Council will continue to seek funding for Yeats centre
SLIGO County Council will press on with plans to develop a Yeats Interpretive Centre, despite being unsuccessful in an application for capital funding under the Platform for Growth Programme.
Dorothy Clarke, Director of Services at Sligo County Council, told last Monday’s meeting that other investment programmes and relevant funding sources that come on stream will be considered and applied for as they arise.
She told the meeting: “The development of a Yeats International World Centre has been under consideration for quite some time. It is a priority objective of the Council to develop a major tourist attraction based on the Yeats legacy and is a component of Sligo’s Tourism Strategy 2018-2023.
“The Yeats International Centre will provide a visitor experience focusing on the work and lives of the family in the context of the political, social and economic situation that pertained in Ireland at that time (1860-1930s). A time of huge political and social change, much of which is reflected in their work. The experience will entwine and tell the story of Ireland and more especially Sligo through the lens of their works and ideals. The experience will also cater for the more discerning visitor seeking the literary and artistic experience.
“The proposed centre will capture and portray the Yeats family legacy, in the evocative landscape and place which inspired their work and will bring this story to a worldwide audience. It will help to create a signature cultural tourism attraction in Sligo and the Wild Atlantic Way, increasing visitor numbers, spend and stay in county Sligo and beyond.
“It will have as an essential function, the explanation of the creative, literary, social, political, geographical and environmental history of this region, the place of Yeats’ inspiration. The visitor experience will actively link with other Yeats experiences, trails, sites and drives across Sligo made famous through the work of the Yeats family.”
She added: “In August of 2019, an application for capital funding was amde to the Platform for Growth Programme launched last year by Fáilte Ireland which was a tourism investment programme specifically for immersive heritage and cultural attractions.
“However, the application was unsuccessful on this occasion.”
The Council confirmed that they appealed the decision, having got through stage one but being unsuccessful at stage two. “We requested a reconsideration of our application,” Dorothy Clarke added.
Fine Gael Councillor Sinead Maguire said: “It’s disappointing that we were unsuccessful. This should be a priority for Sligo. There is a vital link missing, not just W.B Yeats but his entire family. We need to claim him as our own before someone does.”
Fianna Fáil Cllr. Donal Gilroy queried where the centre would be located. “Would it be under Bare Benbulben’s head? Or out by the Salley Gardens?”
Chief Executive of Sligo County Council Ciaran Hayes confirmed that O’Connell Street has been identified as the best location for the centre. “I can’t remember O’Connell Street being in any of Yeats’ poems”, Cllr. Gilroy added.