Kildare County Council has published Master Plans for two areas in the Celbridge Leixlip Municipal District.

The two plans are a Rural Settlement Renewal Master Plan for Ardclough and a Renewal Master Plan for Leixlip Town.

Officials from the Celbridge Leixlip Municipal District collaborated with members of the Kildare County Council executive team to unveil the future development plans for Ardclough and Leixlip Town. These initiatives are financed by the Department of Rural and Community Development through the 2019 Town and Village Renewal Scheme.

The Ardclough Master Plan seeks to improve the area's appeal, thereby increasing its sustainability as a desirable place for both living and working. Additionally, it strives to enrich the local environment, amenities, and biodiversity for the benefit of residents, businesses and visitors. The plan sets out to promote the potential for tourism and as a centre for culture and local heritage, thus enhancing the sense of identity - physically and socially.

Five key local opportunities are identified in the plan:

• Reconsider Ardclough’s green space to establish a stronger identity along the main road, and also to enhance local and pedestrian amenity at its core, including rationalizing vehicular access and parking, higher quality footpaths, provision of street furniture, and landscaping.

• Reduce the size of junction with main road, and introduce legible change in character from main road to settlement core.

• Extend Village Green improvements so as to embrace Ardclough Village Centre facility, and continue to support the community garden.

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• Consider pedestrian facilities and safety at and on the approach to Henry Bridge, with connectivity to Grand Canal tow path.

• Create a more legible streetscape, incorporating traffic calming, enhanced pedestrian facilities and safety at school zone area.

The Leixlip Delivery Plan outlines realistic and achievable projects aimed at improving current spaces and assets throughout Leixlip. Certain projects centre around significant transformative areas already on a clear path, but are given added emphasis to expedite their completion. Others propose improvements to the town's structure to enrich and expand upon the current public environment.

The key delivery projects identified in the plan are:

• Main Street & Key Spaces - Creating welcoming entrances to the town through the inclusion of raised tables, addressing the busy nature of the road to highlight pedestrian and cycle priority and in turn help with traffic calming to the length of the main street. Also includes major improvements to key spaces such as; Arthur Guinness Square, Captain’s Hill & Ralph Square, Town Thresholds East & West

• Wonderful Barn – Adaptive re-use and restoration of the site as an integrated tourism and amenity destination

• Heritage Trail & Play Interventions - Reinforcing the existing river-walk with upgrades to lighting and ground finishes. Punctuating the route with river terraces, to align with main street connections and to provide views to key buildings and along the river. The extension of the pedestrian connection from William Roantree Park to the Liffey Bridge and the inclusion of a new play trail along the river walk

• Cycle Infrastructure Improvements - Maintaining existing cycling infrastructure and creating new connections and cycle routes around the town, in particular connecting the wonderful barn to Leixlip.

Kildare County Council commissioned Metropolitan Workshop and MacCabe Durney Barnes to develop an urban design analysis and town renewal plan for Leixlip.

Jonny McKenna of Metropolitan Workshop said: "Metropolitan Workshop were delighted to work with such an ambitious client and the Town Renewal Plan demonstrates Kildare County Council’s commitment to delivering a high quality town centre for all. The implementation strategy is based on a series of individual proposals which can be brought forward either together, or separately, with each piece fitting into a larger vision placing pedestrians and cyclists at its heart."

Sonya Kavanagh, Chief Executive, Kildare County Council said: "The publication of plans for Ardclough and Leixlip is the result of detailed consultation and ongoing collaboration between the local community and Kildare County Council. Plans like these are hugely important to guide the sustainable development of these areas and their attractiveness as places to live and work."