€15.3m regeneration boost for Athlone and Mullingar
Athlone and Mullingar are set to receive a combined €15.3 million in Government funding for four major regeneration projects.
The funding has been announced by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage James Browne TD under the new Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund.
The fund is designed to support the redevelopment of vacant and underused sites, improvements to public spaces and the development of community and civic infrastructure. Two projects in Athlone and two in Mullingar have been approved for support.
In Athlone, €7.5 million has been allocated towards the Athlone Riverside Cultural and Public Realm Regeneration Project. A further €150,000 will support Phase 1 of the Athlone Tourism and Cultural Quarter.
In Mullingar, €7.5 million has been allocated to the Blackhall Place Regeneration Project, while €150,000 will support the Mullingar Southwestern Quadrant Regeneration Framework/Priority Area Plan.
The larger €7.5 million allocations come under Category 1B of the scheme, which focuses on projects capable of being delivered in the short term, with supported projects expected to be capable of being on site by September 2027.
The €150,000 allocations are Category 1A projects, supporting longer-term developments planned for delivery in the later years of the National Development Plan.
Minister Browne said the investment represented a “major injection of funding” for Westmeath and said he wanted town centres to become places where people could live, shop, meet and spend time.
“I am ambitious for our towns in Westmeath, and I am going to make sure we have the funding to back that up,” he said.
He also praised Westmeath County Council for its applications and acknowledged the contribution of community groups and social enterprises involved in developing the projects.
Nationally, almost 120 projects across all local authorities will benefit from the new scheme, with more than €400 million potentially available subject to projects meeting the targets set out in their applications.
The Department will now engage with local authorities on the next steps required to progress the projects.