Leafair gets new Jogging Trail

The Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Alderman Hilary McClintock, attending the start of the Jogging Trail project at Leafair Park with (from left), James O'Connor, Site Supervisor, Charmaine Kee, Derry City and Strabane District Council, Brain Williamson, Department for Communities, representatives from the Leafair Community Association Catherine Whoriskey, Peter McDonald and Michaela McGilloway, Ciara Ferguson, Greater Shantallow Association Partnership, Philip Deeny, Quantity Surveyor with DC&SDC, and Darren Kirby, Out North Neighbourhood Partnership.

Derry City and Strabane District Council, through its Parks Management and Development programme, announced this week that they are adding to the recreation facilities at Leafair with the commencement of the new trail around the existing grass football pitch.

Derry based construction company AMS Ltd have been awarded the contract to develop the trail which will be floodlit at night time and aims to provide a safe environment for walking and jogging when it opens to the public later this year.

Speaking at the launch of the project, Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Alderman Hilary McClintock, said the trail will bring added value to the existing amenities at the site.

She said: “This is an exciting development for the Shantallow area and will perfectly complement the play area, outdoor gym and synthetic and grass playing pitches that have been developed to date,” she said.

“The trail is beautifully located on elevated ground with stunning panoramic views of the city and is the perfect location to go for a walk or jog, offering the added safety of floodlights on dark nights. I see this as an investment in the future both in offering local people a suitable environment to fulfil their fitness goals and encouraging them to make healthy choices by taking regular exercise.”

Peter McDonald, Co-ordinator of the Leafair Community Association, said the addition of the track will help further their vision of creating a “one stop shop” for local people to improve their fitness at the site.

“The jogging trail will be another add on to the already great facilities that we have in Leafair,” he said.

“It will be a particularly useful tool for local sports groups to train on but it’s a facility that the whole community will have access to and get value from.”