A Masterplan for the De Valera Museum and Bruree Heritage Centre, an Enterprise Hub, featuring hot desks, own door offices and a meeting room in the library building of Mitchelstown and the development of a dilapidated old former convent building in Doon into community services and e-hub facility with remote working & conference room facilities have all received a boost this week with the announcement of funding under the 2021 Town and Village Renewal Scheme.

Funding under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme places a strong emphasis on projects which tackle vacancy and dereliction by bringing landmark town centre buildings back to life. In announcing the funding, Minister Humphreys said:

"Many of the successful projects will see vacant and derelict town centre building such as old banks, garda stations and convents transformed into a community, cultural and art spaces. There is also a strong focus on remote working projects in this round of funding and I am pleased to see that a number of counties have set out ambitious marketing plans aimed at attracting remote workers to relocate."

The projects supported across the Ballyhoura area will provide new facilities and services and strengthen opportunities for remote and blended working approaches.

Pádraig Fitzgerald, Chair of Ballyhoura Development, welcomed the investment and added:

"It is heartening to see the continued support for local community-led initiatives that are ambitious and offer the opportunity for transformation of local towns and villages. As the Covid situation stabilises, community groups across the Ballyhoura area are getting on with fantastic plans and developments to help move on from the impacts of Covid and Brexit. Investments, such as those provided under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, are critical to providing the resources to sustain community-led initiatives."

The 2022 Town and Village Renewal Scheme Call will be announced over the coming months. Ballyhoura Development would like to hear from local communities about ideas that would strengthen their local towns and villages, socially, environmentally, and economically and will provide support with development ideas and application processes.