Fingal County Council is going out to public consultation next month on its plans for the Swords Cultural Centre which will be a key component of the Swords Cultural Quarter.Councillors were informed recently that a Part 8 planning process will commence on Thursday, July 7 for the new Centre which will be located at the junction of North Street and Seatown Road, beside Swords Castle and County Hall, in the centre of Swords.The new Centre, will be a four-story building covering 5,700 square metres and featuring a new County Library, a tourist office, a gallery and a 165 seat multi-functional theatre.The plans also include a new design of the public realm around Swords Castle and County Hall.The public consultation process will commence on Thursday, July 7 with the plans for the Swords Cultural Centre on public display at County Hall, Swords, and Civic Offices, Blanchardstown, until August 5. They will also be available online at fingal.ie and consult.fingal.ie. Submissions about the proposal will be accepted until August 15 at consult.fingal.ie.The Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, AnnMarie Farrelly, said: “ We now have a schedule in place which, if all goes well, will see construction commence in the second half of 2023. This project is connected to the Sustainable Swords Strategy and, between them, they will transform the area along Main Street and improve connectivity between the centre and the rest of the town.”The Sustainable Swords Strategy is a key part of Fingal County Council’s plan to ensure that, as Swords continues to expand, the town grows sustainably and develops into well-designed county capital. It will focus on reversing the historic shift away from Main Street, which commenced in the early 2000s, in order to facilitate better placemaking and create a more resilient town centre.Fingal County Council has already completed a Health Check of the works programme, a Public Realm Strategy, a Transport Strategy and a Business Case Evaluation of key transformative projects and will unveil its Sustainable Swords Strategy in September when it is presented for public consultation.

Fingal Horticultural Society (Swords) are delighted to announce that their 2022 show will once again be open to the public following two years of restricted access due to Covid-19. The Annual Horticultural show takes place on Bank Holiday Monday 1st August in St. Colmcille’s GFC, Glen Ellen Road and will be open for viewing from 2-5pm.There will be Competition Classes in Flowers; Pot Plants; Vegetables & Fruit; Baking; Handcrafts; Flower Arranging; Children under 9 years, under 12 years & under 16 years. So, if you have Super Sweet Pea, Romantic Roses, Classic Cabbage or Prolific Pot Plants why not bring them along to St. Colmcille’s on Sunday afternoon 31st July from 2-8pm or on Monday morning 1st August from 8-11am…entry is open to everyone, and we will have members on hand to help first time exhibitors. Are you an avid Baker or enthusiastic Flower Arranger or are Handcrafts your guilty pleasure, we would love to have your entries and it is really great fun. Children are also encouraged with classes for Miniature Gardens, Models made from Fruit & Veg, Painting and much more. So, come along and support our Annual Show which is now in its 80th year either as an exhibitor or visitor to see a great display of locally grown Flowers & Vegetables and an outstanding display of locally produced Baking & Handcrafts. And don’t forget to visit the Gardening & Horticultural Show at the Flavours of Fingal Event which will be held this weekend 2nd&3rd July in Newbridge House, Donabate with free transport links from Swords…you will find us in the Farmers Field. Competition Schedules for both Shows are available by contacting info@fingalhorticulturalsociety.com or phone the Show Secretary 086 3343680.

By Ken Duffy

From June 11th until August 5th the judges from the National Tidy Towns Competition will be travelling the length and breathe of Ireland visiting each village, town and city to award the points they believe each entrant merits. Swords Tidy Towns would ask residents and visitors to bare this fact in mind and be extra vigilant with regard to disposing of litter. Our hard-working volunteers have been putting in the hours these past few months in preparation for the judges visit. We never know when the judges will arrive in our town so it’s all hands-on deck for the next month. All the hard work put in by our crew over the year is done because of their love of the town of Swords and also for the visual benefit of its wonderful friendly residents. Swords Tidy Towns have won numerous awards and plaudits over the past number of years for their efforts both locally and nationally and is a reflection on all the great work our team puts in. If you would like to contribute either by joining the Swords Tidy Towns team or by making a contribution, you can contact us by email at swordstidytowns@irishmediagroup

