Application for time extension to build Galway island’s heritage museum refused
An extension request for a planning permission to re-build Inishbofin’s first heritage museum has been denied.
The applicant had sought a two-year extension to the planning permission, originally granted in February 2021, which is due to expire in March 2026.
In their submission, they indicated that construction would not begin until mid-2026, with completion expected by March 2027.
However, Galway County Council confirmed no works have yet commenced on the site. A planning inspection in August 2025 also found no evidence of construction.
The applicant stated that delays were due to ongoing efforts to secure funding and grants for the project.
Under planning rules introduced in September 2021, extensions of duration cannot be granted where construction has not begun within the timeframe specified in the original approval. It was on this basis that the council refused the request.
The original application was received in December 2020. The museum would be fit with a display area, photographic exhibition, restoration workshop, archival storage, and a gift shop with a coffee dock according to the original application.
The applicant behind the project is genealogist Marie Coyne, who has spent decades collecting artifacts from the island.
After publishing a book about Inishbofin, Ms Coyne opened the first museum the island had seen in 1998. That museum showcased furniture, photographs, letters, and genealogy documents, as well as donated items from the local community.
After 15 years of success the building flooded after a terrible storm and the artefacts were transferred to her home.
Since then, the building has turned into a local gift shop which is still running to this day. Ms Coyne told the Irish Independent then that her sheds were “overflowing” with objects and artefacts and she sought to move onto bigger and better things.
Ms Coyne is appealing to the public for assistance in the construction of the new museum that will cost an estimated €800,000. A GoFundMe was set up for the project and currently has €11,610 raised to date.