The Co Armagh side of the cross-border Ulster Canal Greenway has gone "back to stage zero" in Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon (ABC) Borough Council's capital plan, while Monaghan County Council has appointed a contractor for its section. SDLP councillor Thomas O'Hanlon has called for a full review of how the northern leg stalled.
Cllr O'Hanlon raised the issue at ABC Council's October monthly meeting, Armagh I reported on Tuesday, 27 October. He said he was "deeply disappointed and indeed angry".
"Not out of spite, but because of our failures"
"Just last week, our partners in the project in Monaghan County Council moved forward with the delivery of their section of the project with the appointment of a contractor, not out of spite, but because of our failures," he told the meeting.
"Meanwhile, on this side of the border, the council stands scratching itself as we move the project back to stage zero in our capital plan," he said. "We have been left behind... and this time I can't blame Stormont."
He accepted there had been challenges. A previous paper to members pointed to landowner issues and problems with land acquisition. But he asked how a project with "so many years of work" and long talks with landowners "ended up with the wheels completely coming off". He said what officers told him later "completely contradicts what we were told on the official reports to council".
Lord Mayor Mary O'Dowd directed him to continue part of his remarks in confidential business.
What he wants
Cllr O'Hanlon asked for a full review of how the project reached its current position and for officers to bring back a detailed plan for the way forward. He also wants the council to re-engage with the Department for Infrastructure and Monaghan County Council, and to look at funding through the Shared Island unit in the Department of the Taoiseach.
The Monaghan side
Work on the Monaghan Town-to-border stretch through Tyholland is due to start at the beginning of November. Councillors were told it would take about 40 weeks, Northern Sound reported on 19 October. We covered that here.
The northern link is short. ABC Council approved planning for the 2.2km stretch from the border to Middletown in May 2022, the Ulster Canal Greenway project team said at the time. Planning was already in place for the Monaghan Town-to-border section. The team later said the original funding offer was lost because of delays in decisions by funders.