Fingal County Council brought together Councillors, contractors and staff for an onsite briefing in Swords at St. Cronan’s Road and Brackenstown Avenue as work got underway recently on upgraded, protected cycle lanes.These works include upgrading of the existing walking and cycling infrastructure in the area to improve safety, reduce traffic speed and create better connections to local schools and to Swords Manor Football Club, public transport and local amenities in the area. The works also include realignment and upgrading of junctions, road surface improvements, traffic calming, improvement of crossing points, segregation of cycle lanes using bollards and providing safer routes to school for St. Cronan’s National School. Fingal’s Director of Environment, Climate Action and Active Travel, David Storey, says works like these are key to improving road safety and mobility. ‘Swords is a great example of a town that due to the growth of its population needs traffic calming and Active Travel infrastructure to support people who want to walk and cycle to school or work safely. These upgraded, protected cycle lanes offer protection for both the cyclist and the driver and this is particularly important around St. Cronan’s National School.’ Fingal County Council concluded a 5-week public consultation on these protected cycle lane upgrades for St Cronan’s Avenue and Brackenstown Road in late April. A report on submissions received from the public was published in May. The consultation report is available to the public to view online at fingal.ie/activetravel/stcronansavenue. Works began on Monday, 23 May as GMC Utilities Group, installed a site works compound at Ardcian Park and works are due to be completed in Quarter 4 of 2022. Works will be completed on a phased basis to minimise disruption to the local area and those travelling in the area should keep an eye on Fingal County Council’s Facebook and Twitter for updates relating to traffic calming measures as they occur.If you would like to learn more about the details of these works please visit: fingal.ie/activetravel/stcronansavenue

Congratulations are in order for Swords local Szymon Kupiec on the award of his JKS Shodan Diploma recently. He was presented with his Diploma by the head of JKS Ireland Dermot O Keeffe Sensei 6th Dan in front of JKS Ireland Brown & Black Belts at this month’s National training session. Szymon took his Black Belt examination in December 2021 after 10 years of training. He had to complete a series of Kihon (Basics), followed by several Kumite (Fighting) matches with other examinees. He finished the examination by performing his Katas (Forms) Bassai Dai, Junro Nidan and Heian Godan. Szymon is continuing his training and working towards his 2nd Dan Black Belt.

We hosted JKS Ireland National Brown & Black Belt training this month. We covered our grading syllabi for 1st and 2nd Dan Black Belt and then studied the Kata Unsu. This is an ancient kata with a lot of complex and demanding moves. The name Unsu translates from Japanese to English as Cloud Hands and explains some of the stranger hand movements of this Kata.We welcomed Makita Sensei 6th Dan JKS Honbu Dojo Instructor from Japan and Jesper Marksvarden Sensei 7th Dan JKS from Denmark for our Spring/Summer Seminar in mid-May. This is the first time since the pandemic began that we have had visiting Instructors and it promises to be a very exciting Seminar over two days. Full report in the next Club News. Class reports: Tigers and Juniors are on course for the summer grading examinations. Everyone is working hard learning their Kata and practicing their Kihon. Seniors continue to work on the technical aspects of Karate with a focus on exploring how it translates into real world self-defence.We take new members (Children, Young People & Adults) all through the year. Contact Dermot on 087-98073885 for details on how to join. Contact us on Facebook: JKS Swords Karate Club or on Instagram: @jks_swords_karate_club

Fingal County Council has concluded public consultation on proposed protected cycle lane upgrades for St Cronan’s Avenue and Brackenstown Road in Swords. Interested individuals and businesses in the area were invited to respond to plans for cycle lane upgrades, through an online portal or by post, from 25 March to 29 April. The consultation was promoted to those living in the locality through a leaflet drop, letters to local businesses, social media posts and an online information session which took place on 12 April. Fingal County Council also met with key stakeholders including Brackenstown Parish, Dublin Bus, Swords Express, St Cronan’s Junior and Senior National Schools, ESB Networks and local business owners before and during the public consultation period. 31 submissions were received in the course of the 5-week consultation period. All submissions received by Fingal County Council are being read and considered by the Department of Environment, Climate Action and Active Travel and by their design consultants prior to commencement of work on site. The Project Team, in Fingal County Council, are pleased with the local engagement for the plans in the area. We have received a good deal of interest in the plans for St Cronan’s Avenue and Brackenstown Road and the submissions received have helped us best understand the needs of the community. All submissions have been made public and can be read at consult.fingal.ie/en/node/24833/submissions

