Contractor could be on site by September for €10m Tipperary regeneration project
Long-awaited plans for two historic Tipperary buildings have taken a further step forward.
Tipperary County Council has been progressing plans for the former Courthouse in Tipperary town, as well as Dan Breen House, in an attempt to bring the buildings back into use after a number of years.
The former courthouse and Bridewell are due to be redeveloped and repurposed as a hub for adults with intellectual disabilities by Tipperary County Council in partnership with MooreHaven.
Meanwhile, the former Civic Offices at Dan Breen House in Tipperary town are to be redeveloped as a youth and training centre in partnership with YouthWork Ireland Tipperary and Tipperary Education and Training Board (ETB).
The project was originally due to get underway this summer, but the previous tenders came in significantly overbudget.
Now, local Sinn Féin councillor Annemarie Ryan has confirmed that the project has gone back out to tender, with hopes that a contractor will be on site in September.
“We have had delays as when the tender went out originally they came back significantly overbudget so further value engineering had to be undertaken to keep the project in budget. It has been difficult with the cost of labour/materials,” Cllr Ryan said.
Funding just short of €10million was allocated to both projects, with €8m coming from the Government’s Rural Regeneration Fund, while the further €2m came in match funding from YouthWork Ireland and the MooreHaven Centre.
The projects were developed by Tipperary Town Revitalisation, using town centre first principles with the support of Tipperary County Council and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
Previously, Michael Begley, Tipperary Town Revitalisation manager said that the project hoped to bring new life into the town.
What Dan Breen House will look like after the project.
“The aim is to bring a long vacant building back into everyday use and provide a much needed amenity to MooreHaven to support the delivery of their services,” he said.
Cllr Ryan thanked everyone involved in the project for their work, and said that the issuing of tender documents was good news.
“Thanks to all of the partners - Moorehaven Centre, Youth Work Ireland Tipperary, Tipperary ETB and everyone who contributed to the application, our own task force members, the elected members and the staff of Tipperary-Cahir-Cashel Municipal District who are overseeing the development of the planning and design phases, along with South Tipperary Development Company who supported the business case under the LEADER programme,” she said.
“It’s a good day for Tipperary town,” Cllr Ryan added.