As economy finally opens up, Birr focuses firmly on survival
Local businesses are having to adapt, says Laura Lynott
THERE is one word that keeps popping up in Birr, the jewel in middle Ireland’s crown: “survival”. Day trippers from Belfast, Cork, Limerick and neighbouring Tipperary are enjoying a welcome break from thoughts of Covid-19 as they mill around Birr Castle, quietly marking its 400th birthday.
There’s a steady stream of local people and visitors on the town’s Main Street. But almost every businessperson the Irish Independent spoke to said this summer, and indeed this year, is merely about “survival” as Ireland defrosts the economy during the pandemic.
Grainne O’Malley, general manager of Birr Castle, said: “The castle normally attracts 100,000 visitors a year and that’s €4m revenue for the community.
“Our plan is to get up and moving but we’re cutting costs and any work planned will have to wait until 2021.
“We won’t have any international tourists, so we’re concentrating on educational visits.”
Some 20pc of the castle’s visitors travelled from across the world. The remaining 80pc are domestic.
Ms O’Malley believes day trippers from Dublin, Cork and Limerick will opt for Birr as one of their destinations this summer.
“Footfall is up 300pc since the country opened up. Everyone just wants to get out and about.”
Children are climbing Ireland’s largest treehouse, a majestic three-storey construction in the castle’s gardens, and grandparents are catching up with grandchildren in the courtyard, while friends grab coffee.
It’s a picture-perfect scene for a July weekday, but Covid19 has caused the castle to lose 70pc of its revenue so far this year.
And Ms O’Malley is the first to state 2020 is “about survival” and nothing more.
“We encourage everyone to visit and have their staycation here. We have a beautiful county. This pandemic has reminded us of that.”
Emma Nee Haslam, manager of Birr Theatre and Arts Centre, said the venue, built in 1888, should be celebrating its 20th birthday as a theatre but celebrations are postponed until 2021.
“We were in the middle of a
sellout show just before lockdown,” Ms Nee Haslam said.
“We had so many shows we had to postpone. We have funding from the council and the Arts Council but 62pc of our income is box-office sales.
“A guillotine came down on us in 2020, so this year is just about survival. Our capacity is curtailed so due to that we will go from seating 220 to 40. For a lot of acts, that just won’t be enough.
“But we have to be positive. We have yoga classes here and youth music class. We’re planning a visual arts exhibition and we’ll be asking the community, who’ve been so good, to help fundraise.
“During closure, the theatre lost around €20,000 revenue but one of the main issues has been to open the doors again to help the community “psychologically”, she said.
Dooly’s Hotel is one of the oldest hotels in Ireland. Opened in 1747, the accommodation had never closed until Covid-19 hit. American tourists were a familiar sight every summer.
But only a handful of guests have booked to stay this season as the pandemic takes its toll.
Rooms lie empty and staff are preparing to open on July 8, primarily to cater for diners.
“Fifty percent of our visitors were American and a large number were Chinese,” manager Kevin Dalton said.
“We have a small number of rooms booked but we lost a lot of weddings which have been moved to next year.
“There’s been major demand from local people wanting to dine here.
“On the first day back we had 1,047 messages for bookings for dinner.
“But our nightclub, Melba’s, is still shut and that was the place in town everyone went to, so it’s sorely missed.”
Pharmacist David Meara, who runs a business of the same name, on Birr’s Main Street, has been operating throughout the pandemic.
Mr O’Meara had a Perspex screen and counter fitted to the entrance early in the crisis to serve customers.
“We wanted to protect staff and customers and to ensure we weren’t responsible for any spreading of the virus,” Mr O’Meara said.
“Regarding trade, certain areas had seen a rush for medication but a lot of our sales were lost, such as dental care and make-up, things that people were buying in supermarkets.
“Trade dropped by a quarter. I feel the Government needs to look at tax breaks and perhaps taxing online businesses more, as they don’t have the overheads of renting businesses.”
Artist Chris Quinlan is helping to spread hope in the town with several of his paintings, which will grace the walls of The Loft Café.
One of his paintings, ‘New Beginnings’, is inspired by the transition experienced during lockdown.
Mr Quinlan’s son Kyle (10) was helping him carry the paintings to their new home, as the artist discussed his views on the current times in the town.
“My father Michael Sr used to say: ‘Always walk on the sunny side of the street.’
“He died 18 years ago and I believe to this day Dad was right. That’s what we have to do, be optimistic for the future despite the pandemic.”
Adrian Shine, owner of Emma’s café on the Main Street, used the lockdown to renovate and decorate two upstairs storage rooms to open up as part of the business.
This move, though expensive and a great deal of toil, meant the café could actually increase capacity from 35 to 39 customers despite social distancing measures.
“It took us six weeks to complete the work,” Mr Shine said.
“We’re really pleased. We went from zero income during lockdown to rebuilding now.
“We’re taking it one day at a time. We’re seeing different faces, so it’s an indicator people are visiting from elsewhere, which is good.”
Caroline Boyd, owner of The Stables in Birr, which offers accommodation, dining, coffee and shopping, said 18 guests from Northern Ireland are booked in to stay in the coming days and she’s reduced room rates from €140 on a weekend for a double to €120.
“Everyone should be visiting Birr this summer, as we have so much history and beauty and we’re offering better value for money than coastal areas,” Ms Boyd said.
‘We’re offering better value for money than coastal areas’