Pupils to influence design of sculpture

Schoolchildren have been encouraged to help design an iconic sculpture in a new “people’s park” to serve as a symbol of Cork.

Lord Mayor John Buttimer has written to the city’s primary and secondary schools urging pupils to get involved in the Tramore Valley Park initiative, which aims to transform a former dump into a massive park.

“Dublin has the Spire, Paris has the Eiffel Tower, and Newcastle has the Angel of the North — all of which have become embedded in people’s consciousness as representative of their cities. I hope students would use this opportunity to do something similar for Cork. To consider what Cork has been associated with in the past and present, and how we would like to represent it in the future.”

While the design of the actual sculpture will probably be the subject of a national and international design competition involving leading architects, Mr Buttimer said the students’ designs would help inform that design brief.

It follows the formal adoption by city councillors of the park master plan on Monday night.

The council has drafted ambitious plans to transform the city’s former dump on the Kinsale Road into one of the country’s largest adventure, leisure, and recreation parks.

City manager Tim Lucey stressed that the transformation would take place in phases over the long-term.

The draft masterplan sets out how the 29-hectare site could be linked via a bridge to lands around Vernon Mount House. The park is set to include an all-weather site for hosting concerts and other events, cycle and walking trails, and wildlife trails.