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04 Oct 2025

UNVEILED: First look at street facade of Tullamore's new €5m arts centre

UNVEILED: first look at street facade of Tullamore's new €5m arts centre

Work is progressing on Tullamore's €5m community arts centre (Picture, Ger Rogers)

THE street facade of the new Tullamore Community Arts Centre has been unveiled.

Work is continuing on the major theatre and arts space project in Tullamore town centre and following the removal of builders' hoardings, the elevation facing the street can now be seen.

The arts complex, which will have a 250-seat theatre as its centrepiece, is being located on a site which runs from High Street down to the rear of the Bridge Centre. The projected cost of the centre is €5.2 million.

In 2020 Offaly County Council entered into an agreement with the Department of Culture for the provision of €2 million towards the building, which involves the refurbishment of the former Kilroy's store.

According to that agreement, the €2 million grant must be fully drawn down by October 31 next.

Another €200,000 is coming from the Government under an urban regeneration fund.

In 2019 the council agreed a €2.5 million loan for the project over 20 years.

In November 2021 the council was told that €150,000 was being provided to cover part of that loan repayment.

The council is also putting €100,000 towards the centre's initial operational costs.

Councillors were told in November that the local authority was setting up a new company to run the centre and that the centre board were committed to raising €500,000 in 2022.

According to the minutes of the meeting, council director of service Sharon Kennedy said she was confident the funding would be raised.

At the same meeting, council chief executive Anna Marie Delaney said the centre will become self-financing in the future.

The Kilroy's store was bought for €405,000 by the council. It is expected that construction will be complete before the middle of this year.

The Arts Centre is a long time in gestation and in 2011 €180,000 was raised for it in a draw.

Along with the theatre, the centre will have spaces for art exhibitions and workshops.

It was originally planned for a Grand Canal bank site near Kilbride Plaza but a significant budget overrun resulted in that proposal being abandoned.

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