Farrell welcomes €50,000 funding for feasibility study on Moate building
The development of a new hub for visual artists and a number of residential units in a long-neglected heritage building in Moate could transform the town centre, according to local Fine Gael Cllr Tom Farrell.
Cllr Farrell made his remarks at the March meeting of Athlone Moate Municipal District which heard that €50,000 has been allocated to Moate under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme to carry out a feasibility study on a vacant heritage building known as the Muilrean building with a view to bringing it back into public use.
The plan for the three-storey building, which is located in the centre of Moate, is to provide a hub for visual artists at ground level and to provide a number of residential units on the upper floors.
The municipal meeting heard that the €50,000 allocation is in addition to a grant of €100,000 which has already been provided to Westmeath County Council to advance Moate under the Town Centre First Policy of the Department of Rural and Community Development. This is the first-ever government strategy to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into town centres.
Cllr Farrell tabled a motion at the March meeting last week requesting the local authority to “maximise” the potential of Moate “as a pathfinder town” under the new Town Centre First Policy, and warmly welcomed the news that the Muilrean building is to be earmarked for development.
“The Muilrean building has been derelict in Moate for years and it would be wonderful to see it being brought back into use,” said the local Fine Gael Cllr, who added that it had the capacity to “transform the centre of Moate.”
He expressed the hope that the Town Centre First policy will also deliver on the government’s objectives under the ‘Housing for All’ and ‘Our Rural Future’ strategies and called for a co-ordinated approach to the regeneration of badly neglected town centres across Westmeath.
He also welcomed the fact that there will be “a network of Town Regeneration Officers” based in all local authorities across the country who will work closely with local communities “to drive future development” and who will also identify “key projects and match them with relevant funding streams.”