Cork County Council and property consultants CBRE were awarded a prestigious ULI Excellence in PlaceMaking accolade for their work on the park.
The ULI CBRE Excellence in Placemaking awards reward organisations and communities that make genuine efforts to improve their local communities through the initiation of placemaking projects that add to the public realm and create better places in which to 'live, work and play'.
Along with the success of the Ballincollig park, the ULI awards also recognised the county's Harpers Island Ecological Project with a Special Commendation.
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The Harpers Island project is a Council-owned site, managed collaboratively with Birdwatch Ireland, the National Parks & Wildlife Service and Glounthaune Community Association and is part of both a Special Area of Conservation and a Special Protection Area. The vision for Harpers Island is to enhance the biodiversity, plant native wood-lands, create nature trails and develop a wetlands education centre.
The Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Patrick Gerard Murphy commented: ""Place-making is about building a strong sense of pride in our communities, co-creating a sense of belonging, opening up space for collaboration and inspiration and promoting health and wellbeing– Ballincollig Regional Park has become a fantastic recreational space that is alive and buzzing, bringing the community together. Cork County Council is deserving of this recognition of its remarkable achievements in the regeneration of the park. It is great also to see the fantastic Harpers Island project being identified for special commendation as it is a wonderful example of what can be done to protect biodiversity when people and organisations work together – it could not have happened without the huge level of voluntary engagement from local community groups."
(CM/JG)
