Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 April 2023
696. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the updated position regarding a project (details supplied) in County Mayo; the stage this project is at; the funding that has been drawn down to date for this project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16048/23]
View answer697. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when works will be completed on a project (details supplied) in County Mayo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16049/23]
View answerIn line with the objectives of the National Planning Framework and the National Development Plan, the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) is currently providing part-funding to applicant-led projects, enabling more compact and sustainable development within the existing built-up footprints of our cities and large towns.
To this end, the URDF has already provisionally allocated in excess of €1.6 billion under two separate calls for proposals since its inception in 2018. Providing assistance to 132 proposals, comprising of almost 400 subprojects, URDF projects are now active in every local authority area in the country.
In 2021, following the second call for proposals under the URDF, I announced a provisional allocation of €11,027,500 in URDF support for Mayo County Council's two successful projects - Castlebar Historic Core Reactivation Initiative Project (€8,527,500) and Castlebar Military Barracks Project (€2,500,000).
This followed Mayo County Council's three successful proposals under the URDF’s first call in 2018 – Ballina Innovation Quarter project (€6,232,172), Castlebar Urban Greenway Link project (€1,875,000) and technical assistance for the advancement of the Castlebar Military Barracks project (€141,391) taking the total amount of URDF funding for Mayo County Council to €19,276,063.
In reference to the Ballina Innovation Quarter project, I can confirm that this project is onsite with construction works well advanced. As per the most recent update from Mayo County Council, the project is expected to be substantially completed in Q3 2023.
To date, €3,284,668 of the URDF allocation has been drawn down towards this project, with the URDF providing support up to the maximum 75% of the overall costs.
While my Department works closely and communicates regularly with Mayo County Council in respect of project development, responsibility for the advancement of these URDF supported projects through the various stages of planning, development and completion is, in the first instance, a matter for Mayo County Council. Accordingly, detailed queries regarding the projects should be directed to the Council.
