Public Realm work enters it’s final stages
Work continues this week on the public realm upgrade of Bridge Street and Shop Street including An Rioga car park. Crews from ESB have been in town on numerous days pulling through ducting cables in advance of the removal of the overhead wires and old street lighting poles and the installation of new street lighting. New pedestrian crossing poles and lights have been installed on Bridge Street and at the Post Office (with additional new lights on the way for other areas when work starts after Christmas on the new crossings in the town). It is understood a number of stone planters are also ready for installation in the wider footpath areas where cars are illegally parking and that will be a welcomed development. But be warned – there will be disruption at the end of November as the carriageway is being resurfaced and lined out, but when it is all completed, the lower end of the town will be in great shape, well in advance of the Christmas season.
Boyle has so many events for younger people this Halloween
There is so much to do for the younger members of the community this Halloween in Boyle. In Lough Key Forest Park there are eight days of fun packed Halloween themed activities with booking here, while King House will host ‘Haunting at the Museum’ from 6pm-8pm on Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th. You can find out more here. This Saturday 19th and the following Saturday there are Halloween themed art classes in the New Art Gallery in An Rioga for children aged 6-13 years. For further information please contact Elizabeth in the New Art Gallery or 0833747457. Baby and toddler Halloween Story Time in Boyle Family Resource Centre on Tuesday October 29th at 10am. Victoria Walker dance will hold two workshops on Saturday October 26th in St. Joseph’s Hall (Checkout Victoria Walker Dance FB page for details) while Das Academy will host a three day Halloween themed Dance Act Camp in Boyle on Saturday 30th and 31st October and November 1st for 6-12 year olds. For further information email: [email protected] or phone 0863266146
Nearly €250,000 awarded to Boyle in a short few months
The recent awarding of €40,000 to Boyle Town Team towards the upgrade of a new games area in the Pleasure Grounds is another welcomed development for Boyle. Town Team Chairman Ciaran Sheerin told Boyletoday.com that “The main objective of this project is to create a space that is accessible and user-friendly for the entire community, of all ages and abilities, through the installation of a Multi-Use Games Area. It will cater to a wide variety of sports such as soccer, hockey, basketball, tennis etc. Adjustable equipment means it can cater to different abilities and provide inclusive gaming experiences”.
Back in June, €200,000 was also awarded to Roscommon Co Co and the Town Team for a major upgrade of The Lawn area, bringing close on a quarter of a million euro of funding to the town in a short few months. The public need to be aware that projects like the Lawn and Pleasure Grounds will take time. There is a process involved that can be painstakingly slow, as tender documents have to be drawn up, published, judged and contractors appointed which can be a drawn out affair, but the fact is the funding is secured and work will start on both projects as soon as possible.
Bus journey to Boyle turns into a fiasco
Last Tuesday’s evening’s Bus Eireann journey from Dublin Airport to Sligo seemed to have been a bit of a fiasco. According to one passenger who travelled on the service, the bus was late picking them up, broke down on the M50, they changed coaches, the driver headed for Tallaght, turned around, went to Saggart and when he was advised of where they were, the driver turned around once again and headed to the M50 and finally on to the M4. Then in Carrick a drunk passenger got on and annoyed the passengers. When the bus finally made it to Boyle, two hours behind schedule, the driver stopped at Boyle Abbey and would not drive into town. The driver was advised that Military Road was the official stop for Boyle but the driver would not go into town even though it subsequently transpired there was a passenger waiting to go to Sligo at the stop. Bus Eireann issued a statement to Ocean FM in relation to the incident but gave no explanation why their bus did not stop on Military Road in Boyle. This is not the first time this has happened and is totally unacceptable. Listen to the passengers story here
The negative side of social media was obvious once again this week
The circulation of a video clip showing a vehicle involved in last Tuesday’s serious Road Traffic Collision in Boyle has been the subject of a lot of comment in recent days. The scene of the collision had not been fully cleared up when the video found it’s way online – going viral within a few hours. It was shared on websites (not Boyletoday.com) and social media platforms worldwide. Indeed people in Australia with Boyle connections were querying from relatives as to what happened before the relatives in Boyle even knew there was a collision! But more concerning was the opportunity a number of people used, especially on ‘X’, to (wrongly) blame the accident on certain people and stir hatred. Others posted comments that were totally out of order and here on Boyletoday.com we had to disengage the comment section of the Facebook post linked to the news story, after people posted comments that were inappropriate considering the matter was, and is being, investigated. But back to ‘X’ and a number of the far right people in Boyle, who hide behind fictitious accounts and post garbage day in day out, really gave themselves up with their comments. One individual posted an image of the scene and made it quite clear they were from Boyle. The same account of this person has links to racist and far right followers and regularly posts tweets that are culturally divisive and racist in nature. Other ‘locals’ with questionable ‘X’ accounts, but not using their real names, also gave themselves up posting their direct knowledge of what happened on the day.
