Having planted smaller fruit and nut trees by the Connolly/Brendan’s Park entrance, some more large apple trees were planted recently (by small socially distanced pods) along the top of the bank.
Check back for some fruit in the coming years
Project supported by Kerry County Council’s Community Environment Action Fund.
Some before and after pics from today’s (socially distanced) clean up of the orchard carried out by the students of Tralee Youthreach & facilitated by Niamh from Transition Kerry. We will be having another planting session next month, get in touch if you want to get involved.
One apple left if anyone wants it 
The first batch of fruit and nut trees were planted as part of the greenway orchard today with the help of all the volunteer planters from Tralee Youthreach, who did a great job of digging holes, planting the trees and staking them. We will be back to mulch them soon.
Go raibh maith agaibh to all the Tralee Youthreach, Transition Kerry and Tralee to Fenit Greenway volunteers and little helpers too!
This project and is funded through Local Agenda 21 from Kerry County Council.
Are you interested in helping develop a linear orchard consisting of Community Heritage Orchard, Soft Fruit Garden and Nuttery along the urban section of the Tralee to Fenit Greenway. The proposed site is a strip of scrub land which runs along the east side of the route between the Rock Street entrance and the access point to St. Brendans Park and Connolly Park.
The project aims reconnect with nature through food, landscape and community, to provide an example of how we can introduce food back into the urban landscape and increase local food security, through relearning the art of growing our own food.
If you are interested in getting involved please contact: orchard@traleefenitgreenway.com or see the Community Orchard page for more information.
This project is funded by Kerry County Councils Local Agenda 21 fund with the support of Transition Kerry
Kerry County Council is holding a public consultation day regarding the proposed Tralee to Fenit Greenway.
Venue: Fenit Parish Centre
Date: Wednesday 23rd May 2018
Time: 11am – 8pm
Maps of the route of the proposed greenway will be on display for inspection throughout the day. Kerry County Council officials will be available to discuss any aspect of the project on a one-to-one basis with landowners and interested parties during the hours specified above. In the event that a person cannot attend, an appointment can be made on an alternative date in their office in Tralee or at their landholding if preferred.
There will also be a public consultation the following day regarding the proposed Great Southern Trail from Listowel to the County Bounds.
Venue: Listowel Arms Hotel (Greenville Room)
Date: Thursday 24th May 2018
Time: 11am – 8pm
Great news around hopefully Ireland’s longest Greenway from Fenit to Limerick is not too far away, please come out and support Kerry County County Council on these projects.
There was positive news at todays Tralee municipal district meeting council meeting following questions raised by a number of councilors. Kerry Council council confirmed that they have now completed the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and Appropriate Assessment (AA) screening reports for the greenway, these reports were required in order to determine the planning with is required for the project.
EIA Screening is carried out in order to determine if an Environmental Impact Assessment is required while the AA Screening determines the potential effects, if any, of the proposed project on sites with European conservation designations, i.e. Natura 2000 sites located nearby.
The findings of these reports is positive recommending that the remainder of the project can proceed under a Part 8 planning process (similar to the previous phases of the project) rather than requiring a more laborious and expensive application to An Bord Pleanala or a full Environment Impact Statement (EIS) which has caused delays in the delivery of the South Kerry Greenway.
Kerry Council Council also confirmed that work will now commence on preparing this application and reopening of dialogue with landowners and residents whose land adjoins the former railway, this is expected to be complete by July.
As per the part 8 planning process the council will then publish their proposals for the remainder of the line and the public will have an opportunity to make observations, all going well the results of the process should be known by late September or October.
If the project receives planning approval it will be in an ideal position to contend for national greenway funding which is due to open at the end of the year.
Feint resident Mike O’Neil spoke to Jerry O’Sullivan on Radio Kerry yesterday,
You can listen back to the interview here:
The story also featured on the news for the day:
http://www.radiokerry.ie/calls-keep-proposed-tralee-fenit-greenway-project-alive/
An online petition with over 1000 signatures in support of the Tralee to Fenit Greenway was presented to Kerry County Council last week, this petition follows the previous petition with approximately 1000 signatures which was submitted to Tralee Town Council in 2012.
The submission coincided with the Tralee Muncipal District Budget meeting which yet again saw no funding provided for the project, while concerns were raised about the proposed Tralee Fenit Greenway not being included in the coming year’s budget only Cllr’s Ferris and Daly voted against the budget, which passed after the other seven Tralee councillors: Foley, Locke, McEllistrim, O’Brien, McCarthy, Finucane and Spring voted in favour.
Mr. Stephenson (Fenit) who presented the petition told the Kerry’s Eye
“It’s going on far to long, we have had 20 years of excuses”
The report goes on to quote Moira Murrell CEO of KCC saying “she is hopeful that there will be funding in the near future. It is now with the Department of Tourism”
While this maybe suggest that a funding bid has been made to the department this is not the case and the indications from the department are that in order to be successful in a funding bid planning would need to be in place.
How can Kerry Co Co keep saying this project is a priority and then continuously fail to allocate any funding ?
Last November we posted that Kerry County Council were expected to complete planning assessments on the line by the end of March, it seems this deadline was missed.
Radio Kerry are now reporting that Kerry County Council will undertake assessments on the Tralee Fenit rail line by the end of June.Â
The examinations are necessary for screening reports, which form part of the planning process for the Tralee Fenit Greenway.
These reports will determine if Environmental Impact and Natura Impact assessments are needed, and whether the planning application will have to go to An Bord Pleanala.
The council’s ecologists have to walk the rail line and undertake preliminary assessments for the screening reports, and once they’re done the scope of the planning process and resources needed will become clear.
The local authority says it’s hoped these walks will completed by the end of June.
The council says significant work has been done in the past 12 months on securing the legal agreement with CIE on the transfer of the land on the rail line, and it’s their objective is to progress the scheme this year.
Radio Kerry report that the final pieces of the legal agreement for transferring ownership from CIE are currently being dealt with, and the council is expected to officially own the lands by the New Year.
The next phase of works to be undertaken include completing the design for the planning application, the assessment of the environmental impacts, and lodging the planning application – this is expected to be done before the end of March.
