Great news for Laois town as construction begins on long-awaited fire station
Work has finally gotten underway on the new fire station in Stradbally.
Plans have long been in the pipeline for the new fire station in Stradbally, with the public consulted on the plans for the two-bay fire station in 2021.
It has been 23 years since Laois County Council first identified the site for the new station at the junction of Main Street and the Abbeyleix Road.
The Stradbally fire crew moved into the old civil defence building on the site of the new station in January last year as the old station on Main Street, which was built in 1954, was declared no longer fit for purpose.
After a long wait, construction has finally gotten underway on the new fire station.
Local councillor Paschal McEvoy shared photos of the site on his social media on Tuesday, May 19.
Cllr McEvoy said: “Great to see work starting today on the new Fire Station here in Stradbally.”
This comes after the Kilkenny company Ormonde Construction signed the contract for the work in April.
The new €3.3 million fire station has been designed to meet the evolving needs of the local fire service and the growing community, as well as serving huge events like Electric Picnic and the Stradbally Steam Rally.
Stradbally fire station is one of the busiest in the county, responding to over 100 emergency calls every year.
The now vacant old fire station has been offered for use to local community groups as the building will become a community meeting hall. This is welcome news for Stradbally as the town currently has no community hall.
Rathdowney will also be getting a new fire station soon as another €3 million in funding was announced last month for the proposed station.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme