Malahide & Swords residents are facing an unprecedented level of traffic chaos in the coming two years, according to David Greene, Chair of the Malahide Community Forum. The Forum is the umbrella group for over 20 residents’ associations in Malahide and they have been monitoring plans for bringing huge electrical cables from an offshore wind farm near Balbriggan through Swords and Malahide to join up with the national grid at Balgriffin.

“The recently lodged planning application by the wind farm operators seeks full road closures for months at a time along Estuary Road, the Swords Road and the Malahide Road into Balgriffin”, says Greene.
“The wind farm operator held public consultation meetings but never mentioned the extent of these full road closures. Diversions are planned but that only makes the situation worse as it forces all traffic (buses, lorries, cars, bikes and pedestrians) onto smaller roads and residential estates” according to the Malahide Community Forum who have analysed plans lodged with the planning application.

With residents of both towns already complaining about the extent of traffic gridlock throughout the day, these plans will have a huge detrimental impact on all residents. “Imagine trying to get kids from Seabury to Malahide Community School -it could take up to an extra hour to complete that journey. Thinking of going from Malahide to the airport? You’ll probably need to allow an extra 45 minutes to complete that journey at the latest, and possibly more at peak times” notes Greene.

The Forum say they have identified an alternative route that avoids road closures by going cross-country, which is considered standard operating procedure in the UK. It would be a shorter route, cost less and lead to lower carbon emissions because of less traffic jams. Whilst the wind farm operator did meet the Forum to discuss their proposed route, Greene feels that the operator was too far advanced in their plans to fully consider the alternative route.

The Forum say they are appealing to An Bord Pleanala to force the operator to give proper and full consideration to their proposal. They are also engaging with local councillors, seeking to get Fingal County Council to also compel the operator to take into account the alternative route proposal.

Calling all history buffs! Join us at Malahide Castle for an Oral History Open Day in celebration of Heritage Week 2024 on Saturday 24th August. This is a fantastic opportunity to share and listen to stories about the Talbot family and Malahide Castle from yesteryear in an open mic-style setting.

Here’s what you can expect: Share your personal stories: We want to hear your unique perspectives on Malahide Castle’s rich history. Uncover hidden gems: You might be surprised by the fascinating stories waiting to be unearthed! Connect with the community: Bond with fellow history enthusiasts and create a tapestry of Malahide Castle’s past. Contribute to history: Your story becomes part of the ongoing narrative of Malahide Castle.

Got some pictures and memories? - We want you to share them with us!

Help us build our understanding of the castle’s history by adding to the narrative. Whether you have a story to tell or just want to listen, everyone is welcome.

The event is free but spaces need to be booked by visiting: www.malahidecastleandgardens.ie/heritage-week-oral-history-open-day

There was great excitement at the annual Malahide Family Fun Day that took place on ‘The Green’ on Saturday 13th July in beautiful sunshine

Beginning with an interactive Ceili dance the fun continued throughout the day with activities such as a Kids V Parents TikTok Dance, Face Painting, Carnival Games, Balloon Modelling, and much more.

Huge Congratulations to our 1st Year boys and girls Basketball teams who gave up their weekend away in Carlingford with the rest of their year to compete in the All-Ireland Basketball finals in Limerick at the beginning of May. They were a credit to their school, their parents and their club.

The Girls won silver medals, finishing 2nd after 6 really tough games. The Boys were beaten in the plate quarter final having picked up a few injuries late last week. Well done to all the players, parents and coaches!

A very successful AGM was held on April 23rd with Residents from 16 estates representing over 1500 households in Malahide attending. We also heard from some of our Local Area Councillors.
Thank you to The Grand Hotel for facilitating us with a room.

Topics covered included: Forum’s work on behalf of the Community since the last AGM in April 2023; Addressing the demographic challenges including stepdown accommodation and need for services for a town of Malahide’s size; Local Area Plan for Malahide; Addressing the deterioration of the look and feel of the village/ town; Establish a clear hierarchy of priorities that puts local needs first and those of visitors second; Protecting Bridgefield; Local Bus service; Dart+ North Turnback at Malahide Station; Meeting support for better route for North Irish Sea Array (NISA) cabling through Malahide Area; Introduction of Community policing areas; Spread the word about Malahide Community Forum

For more information please go to https://malahidecommunityforum.ie

Portmarnock Community School had its annual Sports awards Ceremony on Thursday 9th May. Our guest speaker was Mark Coyle who is the current captain of Shelbourne Football Club. He spoke to our students of the importance of resilience and taking ownership of your sporting successes and failures.

The sports awards ceremony is an annual event and it is to recognise the positive impact that sports can have on a young person’s life, which we all value and wish to acknowledge here in PCS. The awards ceremony is a celebration for all our students who participate in sports throughout the year - not just the athletes receiving awards.

Malahide Chamber of Commerce has just recently launched a new Malahide Brochure and Map’s delivered today. The new brochures are aimed at helping to promote Malahide as a retail and visitor location.

The new brochure has also been launched as a resource for locals and visitors alike. “The new Brochures will be distributed to Visitor centers, accommodation providers and to Shops. Thank you to all the Businesses who directly supported the project,” the Chamber stated.

Malahide and Portmarnock Community First Responders are Volunteers providing emergency cardiac care in Malahide & Portmarnock via National Ambulance Service.

Well done to Malahide Lions Club, who hosted a CPR/AED training session recently in Grand Hotel Malahide. 47 people attended the session, and learnt a very valuable skill. The Malahide and Portmarnock Community First Responders were delighted to be a part of it!

Automated external defibrillators or ‘AED’s’ analyse the abnormal heart rhythm of patients in cardiac arrest and deliver a precisely calculated shock in order to attempt a restart of normal heart rhythm. Getting these machines, as well as high-quality CPR to patients in cardiac arrest are vital links in the chain of survival and core part of what cardiac first responders do. So, If you are a business person in the area who would like to sponsor one of these lifesaving machines then contact Malahide and Portmarnock Community First Responders, they could use it to save your life or the life of those you love!

By Brian Madden

In 1979 Junior Chamber (Esmond Reilly, Finbar Holland and others), the Chamber of Commerce (Rory McDevitt) and Malahide Community Council (Nora Owen and John Cleary) saw the need for a local newspaper to cover all aspects of life in Malahide. It would create community awareness and report on the activities of the many clubs, associations and societies in the area. In jointly launching Malahide News they could hardly have realised that it would last for twelve years, produce 88 issues, and become an important record of the social and historical story of Malahide. In 1981 the Community Council assumed overall responsibility for the publication and set up a sub-committee of highly committed and talented volunteers, including John and Phil Barry, Jim Duignan, Michael Howard, Tom Potts, Senan Keating, Tim Hickey and others. Advertising by local firms was critically important to the paper, as it was free to the public. Deliveries to about 3,000 households were made each month in addition to supplies to local shops. Working to a tight schedule, all the latest news, sporting events, school activities, tidy towns, planning issues, festivals and more were given coverage. Professional photographs by John Barry enlivened most of the stories. Christmas 1990 saw the final issue of Malahide News. Source: Malahide Lions Club

The Parents Association of Malahide Community School are holding their annual Plant Sale on the first weekend in May. The times of the floral event are as follows : Friday 10th - 3pm to 6pm - Saturday 11th - 10am to 5.30pm & Sunday 12th - 11am to 3pm.

It will take place in the school canteen and there will be lots of colourful flowers, window boxes, hanging baskets and more for sale. Everyone is welcome so please come along and support this fundraising event. All profits will be spent by the PA to improve the school facilities and support the students in various ways. We hope to see you there.