Revival of key Athlone building gets million euro boost

Efforts to revive an historic and long-derelict building in the centre of Athlone have been given a €1 million funding boost.

The former Athlone RTC building on Northgate Street is being proposed as the site of a 'Smart Innovation and Co-Working Hub'.

On Thursday last, it was confirmed that the project was being awarded €1 million from the EU Just Transition fund, following a successful grant application on behalf of TUS and Westmeath County Council.

If the plan comes to fruition it would mean a building, part of which dates back to the Famine, when it was used as the Athlone Workhouse, could end up becoming a centre for new technological and commercial developments.

The building was also once home to the Vocational School, or Tech in Athlone, and it then became part of the campus of Athlone RTC, which was later AIT and is now TUS.

Local councillor Aengus O'Rourke has long been calling for the building to be brought back into use, as it has been falling into disrepair and has been a site of antisocial behaviour during the last decade or so.

"As the one who proposed that the Old Tech building should be repurposed as an Innovation and Co-working facility, I am over the moon to receive confirmation that €1m has been allocated for this very purpose," said Cllr O'Rourke.

"While the details in terms of next steps are not entirely clear, the most important thing is that we are now firmly on a path to refurbishing this beautiful old building and putting it to good use.

"The building is under the control of TUS, they hold the lease until 2027," said the Athlone Fianna Fáil representative.

"However, TUS and Westmeath County Council have been working very closely for the past year or so on a joint proposal to put the building back into active, productive use."

Cllr O'Rourke said the location of the building, in the centre of town, beside the cycleway and close to the motorway, was perfect for "a centre of learning, upskilling, enterprise support, remote working and incubation for new businesses."

He added that the building "has huge value" from a heritage and cultural standpoint.

"I will ensure that, whatever we do, we do it in a sensitive and restorative way," he said.

"We must do everything in our power to protect and make available to the public the amazing history associated with this site."

Cllr O'Rourke said he had met with the president of TUS, Professor Vincent Cunnane, "on numerous occasions" in relation to the building and he thanked him for his commitment to progressing the project.

"I also want to thank Barry Kehoe, acting CEO of Westmeath County Council, for his active role, and Athlone Chamber of Commerce also carried out important scoping work in the early days," he added.

The €1m allocated to the Athlone building was included in an €18m Just Transition funding announcement made on Friday last by Environment Minister Eamon Ryan.

A Co-working Hub and Enterprise Centre proposed by Westmeath County Council in Kinnegad was also awarded €1 million, while Roscommon County Council was given €569,000 for carbon emission reduction training.

The announcement also included a sum of just under €1 million for a Biomethane Development Office which is due to be initiated by TUS in Tipperary, in conjunction with Tipperary County Council and the Irish Bioeconomy Foundation.

Two further projects, supporting the delivery of regional enterprise plans, were approved for total funding of over €8 million

Munster Technological University, in partnership with TUS and the University of Limerick, was awarded €4.15 million for a regional initiative called 'ReSHAPE', which stands for 'Regional Skills Horizon And Pathways to Employment project'.

Laois County Council was also awarded just under €4 million, to spearhead a 'Midlands Regional Enterprise Plan Pathway for Just Transition'.

A mere 3% of the €18 million in Just Transition funding announced last Friday went to projects in Offaly, despite the county being one of those most affected by the shift away from the industrial use of fossil fuels.

Offaly County Council Cathaoirleach, Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick, said the county felt "let down" by the low level of funding it had received, and councillors there held a special meeting to discuss the matter on Wednesday of this week.