Council admits Athlone Castle project won't be finished this year

Athlone Town Council has conceded that the €3m redevelopment of Athlone Castle will not be finished this year. The Castle was built in 1210 and the local authority aimed to have its revamp as a state-of-the-art tourist attraction completed in time for 800th anniversary celebrations in December. However, Council Director of Services Barry Kehoe has stated that delays to the project meant it would not be completed in 2010. "The work will be continuing on into next year," said Mr Kehoe yesterday (Tuesday). The council closed the castle to tourist visitors during the height of the tourist season this summer, claiming that it was not practical to have the facility open during building works. They further argued that the closure was necessary in order to meet the deadline of the end of the year for reopening the revamped facility. Now, however, the council has admitted the work will not be completed by the end of the year. Mr Kehoe that the delays were caused by the complexity of designs for the castle's redevelopment. "We are dealing with old, complicated structures and there were unforeseen delays as a result of that," he said. The project involves an array of civil works at the castle, along with the installation of new visitor displays and audiovisual content. Mr Kehoe stated that the council was now hoping to have tender documents for the project issued by early September and that work on site was likely to commence at some stage in October. Meanwhile, work on the development of a new art gallery at the Fr Mathew Hall in Athlone is also expected to start in late September or early October. Mr Kehoe stated that eight contractors had been shortlisted for the project, and detailed tender documents are due to be issued by the council this week. As part of the process, archaeological excavations were carried out close to the Fr Mathew Hall, and inside the building itself, earlier this year.