Louth councillors highlight ‘pressure’ to deliver long awaited Linear Park

By Olivia Ryan, The Drogheda Independent

Plans for the long awaited Linear Park in north Drogheda are “too developer led” and should be advanced by Louth County Council with a feasibility study next year.

That was the message from local councillors, at both county council meetings and the Drogheda Borough District, where calls for progress on developing over 30 acres of land for public amenities have been growing.

“You don’t understand the pressure we are under, with all of the new housing, for people to have facilities,” a Drogheda councillor told the Budget 2026 meeting of Louth County Council.

Cllr. Hall said she was “really concerned” about slow progress on developing Linear Park in Drogheda, in an area where thousands of new homes are expected to be built.

The project is listed in the Three Year Capital Programme 20226-2028. A €1.5m spend has been projected, all funded from development levies.

But, Cllr. Hall highlighted that no funds were directed towards progressing the park in 2025, and there are none allocated for next year.

It will be 2027 before any funds – €500,000 – are spent on the Linear Park project.

Cllr. Hall argued that funds should be directed towards a feasibility study in 2026.

"It is very disappointing. You don’t understand the pressure we are under, with all of the new housing, for people to have facilities.”

"We don’t even have one euro in that budget for Linear Park, I just don’t think it’s fair. I think we need a commitment from Louth County Council that they will do a feasibility study on what needs to be done in the area.”

She raised concerns that developers are not building play parks for housing developments “that have been there for years.”

“At the moment we don’t have any recreational facilities in this area. People in Ballymakenny Park have to walk 2.6 kilometres if they want to go to the Glens for the proposed playground. That is not in our national play policy, it is way too far for people to walk to. This is why I am working so hard to get these facilities for people living in the area."

She added: “Linear Park is not just about trees, we are constantly talking about active ageing, but we don’t even have seat in a six kilometre walk in the town centre. We are putting up barriers to people coming out to enjoy this beautiful area.”

Cllr. Paddy McQuillan asked: “We all want these houses to be built, we really do. But would it not make sense to do the feasibility study now, so that we aren’t waiting years for these facilities to be built?”

He said it was important for “community development and social development” that facilities are built “for generations to come.”

Louth County Council presented an outline of the project at the December meeting of Drogheda Borough Council.

Councillors heard there are plans for a neighbourhood centre which would link to the main park, with a proposal to include a cafe. Commercial units, including a supermarket, are also proposed.

But the meeting heard that a lot of planning permissions would be needed on large sections of the land to advance the development of the park.

The council are planning to sit down with developers to look at the overall proposals for the area.

Plans for individual play parks, where more than one hundred houses are being built, are also included in addition to the main park.

Mayor Michelle Hall said she “didn’t see where the plan is for this, from the council’s point of view. That is my biggest fear.”

She asked if there are cycle lanes included in Linear Park, and how the council will retrofit those which are already there.

She said the overall plan appeared to be “developer led”, adding: "I would like to see that we have a plan and we tell them what it is.”

"That is why I asked for funding to be brought forward so that we can pay for the design process, so this will be given to the developers who will build our design, and not their design.”

Cllr. Anne Marie Ford said it was important that secure, clean public toilets are provided as part of any plans.

Cllr. Eric Donovan said it was important that access is a priority, as people may drive out to enjoy the facilities in Linear Park, so a car park would be needed.

He said a pond or lake could be developed which would make it an appealing place to visit.

"I agree that we should take responsibility for this, don’t just give it to the developers.”

Cllr. James Byrne raised concerns that developers who have built houses may not fulfil obligations to install play parks. “They might be gone, they might go bust.”

Director of Service at Louth County Council, David Jones, said the council were leading plans for the development of the park, and were arranging to meet all of the stakeholders to ensure a plan is in place.