New Athlone Castle lighting could cost more than €250,000

The July meeting of Athlone Moate Municipal District was told that the cost of lighting up Athlone Castle "could be more" than a figure of €250,000, which was the estimated cost of the project two years ago.

Director of Services Jackie Finney made her remarks on the cost of lighting the landmark tourist attraction in the centre of Athlone during a discussion on the public realm enhancement works currently underway at the castle.

A briefing document giving an update on the proposed works stated that the cost for “lighting only” in 2023 was in the order of €250k including VAT.

The document also stated that the delivery of all lighting will follow the completion of the Public Realm Scheme, which will be of six to nine months duration and will be subject to cost confirmation and budget and contractor availability.

In relation to lighting of the Athlone Town Bridge, Jackie Finney said all elected representatives on the municipal district “will be aware of public lighting concerns” on the bridge.

She told the meeting that it was the intention of the council for all ducting for the proposed new lighting scheme on the town bridge to be installed “by the end of the year, that is the timescale.”

Cllr Frankie Keena welcomed the idea of ducting for the proposed lighting project on the bridge, describing it as “a very good system” while District Engineer Willie Ryan said none of the existing lighting cabling was “fit for purpose.”

Members were told that a number of solutions had been explored by the council in an effort to decide how best to light the arches across the town bridge. Lighting the arches by means of LEDs was considered “unmanageable” during the operational phase, with uplighting now being the preferred option.

A combined duct is to be fitted on both sides of the bridge, which will control both the public lighting element, and can also be used for festive and aesthetic lighting, the meeting was told by way of the briefing document.

The cost of lighting the town bridge is still being estimated and will be advised to members when it is known, according to the briefing document, with the delivery of aesthetic lighting to be delivered at a later date, and being subject to cost and associated budget.