Key turns in Delvin"s mixed use development

It was an exciting day for residents of Delvin when the town"s new 'mixed use'development was officially opened by Cllr. Joe Whelan, Cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council on February 13.The Chairman presented keys to Kathleen Kenny, a tenant of one of the new units, as well as Imelda O"Shaughnessy on behalf of the Delvin Handball Committee, plus the Adult Education Officer Rina McKenna of the VEC.The development which cost €3m, consists of eight housing units, commercial retail units, community and educational facilities, and a handball alley, and was completed by contractor Michael Bracken and Sons Ltd from Clara.Opening his address, Cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council, Cllr. Joe Whelan said what a pleasure it was to come to Delvin and see this exciting development come to fruition.'This finished development that you see here today took many years of hard work, and a contribution from many sources and many agencies,' said the Chairman.'I suppose it"s the epitome of the future that everybody will have to work together to make things happen, and this is leading the way at a time of great financial challenge, that we have a project such as this in Delvin to really show to the rest of the county what can be achieved by everybody working together,' he said.The Chairman went on to say how the entire development represented Westmeath County Council"s contribution to building communities rather than just stand-alone housing units.Twenty two students, aged between 15 and 20, currently attend the Outreach Programme based in two classrooms inside the development.Cllr. Whelan thanked Gearóid O Brádaigh CEO and the members of the VEC for their cooperation and assistance to the Council in putting this site together as the development could not have proceeded in its present form without their co-operation. He also expressed the Council"s appreciation to the local Handball Association for facilitating them with the site.The handball facility was dedicated to the memory of the O"Shaughnessy family and their contribution to handball over many years in Delvin and the Cathaoirleach said he was particularly delighted to see Imelda O"Shaughnessy, wife of the late P.J. there on the day, who along with his father before him served as a councillor for the people of this area.He wished the local Handball Group many years of sporting endeavour in this facility.Fr Heeney PP then carried out a formal blessing of the new facilities.