Spike Island handed over to council

ON the exact day 72 years after the British handed back an island in Cork harbour another historic handover took place there which will ultimately see Ireland’s "Alcatraz" turned into a major tourist attraction.

On behalf of the Department of Justice, Minister for Social Protection, Éamon Ó Cuív, yesterday handed over the Spike Island to Cork County Council, which intends to exploit its rich heritage for tourism.

Mr Ó Cuív said he was personally delighted to set foot on the island as in 1938 his grandfather, Éamon de Valera, stood there as the national flag was raised on it for the first time — on the occasion the Treaty Ports were handed back to the State.

"It’s important to remember that for many Irish people this island was their last stop before they were shipped to other parts of the world. Some of the story of our Irish diaspora started its journey from this island and it’s my hope that their descendants will return here to see where their own individual family journeys began," said Mr Ó Cuív.

He toured the island yesterday, along with a number of dignitaries, including Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin, county manager Martin Riordan and the Mayor of County Cork, Cllr Jim Daly.

They were given a detailed guided tour by Tom O’Neill of the Irish Prison Service who outlined its incredible and varied history.

A Monastic settlement was established on the island in the 6th century by St Carthage. Three centuries later it suffered Viking raids, while by the 12th century the Normans had taken control.

Between 1652 and 1659 the island became a prison from which Cromwell sent more than 50,000 men, women and children to work as slaves in British plantations in the Caribbean.

The use of Spike Island as a holding and deportation centre continued right up until the 1880s, with the island home to as many as 2,000 prisoners at a time during those years.

The building of Fort Westmoreland was completed in the early 1800s.

The island served as a British army base from 1883 until the outbreak of the War of Independence, when it once again was used to house rebels and convicts until the signing of the truce between British and Irish forces on July 11, 1921.

Spike Island was used to house young offenders in the 1980s and was the scene of a famous riot by inmates in 1985, which resulted in the destruction of the residential blocks in the fort. The prison was finally closed in 2004.

Cllr Daly said that the handover of the island represented the culmination of a long campaign by local people.

County manager Martin Riordan said the master plan would be published next spring.

"We have already received proposals from a number of interested parties about developing tourist activities on the island. So we can see the demand that exists to use the island. We hope to have made considerable progress before the end of the year," Mr Riordan said.

Irish Examiner

www.buckplanning.ie

Landings and walkways first priority in Spike plan

CORK County Council is planning to develop walkways, landing areas and information boards as part of the first phase of developing Spike Island as a major tourist destination.

County manager Martin Riordan, who has been the driving force behind the local authority’s takeover of the facility, said his first priority is to get as many Cork people as possible to visit the island, which formerly housed a prison.

"For the first one or two years we will focus on providingaccess," Mr Riordan said.

Brendan Touhy, former general secretary at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, is to chair a group which will oversee what is expected to be a 15-year development of the island as a major tourist attraction.

"We hope that the group will also include the Port of Cork, Fáilte Ireland, the Naval Service and representatives from the harbour communities.

"I hope the group will have its first meeting in the early autumn, at which stage it will start working on a grand vision," Mr Riordan said.

County architect Denis Deasy and Nicholas Mansergh, a senior council planner, are also working on the project.

Mr Mansergh is also involved in creating a tourism plan for the whole harbour.

Mr Riordan said it was hoped to tie in Spike Island with the Queenstown Project for the 100th anniversary commemoration of the sinking of the Titanic in 2012.

"The Port of Cork is very anxious to have other attractions in the area to hold onto tourists and Spike Island would be ideal for this.

"There is also huge potential for the proposed CAT ferry to open up the whole harbour for tourism," he said.

Mr Riordan said the next few years will be spent on labour-intensive projects to make theisland tourist-accessible. The work is likely to be carried out through social employment schemes.

Hendrick Verwey, chairman of Cobh Tourism, said the handing over of Spike Island to the county council was a welcome move.

"The economic benefits to the entire Cork region of having a world-class attraction in Cork Harbour should not be underestimated. The prospect of Cork families having their own ‘Phoenix Park’ on an island in one of the finest natural harbours in the world is also exciting," Mr Verwey said.

Members of Cobh Tourism, along with other groups such as Junior Chamber International, Cobh Town Council, Cobh Chamber, the Great Island Historical Society and East Cork Tourism have played an integral role in the Spike Island Heritage committee.

The committee, under the chairmanship of local historian Michael Martin, mounted a well orchestrated and concerted campaign in 2006 to highlight the history of the island and its tourism, cultural and amenity potential. Mr Martin said thedecision to transfer ownership to the local authority could become one of the most important milestones in the development of the whole harbour area as an international iconic site, attracting vast numbers of visitors to the region.

"The diversity of history on Spike Island is an international treasure," said Mr Martin.

"The willingness of government to release it and the county manager to take it on has to be commended."

Irish Examiner

www.buckplanning.ie

Plan to unlock potential of 'Ireland's Alcatraz'

OLIVER Cromwell deemed the island a suitable place to house Irish prisoners awaiting deportation. Later, its prisoner population soared to over 2,000 in the 1850s.

And during its modern peak two decades ago, it catered for 102 inmates, and was the site of a famous prison riot.

Now Spike Island will be transformed into a tourist attraction, provided that the money can be found to do it.

Tourism officials yesterday admitted they are "absolutely thrilled" that the island will finally become a centrepiece of efforts to turn Cork harbour into world-renowned visitor attraction.

But transforming Spike Island into Ireland's version of Alcatraz is not without difficulties. Senior council members acknowledged they have "no idea" where the estimated €1m-plus in refurbishment costs will come from.

However, Foreign Affairs Minister Micheal Martin said he was delighted by the move. He said: "I believe that it is important to unlock any tourism potential of (Spike) island to the immediate benefit of the region generally and I would like to thank all those involved."

Ralph Riegel
Irish Independent

www.buckplanning.ie

Relief as Spike Island prison plans dropped

HERITAGE campaigners in east Cork have expressed relief at the Government's decision to drop plans to build a super prison on Spike Island and instead transform it into a tourist attraction comparable to Alcatraz off San Francisco.

Last May, Justice Minister Michael McDowell announced plans to build a €70m prison for the Munster region on Spike Island. Cobh Tourism Chairman Michael Martin campaigned to preserve the site, insisting the county had its very own "Devil's Island" on its doorstep.

The details of the project are not known yet.

Olivia Kelleher
Irish Independent