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One Of The Oldest Housing Estates In The City.
Ossory Park was built in the early 1930s and is currently one
of the oldest housing estates in the city. It has 67 houses
Spanning Two streets running parallel to one another. It is
located on the Hebron road opposite the Government Buildings
near Nowlan Park.
While time appeared to stand still on the estate, time certainly
moved on around it, which brought many changes with it. The
Old Fever Hospital closed but became the Kilkenny Products with
its big gateways, which would in the after hours become the
goal posts for one-sided soccer. The Hebron road so quiet in
those days became the soccer pitch. Time passed bye and the
kids grew up only watch the New Government Buildings take its
place. The Hebron road rarely saw much traffic except on match
days when Marty Baird could be seen heading up the road to Mack's
field with his Chalkboard sign with 'CAR PARK' in big black
marker written across it to draw in the intended customers.
The old sand pit another favourite play area for the children
disappeared only to become an Industrial Estate and another
housing estate now known as Bishop Birch Place. The Angle another
was like a landmark and a play area for the kids is nowadays
used as a car park for Nowlan Park. Slowly but surely we were
being pushed back, gradually loosing every play area to prosperity.
The good auld days were for some, becoming just a memory in
time and nobody even cared enough to ask what did we think?
Baney's Shop on the Steps at the corner of Gas House Lane was
an auld favourite of the estate where you could buy the fags
in ones or twos depending on how much you could scrape up at
the time and if you were badly stuck you could get your messages
on the book until your next pay day. Neddy Parker was known
as the fisherman and the gas man working in the gas house, as
it was known then. He was always handy because he lived on our
estate and if you had a gas problem you just called and he would
come up to your house with his nap sack full of the tools of
the trade. You could always depend on Neddy when you had a problem
with your gas meter and he use to bring the kids off fishing
in his time off. You know, they even moved the Railway Station
and gave them a new building while we were left behind stuck
in time.
 The 9 member
committee are:
(Back Row) Annette Smith, Mary O'Brien, Pauline Parker, Billy
McCullagh, Bessie Neary, Liam Carroll
(Front Row) Teresa Hayes, James Leahy and John Dunne.
The committee were formed through the RAPID Programme. With
the help and guidance from Ronan Ryan (RAPID Co-Coordinator),
Cllr. Marie Fitzpatrick (Kilkenny Borough Council) and Ray Scanlon
(Youthlynx). the committee was set up.
RAPID has played a vital role in supporting our needs and the
needs of the local community in helping us get off the ground.
RAPID has organised a workshop with Katherine Larkin (New Ground)
to get needs analysis reports complied. Training was organised
with Deirdre Hennessy for some of our own committee members
along with committee members from other local communities to
help them become organised and function more effectively. Liam
Carroll and Billy McCullagh represented Ossory Park on this
training course.
| Refurbishment Works Get Under Way |
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A working partnership has been established between the Local
Authorities and the Ossory Park Committee. This consists of
a Working Group set up to work closely together to oversee the
refurbishment works.
The Working Group was set up by the Borough Council and consists
of Three Local Authority members and a Sub-Committee of Three
from the Ossory Park Residents Committee Members whom meet on
a monthly basis.
The Working Group Committee members from the Kilkenny Borough
Council side are Liz Teehan, Denis Lawlor and Tony Walsh (Director
of Services). From the Ossory Park Residents Committee are Annette
Smith, Liam Carroll and Billy McCullagh.
How does the Working Group operate? The Ossory Park Residents
Committee meet fortnightly and discuss their ideas. The Working
Group Committee Representatives then carry their ideas forward
to the monthly meetings for further discussions with the Kilkenny
Borough Council Representatives. During these meetings further
discussions take place with a view to coming up with plans to
integrate these ideas. The Ossory Park representatives in turn
carry back the information to the committee and with this procedure
in place Ossory Park have involvement in the consultation process
of the decision making and at the same time receive regular
information on what is happening in their area.
| Some Of The Problems In the Area |
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 Parking
Arrangements
Some of
the houses have none or outdated amenities except for those
who could afford them
No play
area for the children
No community
facilities
Dangerous
main road with huge volumes of traffic with no safe crossings
Poverty
and disadvantaged area
Lack of
facilities for the disabled and elderly
Some Of Our Goals
1. Finish the Refurbishment Works as soon as possible
2. Get more and adequate Street Lighting
3. Have a Community Centre
4. Play Area/Green Area for the children
5. Safer Main Road Crossings
6. Street Bins
7. Resolve the Parking problems
8. Extinguishing of the Right of Way at the backs of
houses from 52 - 65
9. Resolve the surface water problems both on the Main
road and in the Street
| Our Aims |
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To continue
working together looking towards the future in the hope of achieving
our Goals.
To keep
the refurbishment works going as smoothly as possible avoiding
any un-necessary delays between phases.
To come
up with an end result satisfactory to both parties involved |
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