Heritage is not just Kilcullen's old stories

The stories around Kilcullen's natural and heritage assets represent an important potential to have them appreciated, writes Brian Byrne.

But they don't have to be just the old stories, according to James Hennessy, one of the consultants who will be on hand on Saturday next, 12 February, for the drop-in workshops on the preparation of a Design Statement for Kilcullen.

“Around a building, you may have a 700-year old history, but there’s also the story of just ten or twenty years ago and who might have been living there then," he points out. "A contemporary history is just as valuable to give a sense of place, and in Kilcullen there is lots of potential for that.”

Heritage and Natural Assets is one of the themes being explored in the workshops session, which will run from 10am-1pm in the Town Hall, and to which everyone in Kilcullen is invited to contribute.

Consultants The Paul Hogarth Company, working under commission from Kilcullen Community Action, are hoping to encourage people who live in in the town to see what they have, and also how to make the most of them. “When you live somewhere, you tend to take things for granted," James Hennessy says. "Kilcullen has the river, and some historic buildings. The idea is to highlight their importance, to find a way to tell their stories and bring them alive and engage with people.”

He says it's all about how to make the most of these aspects of Kilcullen, how to look after and interpret them, and how to present them better. And it's not just buildings and natural features. "There is tangible heritage, and there is cultural heritage, and the Town Hall walls are adorned with much of it. But how do we capture all that in the context of a Design Statement, rather than a mere academic exercise?"

KCA and their consultants are hoping that Saturday's exercise, the second public consultation in the development of the Design Statement, will provide the opportunity for different generations in a much-expanded Kilcullen to discuss what these aspects of the town mean to them.

The other themes for the event, all of which emerged from an initial public survey undertaken last November, are Infrastructure and Linkages, Futureproofing and Sustainability, and Recreation for All.

Photographs use Policy — Privacy Policy