Tender issued for €130,000 exhibition at historic Tipperary Gaol that has been closed for 100 years
A project that will see a former gaol block in Tipperary open to the public for the first time in more than 100 years has taken another step forward, with Tipperary County Council seeking a contractor to develop the exhibition.
Tipperary County Council was allocated €500,000 under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme for the former gaol building in Nenagh, enabling the building to be transformed into a tourist attraction.
The funding will allow the three-storey former gaol block to be transformed into a visitor centre for the first time in more than 100 years.
Now, Tipperary County Council have gone to tender for a contractor to deliver a planned exhibition.
The contract, which is valued at just under €130,000, will cover the development of audio-visual displays for the exhibition.
The council are looking for a contractor to develop audio-visual displays at the planned new exhibition that will “appeal to a wide audience – locals, domestic tourists, tourists from abroad, family groups, individuals [of] all ages”, a tender document seen by the Irish Independent shows.
The contractor must also “ensure the visitor experience is authentic to the facility, its past and the part it played in the history of the development of Nenagh”.
The exhibition will “celebrate Nenagh’s rich heritage offering and, through storytelling, providing an insight into life in the mid-19th century, the lost pre-Famine population and crime and punishment,” the document added.
The contractor will also be responsible for sourcing any props or memorabilia which would be appropriate to the visitor experience, creating a space that will encourage inclusivity, community usage and provide an uplift to the area and potential benefit to the nighttime economy, the council have said.
The tender application process will remain open until September, with the council then identifying a suitable partner to progress the project.
At a past meeting of the Nenagh Municipal District, district administrator Rosemary Joyce told councillors that planning permission had already been granted for the project.
“We already have Part 8 planning in place which was done as part of the Historical and Cultural Quarter, so we’ll be doing the prioritised conservation works that will allow it to be open to the public,” Ms Joyce explained.
“We’ll be then looking at how this can be managed in conjunction with the heritage centre so that there can be guided tours there. It’s fantastic that we have the opportunity of bringing it back into public use,” she added.