Repair work on Athlone Castle keep to cost over €420,000

By Rebekah O'Reilly

Essential repairs underway to the keep at Athlone Castle are set to cost over €420,000, it has emerged.

The work was announced on Monday with the Office of Public Works (OPW) and Westmeath County Council outlining the start of roof repairs and stabilisation works.

The project includes upgrading and replacing the roof area, including fibreglass gutters, with OPW carpenters working alongside an external contractor to remove and replace damaged fittings and gutter linings.

The works, which began on Friday, May 15, are expected to take approximately eight weeks, subject to weather and access conditions.

It has also now emerged that the planned reopening of Athlone Castle in the autumn is in doubt.

Once complete, the site is expected to progress to further enhancement works at the visitor centre as part of a wider tourism development programme.

The project is being jointly funded by Westmeath County Council and the OPW, with Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW, Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, estimating the overall value of the works at more than €420,000.

Speaking at the castle on Monday, May 25, Minister Moran said significant work was now underway to address long-standing structural issues with the keep.

“This is significant work because OPW staff, both our stonemasons and our scaffolding crew, have been involved,” he said. “The scaffolding has just gone up. The lads are on the ground there at present.”

The Minister said discussions on the project had been ongoing since last summer between the Office of Public Works and Westmeath County Council.

“We had a number of meetings prior to the summer of last year in relation to the condition of the keep,” he said.

“Carmel Duffy and her team, led by CEO of Westmeath County Council Barry Kehoe, met with Rosemary Collier of the OPW, myself, and our team to see if we could do a joint partnership.”

Minister Moran said he had pushed for the works to proceed while the castle remained closed.

“There was a little bit of pushing on our side,” he said. “I felt, with the castle being closed, this was a great opportunity to see this work being done as well.”

He said the stabilisation and repair works had been sought for years due to the condition of the keep.

“This is something we’ve been looking for for years,” he said. “The keep was in very bad condition. It actually prevented people from going into it sometimes because of the water and the leaking roof.

“But now, thankfully with our team on the ground, we’ll see this coming together, which is brilliant news.”

The Minister also addressed criticism surrounding the pace of works at Athlone Castle.

“I know there has been criticism while the work was just going on outside, people criticised us when we announced the money,” he said. “To see it now coming to fruition is fabulous.”

Speaking at the launch of the works, Deputy Mayor Aengus O'Rourke said the council are 'very proud' of Athlone Castle, and the works on the keep are an essential step in the preservation of the prominent attraction.

"We see important works happening here to protect the keep. Some structural issues were found during recent surveys," he said.

"We're well underway in terms of the wayfinding work, the public realm piece that you see at the back and side of the castle, now we have this work to the keep, and next year we will conclude over 3 million spend on enhancing the visitor experience here at Athlone Castle.

"This is one of our key assets in the town, and it's a very important part of the visitor experience. It is one of the jewels in our crown, and our visitor numbers are up every year."

Minister Moran stressed the importance of Athlone Castle as a tourism asset for the town.

“This castle is a very important piece of tourism for Athlone. We need it,” he said. “We see our numbers growing and we want that to continue to grow.”

“I think, when we see the works commencing inside the castle, and now they can work in tandem with the outside works, that’s all very strong for tourism for Athlone.”

He said continued investment in tourism infrastructure would benefit local businesses.

“We want boats to pull in here. We want people to go to the restaurants, the pubs, the shops. We want that to continue, but we have to make that happen too as public representatives,” he said.

“We need to enhance tourism anywhere we can, and we need to do it together.”

The castle closed in October last. There are two projects earmarked for the site. Work to improve the public realm around the exterior of the castle, and to revamp the entrance approach has been underway since June 2025 and are near completion. The total projected value for these works is estimated to be €1.4m.

Funding for that project has been secured from a number of bodies, Fáilte Ireland, Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), Office of Public Works and Westmeath County Council.

Westmeath County Council is also due to undertake improvement works at the site as part of a redevelopment project, supported by €3.2 million in funding through Fáilte Ireland’s Regenerative Tourism and Placemaking Scheme.

The refurbishment is due to focus on "revitalising Athlone Castle to provide a more enhanced visitor experience", including improvements to "ageing utilities and mechanical systems, a reconfiguration of the visitor centre layout and interpretation, and enhancements to the courtyard, reception and retail areas."

This work was due to get underway when the castle closed in October, but it appears that it will not now commence until the conclusion of the works on the keep, which would appear to leave serious doubt over the anticipated reopening date of the castle in the autumn.

The Westmeath Independent has submitted questions to Westmeath County Council on the matter.