Legal advice being sought in relation to famous Kildare water tower

Kildare County Council is seeking legal advice in relation to a famous, disused County Kildare water tower.

The topic was discussed at the latest Kildare-Newbridge Municipal District (MD) meeting, which took place on Wednesday, May 21 last.

At this meeting, Social Democrats councillor Chris Pender submitted the following question to Kildare County Council: "Can the council provide an update on the current ownership status of the Water Tower in Newbridge, including whether any steps have been taken or are planned to claim ownership of the site on behalf of the council, and if so, what progress has been made to date?"

In response to his query, the council said via its report at the meeting: "The site of the Water Tower is leased from the Minister of Finance under a 99-year lease which will expire in 2036."

Kildare County Council also told Cllr Pender that it manages the Water Tower and added that there are currently "Kildare County Council IT masts on the structure".

In addition, the council noted that the site is "a protected structure (industrial heritage)".

Lastly, Kildare County Council informed Cllr Pender: "Legal advice is being sought on the best way forward with this matter."

This is not the first time that Cllr Pender has raised the Newbridge Water Tower at an MD meeting — back in October of 2023, he suggested that a mural could be painted on the structure.

There have been different calls in the past to have the structure painted with the town’s name and logo, in order to attract tourists. For example, back in 2017, one former councillor, Mark Doyle, suggested that Kildare County Council could explore the use of the water tower to provide bird boxes for endangered or wintering species of birds.

Social Democrats Cllr Chris Pender. File photograph

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