New Roscrea Signs Show the Way   You are in · RoscreaOnline · Community · Features

Roscrea made great strides recently in putting the heritage town firmly on the map with the erection of four unique signs on the north, south, east and west access routes to the town. Click Here For More

A joint effort between Roscrea Heritage, and Roscrea Online paved the path for the new signs which have created a major visual impact on passing traffic on the four main approach roads to the town.  The Steering Committee are now extremely confident that the signs will prove to be one of Roscrea’s best ever strategies for encouraging more tourists and visitors to spend some time in Roscrea which will give a tremendous boost to the local area particularly from an economic and social point of view. 

The Steering Committee of Brian Redmond, Des Walsh, Ray McCarthy and Brian King were delighted to receive great support from both the Office Of Public Works and North Tipperary County Council.  The support of these two bodies created the way for a speedy and extremely satisfactory conclusion to the project.

Pictured recently at the unveiling of the wonderful new signs on the approach roads to Roscrea  are Deborah O’Connor (Roscrea Online, Main Sponsors), Brian King (Roscrea Online), Cllr Michael Smith, Ciaran Callanan (North Tipperary County Council), Cllr Pauline Coonan, Brian Redmond, (Roscrea Heritage), Des Walsh (Roscrea Heritage) & Cllr Denis Ryan.

Once the Steering Committee had agreed on what they wanted from the project, the signs were designed and made ready for the printers in the studios of Redmonds of Roscrea using their library of Roscrea scenes and digital imaging technology. The artwork and graphics were managed by Ms Olivia Harney of Redmonds in consultation with Deborah O’Connor of Roscrea Online. Once the basic concept was agreed the signs were ready for installation within a matter of weeks.

The signs replaced existing out of date ones which announced the water and sewerage works being funded by the EU. The existing poles firmly cemented in the ground were ideal for the erection of the 12 ft by 10 ft colour reproductions. The specialised printing of the signs on 2 mm galvanised steel was undertaken by a Dublin firm called 3Rock Limited. The company was congratulated last week for providing signs of such superior quality.

With the recent official opening of the Black Mills and the popularity of the Castle Complex as evidenced by the recent medieval pageant there, not to mention the areas sporting amenities and the towns proximity to the Slieve Bloom Mountains, Roscrea is in the enviable position of having a wealth of attractions and built heritage which is worthy enough to attract visitors from home and abroad. Its history spans almost 1,000 years with beautiful stone buildings from almost every century. Added to this, the traditional shop fronts and selection of shops, pubs and eateries, Roscrea is in a prime position to capatalise in much greater proportions on the Irish tourist industry. The recent town plan cited as much and suggested the time has come for Roscrea to see itself as a tourist town with the potential to attract thousands of visitors each year to the area.

However there is more work to be done, with great challenges ahead. Going forward the support of the business comminty in particular will be paramount if projects such as the signs on the approach roads to Roscrea are to continue coming to fruition.