COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF RATHFARNHAM / TEMPLEOGUE / FIRHOUSE / BOHERNABREENA AREA COMMITTEE

Tuesday, December 12, 2023

MOTION NO. 13

MOTION: Councillor Y. Collins

That this Council explores the possibility of environmentally sensitive lighting in Rathfarnham Castle Park, limited to that part of the park used by the Rathfarnham WSAF Athletics Club, for the benefit of the club´s Juvenile Athletes during evening training sessions in the Autumn/Winter months, bearing in mind that it would be for approx 2 hours, 2 nights per week. Currently, the club uses mobile lighting transported manually from the clubhouse to the park and has done so for many years. It is a very successful club and an enormous asset to the community and more efficient lighting during the winter months would be very welcome.

REPORT:

Public lighting in parks and open spaces is in general only provided where there are short pedestrian links between residential areas which are lit to facilitate permeability.  It may not be safe to attract members of the public into a park in darkness by providing lighting as this may also attract anti-social elements into the area.  Parks should therefore not be used during darkness when alternative lit routes are available along public roads which are passively supervised by passing traffic.

The provision of lights in our parks would also increase the carbon footprint of the Council and it could be considered to be an unacceptable intrusion into the ecology of the area.

The Council has always held the position that parks are closed to the public at fall of light and does not install lighting to facilitate night-time training in public parks for a number of reasons including possible exposure to legal action if an accident were to happen, concentrated wear in the vicinity of the lights especially in the winter when ground conditions are often poor, as well as the environmental and ecological issues already mentioned.

Rathfarnham AC have had use, for the most part informally, of the park at Rathfarnham Castle for their youth training.  The club has been repeatedly advised that that there are no proposals to provide lighting in this park to accommodate out of hours usage, and no financial provision has ever been made in that regard.