Swords Tidy Towns has been very busy readying our town for the visit of the judges for this years National Tidy Towns Competition. Judging is done between June and July and hundreds of other Tidy Towns groups across the country will also be doing the same.There is only so much our hard-working volunteers can do to impress the judges, there is also an onus on Swords residents to play their part by supporting us. You can this by always binning your litter, disposing responsibly of your dog poo, encouraging and complimenting young kids when they follow your example. When you see our volunteers out and about honk your horn if driving or express a few kind words if passing. The hard work of our Tidy Towners has been justly rewarded by winning a National Silver Medal four times in a row. With your help we hope to make that five this year, who knows, maybe we could even win the Gold Medal, we can but dream

The Senior Infants of St Colmcille’s Girls’ National School Swords beat off stiff competition to win Woodie’s Budding Gardener prize of a bespoke gardening workshop with judge Brian Burke Woodie’s DIY, Home and Garden launched their Budding Gardeners competition in January to encourage children and families to celebrate the joy of gardening, cultivating a hobby that will stay with them for life. Woodie’s asked children to flex their green fingers and get planting by working on a garden patch at school or at home for their chance to win some fantastic prizes.Hundreds of children got involved and spent time in their gardens working on the three tasks designed by Judge Brian over three months. The Senior Infants of St Colmcille’s Girls’ National School have been announced as winners of the Snack Box Challenge. The task involved sowing lettuce seeds in planting boxes, nurturing and caring for them until grew into salad leaves, something simple for the children to grow themselves and eat for their lunch. The project integrated both science and SPHE with the class discussing healthy eating whilst enjoying their new hobby. The class have won a gardening workshop with Woodie’s Budding Gardeners Judge Brian Burke, who will be visiting the class in June. Pictured: St. Colmcille’s Girls’ National Catholic School Senior Infants, Swords celebrating their win.

Last month we welcomed Brown & Black belt members of JKS Ireland from all around the country to a National training session in the dojo.The 2-hour session covered important Kihon (basics) required for Brown & Black Belt grading examinations as well as an in depth study of Unsu Kata. It was great to see all our karate friends from around the country and train together again after such a long time in lockdowns. The next National Brown & Black Belt training session will be in May. Black Belt Award: Conor Kinsella of Swords Karate Club was presented with his Shodan Diploma (Black Belt 1st Dan) by the head of JKS Ireland, Dermot Keeffe Sensei, 6th Dan JKS, at the recent National Brown & Black Belt training session. Conor (18) has been studying karate since he was 9 years old and took his Black Belt examination in December 2021. The tough examination covered Kihon (Basics), Kata (Forms) and Kumite (Fighting). The results were then sent to Japan to be ratified by the JKS Headquarters and his Diploma arrived from Japan last month. The JKS Karate Diploma is recognised worldwide. Online Training Seminar from Japan: Members of the club took part in an online training seminar with JKS World Chief Instructor Masao Kagawa Shihan, 9th Dan JKS recently. These seminars usually take place once or twice a year in person, but the online seminars are being used at the moment because of the Covid19 pandemic.The seminar over 2 days enabled club members train with one of the world’s highest ranking karate experts. Class Report : Juniors, Seniors and Tiger classes were well attended during the month with all students working hard on their techniques needed for the upcoming grading (belt) examination.Tigers and Juniors focused on Kihon (Basics) and Kata, while Seniors worked on more technical aspects of how Karate can be used in real life self-defence situations. We take new members all through the year. Contact us on Facebook: JKS Swords Karate Club or on Instagram: @jks_swords_karate_club.

By Ken Duffy

Swords Tidy Towns pledged fifty percent of their annual St Patricks Day bucket Collection in support of Ukrainian refugees. We presented Lt Annie Carroll (Area Director of Units for Dublin Fingal) and Sgt Claire Dignam of the Swords Red Cross with a cheque for 500 euros to go towards their Ukrainian Refugee fund. Also in the picture are Rose Brennan STT and Darren Breen STT. Our donation was made possible firstly by our hard-working members who volunteered to do the Bucket Collection and by the generosity of the people attending the St Patrick’s Day Parade on the day. Swords Tidy Towns wish to thank each and all for their support and friendly banter towards our volunteers, it made our day, as always you did your town proud.A big congrats must also go to Fingal County Council particularly Paul Barnes and Fiona O’Reilly for their organisational skills in putting on such an enjoyable St Patricks Day Parade. The crowds that thronged the streets were cheering everything, they were in massive form, we were blessed with the weather, it turned out to be, a perfect storm, if you’ll excuse the pun.