Over €100,000 for Mitchelstown enhancements
For 2022, Mitchelstown has been allocated over €67,000 through the Town Development Fund for public realm enhancements, and another €23,000 in supports for local retail and business associations.
Community groups have received €12,000, while the St Patrick's Day committee have a contribution of €1,500 to celebrate the day. The total, in excess of €103,000, was announced on Tuesday, with Fermoy allocated just over €64,500.
The walking route on the ring road is one of the major schemes announced under this funding, and will see solar-powered lights for night-time walkers and joggers installed. The €13,000 project will have specially-designed lights to illuminate the surface of the path, while not throwing light out upwards.
The Town Development Funding announced this week is on top of the €500,000 that was announced for the development of a remote working hub in the library building at the end of February.
‘SCEPTICAL OF THE MODEL’
However, the remote working hub plans were the subject of a certain amount of dissent, as Cllr Deirdre O’Brien took the opportunity at a meeting this week to express her misgivings about some of the specifics of the project. As the remote working hub is a public space, she stated that the facility would be better set up for private offices, as that is where the demand is.
With space for remote working already in place in TO Park, Ballindangan Hall and the Mitchelstown Enterprise Centre, the fear is there would be too many facilities to be economical. The Enterprise Centre is putting the finishing touches on the extension to their centre, adding six more offices to their existing 12.
Cllr O’Brien was welcome of developments to the town, but ‘sceptical’ saying: “I want to say that the money is welcome, but I am sceptical of the model.
What I’m hearing is some concerns around confidentiality in a public working space like a hub, so if we’re going down that route, private offices would be preferred. There’s no point in having a white elephant, if that space could be better used.”
It was revealed by council staff that the decision to apply for the funding for a working hub was not made at local level, but rather by the Economic Division of Cork County Council. Cllr Kay Dawson said that the key would be for the local councillors to work more closely with the Economic Division.
OTHER WORKS
In other works planned for the town for the year, aside from the Georgian Quarter redevelopment, is a combined €25,000 for New Market Square, for planters, powerwashing and other aesthetic improvements.
The town should expect to be well lit for year end festive celebrations for some time to come, as €30,000 has been marked for Christmas lights. The MBA are to receive €15,000 to rewire Christmas lights and another €8,000 for the erection and removal of same. Another €7,000 was approved for the container to hold the Christmas lights equipment.
Monies carried forward from 2021 includes the €5,000 that was granted to the Community Forum for their website, and the €24,000 to be spent on the footpaths on Lower Cork Street. Picnic benches by the playground on Church Hill are to be improved to the tune of €5,105, while the St Patrick’s Day festival got a contribution of €1,500 at local level.