Killarney councillors told management a footpath between Páirc Chuimín and Kilcummin village would already exist if not for a series of "failures".
Several councillors brought motions to the recent municipal district meeting, calling for the footpath to be built urgently.
Councillor Brendan Cronin said the footpath was on the agenda with "14 or 15 years ... when the houses started to be occupied".
Residents of Páirc Cuimin recently submitted a petition to the Killarney MD engineer, John Ahern, requesting the footpath be provided.
Councillors said the 80 to 90 families in the estate are forced to drive their children the few-hundred metre journey to school and other local amenities because it is too dangerous to walk.
They heard planning was granted for the development of Páirc Chuimín, with maps showing footpaths on land belonging neither to the council nor the developer.
Cllr Cronin said this left "a very sour taste" among the landowners who hadn't been consulted.
He appealed appealed to council officials to talk to landowners once again, but "in a reasonable fashion, not in an authoritarian way".
Councillor Maura Healy-Rae said calls from some public representatives for "a CPO" worsened the situation by seeming to place blame on people who didn't cause the problem.
All councillors agreed the lack of a footpath is creating dangerous situations and must be rectified immediately.
