Tuckey St trees bring green boost to city centre
Marguerite Kiely
Tuckey Street received a facelift last week with the installation of large planters containing four new trees and benches, part of ongoing public realm improvements in Cork city centre.
The addition is part of a wider €46 million regeneration project designed to enhance the area between South Main Street and Grand Parade, and also includes the redevelopment of Bishop Lucey Park, which began late last year.
The new trees have been welcomed, especially following controversy over Cork City Council’s decision to remove 15 semi-mature birch trees, planted in 1993, from Bishop Lucey Park. The removal was made to facilitate an extension to the historic Masonic Hall, a move that drew public concern over biodiversity loss in the park.
Speaking to the Cork Independent, Green Party Cllr Oliver Moran said: “The trees on Tuckey Street are welcome but it can’t be ignored that they're coming alongside the redevelopment of the park that removed a number of trees, with younger trees being replanted in their place.”
Cllr Moran also responded to public questions about the trees being planted in movable planters rather than directly in the ground. “People are also asking why they’re in pots and not in the ground. That’s an approach that was taken on MacCurtain Street as well, where the earth was shallow and unexpected utilities were found under the pavement,” he said.
Currently, Cork City Council owns and manages around 17% of the city’s tree canopy, with efforts focused on increasing tree coverage. “The city centre is nearly the lowest neighbourhood for tree canopy in the city overall with just 6% cover,” said Cllr Moran.
“The new trees strategy includes an action to develop strategies for incorporating more trees in neighbourhoods with the lowest canopy cover,” he added.
He said that there is cause for optimism with the city council planting 15,000 trees in recent years. “The picture for the city overall is improving. Cork City Council is now planting about 4,000 trees in public places every year and giving about 3,500 to households during Tree Week. That’s up from there being a net loss of trees in the city every year about five years ago.”
The reception to the new trees on Tuckey Street contrasts with the criticism faced by the council in 2021 over the installation of five robot trees purchased from German company Green City Solutions at a cost of €355,106.
Maintenance of the trees, which are located on Grand Parade and Patrick’s Street, cost €17,880 between August, 2022 to September 2023. Although the trees were put in place to aid in the removal of pollutants from the air, questions were raised regarding their performance and maintenance costs.