Boyle companies HQ linked to awards final
The company that fitted out ProCloud’s spectacular new headquarters in Boyle town centre has been shortlisted for the prestigious ‘2024 Fit Out Project of the Year’ Awards. Sligo based Clever Offices were engaged by ProCloud to design and fit out their new headquarters on the Crescent in Boyle. The project involved the refurbishment of two derelict listed buildings and turning them into a 2,500 sq ft modern office space which has received favourable comment by those who have visited the IT company and those who are delighted that a local business chose to remain in the town centre while transforming and bringing back to life two derelict buildings in the process.
The 2024 Fit Out Awards will be held in the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road, Dublin on Wednesday November 27th. You can read more about the project here
News snippets from around Boyle
Don’t miss ‘The 3.30 at Cheltenham’ this evening (Friday) at 7pm in King House. Produced by award winning Gúna Nua Theatre Company and proudly sponsored by Gambling Awareness Trust, ‘The 3:30 at Cheltenham’ promises laughs, relentless truth, and insights into the quiet dark side of the gambling industry……..Boyletoday.com was delighted last week to clarify the situation in relation to the sale of Boyle Post Office building. While the Post office itself is due to remain in place after the sale, one wonders if potential purchasers will want the Post Office in situ or will they require a building with vacant possession – ready for some other use?………..Monthly constituency clinic with Deputy Claire Kerrane and Councillor Leah Cull in the Spool Factory Office Suites this Saturday…….La na Cruite Harp Day tomorrow Saturday in King House. This is a free event with various workshops and lectures. Tickets available from King House or at the door……The popular ‘Moving West’ TV show commenced on Tuesday last, interviewing those who have made Mayo their home. The backdrop for the promo of the series featured presenter Mary Kennedy in the Pleasure Grounds in Boyle which was filmed when Mary and the Moving West crew were in the town last year to shoot the Roscommon segment of the series, that will feature people who have made Boyle their home, and will go to air on TG4 on November 19th……..As mentioned here previously, efforts to remove two abandoned cars from Upper Bridge Street in Boyle have been successful. The cars have been lying idle on the street for a number of months taking up valuable parking spaces. Well done to all who worked closely with Boyle Gardai and Roscommon Co Co to get a successful outcome on this. Now if more business owners used the free town car parks in which to park their vehicles during working hours, we would have plenty of space for shoppers who need to use on street parking………..Great work being done nice and quietly every week by our Tidy Town volunteers who were out and about on Abbey Terrace on Tuesday morning last picking weeds and doing a general clean up of the area…….Full credit to the local emergency services who were quickly on the scene of a two car RTC in Boyle town centre on Tuesday afternoon last that could have been a lot more serious if it happened on a weekend or when school had just finished. Boyle Fire Brigade, Gardai, Ambulance, Advance Paramedics, Roscommon Co Co and ESB personnel all attended within minutes………For those visiting the Bank of Ireland in Boyle and having trouble using the soon to be upgraded disabled parking bay on Main Street, please note there is now a new disabled space for use by Bank of Ireland customers in their recently upgraded car park at the rear of the building.
And finally….!
George walks up to Terry bruised, battered and covered in blood.
Terry asks what the hell happened to him.
He says “I’m just walking along, minding my own business and this horse comes out of nowhere and knocks me down.”
“Oh God, let me call you an ambulance.” says Terry.
George says, “Hold on I haven’t finished yet…….so I get up, dust myself down and can you believe it……. I get knocked down by a car.”
“Oh crikey, it’s a miracle you’re still alive, I’ll call an ambulance” says Terry.
George says, “Hold on, I still haven’t finished. So I get up, dust myself down again, I’ve now got a few cuts and bruises. I catch my breath and then I get knocked down by an ambulance.”
Terry says. “That’s it, I’m calling the emergency services.”
George says “Wait, I still haven’t finished, somehow I survived that. I get up, I’m feeling groggy, but then I get hit by a fire brigade. I get up swaying side to side. Then a helicopter crashes into me.”
Terry say: “Unbelievable. It’s a miracle that you’re still alive, so what happened then?
“George says …..”The carnival operator kicked me off the carousel!”
