges to it. It was clean and simple."

The ensuing debate, however, has been anything but. It has now been decided that a light of the type envisaged will be erected in the area to give councillors and the public an opportunity to see what is proposed. It is hoped this can be done before the end of next month.