Cork's Marina to get multi-million euro upgrade

Cork's Marina was among several parts of the city which were pedestrianised as part of the city’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Picture Dan Linehan

The famous Marina riverside amenity in Cork has been earmarked for a multi-million regeneration to create a new promenade.

The work on the famous walkway about 3km downriver of the city centre is expected to include a complete overhaul of the road and footpath infrastructure to create a single-level promenade, with public lighting upgrades, repairs and upgrades to the quay walls, and various other public realm facelifts.

Fianna Fáil Cllr Terry Shannon welcomed news of the Marina Promenade project, which he said could be complete by the end of 2022.

“This project will create a new public space, a new amenity the city can be proud of,” Mr Shannon said.

“It will create a whole new streetscape in this area of the city that will be of benefit to the community.

“This area needs to be enhanced. We have been looking for this for some time and I’m delighted now to see the council moving forward on this.” 

It is understood that the city council will publish a notice today seeking tenders from experienced design consultants for the project.

“The scope of works will include the creation of a high-quality public amenity space for pedestrians and cyclists with a car-free zone between Páirc Uí Chaoimh and Church Avenue,” a spokesman said.

“Discussions are underway with funding agencies regarding the financing of the project."

A design team could be appointed by April, with proposed designs ready for public consultation by the end of the year, and pending funding and approval, for construction to start early next year.

Following months of weekend closures to traffic in 2019 as part of a Healthy Cities initiative, the Marina was among several parts of the city which were pedestrianised as part of the city’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The area was pedestrianised 24-hours a day, seven days a week for three months last summer and it proved hugely popular, with hundreds of people using it daily.

The measure was then extended to December before it was later made permanent.

City officials are now hoping to build on the success of that initiative.

Cork’s newest public park is being built on the site of the former Showgrounds nearby, and a planning application for a massive 1,000-unit apartment development is being considered by An Bórd Pleanala on the former Fords distribution site, also nearby, which has hosted the Live at the Marquee concerts over the years.

It is also hoped that the work will form a key link in wider plans to develop the Lee to Sea greenway - a massive greenway which would link Ballincollig to Cork's lower harbour.

The Marina, originally called the Navigation Wall, was completed in 1761 as a dock for ships.

But in the early 1820s, the Cork Harbour Commissioners deposited the silt from upriver dredging operations behind the Navigation Wall, to create an area of reclaimed land, which went on to become a popular walking area, which was planted in the 1850s, to create the tree-lined walkway people know today.