Galway may appear to be a youthful city, but only for pint-drinking adults who don't want to grow up. With a relentless property boom and a continuing row between environmentalists and Galway Corporation over one of the last "wildernesses" along the river, the centre offers few green spaces for children - and barely a slide or swing.
That may be about to change. A children's park near NUI Galway is one of two projects which has been granted £1 million by the National Millennium Committee.
The park will include a fully equipped playground, a broad canal walk for model boating and angling, a small amphitheatre for music and drama and a central green.
Designated as a "passive recreation" area for families, it is to be built on a 1.1 hectare site on University Road which was given to Galway Corporation in 1998 by the Bishop of Galway, Dr James McLoughlin.
The second project is a millennium footbridge, to be built upstream of the salmon weir. This will span the Corrib using old limestone piers and abutments which served the former Galway-Clifden railway line. The bridge project, at a cost of £1 million, will include a designated cycle lane.
The Corrib viaduct on the Galway-Clifden route comprised three spans, each 150 ft clear, and a lifting span of 21 feet to allow free passage by boats and steamers.
The original bridge was offered for sale at the price of £10 after the last train travelled the line in 1935. As there were no bidders, it was later bought for scrap by the Hammond Lane Foundry in Dublin.
