Vandalism on the River Arra Walk, Tipperary town has been described as senseless by local Cllr Tony Black.
The Councillor says he had hoped the new amenity, which is yet to be completed, would be respected as it had been in development for years.
Cllr Black expressed concern as to why anyone would remove or damage lifesaving equipment – three of eight life buoys on the walk are missing and the ropes have been removed from the remaining buoys.
The River Walk opened to the public on December 23rd and eight lifebuoys were installed between the river bank and a newly created pond.
The Councillor praised the community for their efforts and cited the work of Tidy Towns, Residents Associations and the Tipperary Vintage rally group as being more typical of the community spirit in the town.
People are upset and concerned by the incident according to the Councillor who is awaiting an update from An Garda Siochana about the matter – Mr Black says there is a real danger and fear that such an incident could happen again and accepted that the lifebuoys must be replaced at some cost to the taxpayer.
It also highlights the need for a conversation about delivering a CCTV system for the town.
Cllr Anne Marie Ryan raised the matter at the December meeting of the Tipperary Cahir Cashel MD and council officials responded that a model for funding for maintenance is currently being examined by the head of the Economic, Community and Rural Development section Brian Beck.
Cllr Black says now is the time to consider CCTV systems in Tipperary town, Cashel and Cahir.
Funding from the Department of Justice is available for the capital costs to install CCTV equipment.
