Historic structures
Under this year’s Historic Structures Fund (HSF), 56 projects will be funded, with grants ranging from €15,000 to €130,000 for the conservation and renovation of many different types of historic structures throughout the country.
In the County of Cork four excellent projects are being supported to the sum of €171,000, which are Egmont Hall in Kanturk; Church of the Ascension in Timoleague; Myrtle Grove in Youghal and St. George’s Arts and Heritage Centre in Mitchelstown (funding for St. George’s is being provided over 2 years).
Nationally, the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS) will support 393 projects in 31 local authority areas. Grants ranging from €1,000 to €15,000 will be provided and the scheme will generate several thousand days’ employment for skilled craftspeople.
In the case of County Cork, ten projects will see investment under the scheme to the sum of €79,000, with some of the examples including the former Christ Church in Rathcormac; St John the Baptist Church in Midleton; Glenville Park House and Charleville Community Hall.
Also included under the BHIS 2020 is a pilot micro-grant stream to increase the resilience of historic structures to withstand the constant effects of climate change. This will allow local authorities to make smaller awards to owners of historic properties to carry out routine maintenance to offset the impact of climate change on their buildings.
These grant schemes have the potential to offer confidence to communities across the country; provide a stimulus to the economy and help to maintain incomes, and in the case of County Cork, the combined investment across both schemes of €250,000 is fantastic news.
Minister Madigan, when announcing the allocations noted that she would ‘ like to acknowledge the response of private owners and their willingness to invest their time and money in caring for our built heritage’ and was delighted to see a continued investment in Ireland’s built heritage.