Slippery when wet: Concerns about new paving in Castlederg centre

Concerns have been raised about the dangers posed by new paving installed as part of a major scheme in the centre of Castlederg.

The Diamond Public Realm scheme, which was unveiled last November, has transformed the centre of the town.

However, while welcomed as a huge boost for Castlederg, local people have highlighted their concerns about the slippiness of the paving put down in the new-look Diamond area.

The issue was raised at a recent public consultation event which asked people for their views on the public realm scheme.

A Derry City and Strabane District Council report on the findings of the consultation event said ‘many participants’ raised concerns about the new paving when it rained.

The council has said it will take the comments on board as plans continue to extend the public realm scheme to other parts of Castlederg.

The project is part of the Derg Active Project, a community-led initiative which aims to revitalise Castlederg’s public spaces.

Along with the new paving, the improvement works at the Diamond include a plaza area, upgraded lighting and landscaped seating areas.

According to the council, the space has been designed to serve as a ‘gathering hub for residents and visitors alike, featuring areas for community events, public art installations, and green spaces that reflect the natural beauty of the surrounding region’.

The public consultation event to get local opinion on the new improvements was held at the Derg Valley Healthy Living Centre on January 9 and 10.

The council said 35 people attended the event across the two days.

Speaking at a meeting last week of the council’s Health and Community committee, Sinn Fein councillor Paul Boggs welcomed the consultation and said it was ‘important’ to give people an opportunity to have their say on projects.

Highlighting the concerns about slippery pavements, Cllr Boggs said this had also been an issue in Strabane for ‘many years’ in relation to other public realm works.

He asked what the council could learn from the public consultation in terms of taking the project forward in Castlederg.

In response, Karen McFarland, the council’s Director of Health and Communities, said the council had a ‘learning log’ in relation to all of its capital projects and added any concerns about a particular project should be shared by members of the design team

“This has been highlighted at a very early stage in this specific project and there’s obviously an opportunity before we extend the scheme to make sure we can take corrective action where we need to,” she said.