'Fantastic' plan will 'greatly boost' large Midlands town

A fantastic blueprint has been unveiled to boost the town centre of North Tipperary's capital town.
During a recent meeting of Nenagh Municipal District, Rosemary Joyce, Senior Executive Officer,
pointed out that consultants had been appointed to draw up an “Integrated Urban Strategy” for the town.

“This Town Centre First Plan, overseen by a Town Team,” she remarked, “will be a blueprint for the development of the town over the next 15 years.”

The SEO ran through a draft version of the plan. She commented that the plan will set out a number of improvements for the town, which will happen when the funding comes through.

The strategy aims to increase the number of visitors and shoppers to the town. It also aims to tackle the dereliction problem and preserve the built heritage. Nenagh has a number of beautiful architectural assets in its Cultural Quarter in the Banba Square area, including the Castle, Courthouse, Governor’s House, three storey Gaol Block, two churches, Olympian statues and the former Rialto Cinema. Other important buildings in the built heritage include the town’s tourist office, arts centre, old Presbyterian church and the Gate Lodge of the Gaol where 17 men, including the Cormack brothers, were executed. “Nenagh is a town,” said Ms Joyce, “which has a lot of stories to tell through its old buildings. The aim of the Town Centre First strategy will be to pull all of this together and bring back into use the old buildings and greatly enhance the public realm while also maximising the potential for tourism with Nenagh as the gateway to Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands district. The strategy will include proposals to increase footfall in the town and attract new jobs while protecting existing employment. Nenagh is a town that is doing well, but we cannot rest on our laurels. We have to keep pushing.”

The Senior Executive Officer mentioned the success of the Dromineer Nenagh Literary Festival, which attracted people from all over the world, as being an example of what can be achieved when efforts are made to promote the town and its hinterland.

The Town Team has received interesting feedback from the public so far. In this feedback was the message that tackling vacancy and dereliction is the number one priority from the public's point of view. Other issues which the public is particularly concerned about include anti-social behaviour and a lack of parking.

The Town Team will work with the large number of clubs and organisations to try and improve people's lives as they use the town centre.

She said the town has fantastic retailers and the vacancy rate for commercial premises is the lowest in Tipperary.

“Nenagh has a strong sense of local identity, shops that attract people from all over the country and a variety of businesses that provide that personal touch for those who came through their doors. The Town Team's strategy will be to preserve those great attributes.

“The Council's plan to create a dedicated transport hub at the Railway Station will also be included as part of the strategy.

“We are also aiming to attract as many people as possible to live in the town centre. Our aim is an urban core which is more active, busier, more alive.”

She pointed out that there was a fantastic response from the general public to the public consultation process. “We received 880 electronic responses from people suggesting ways forward for the town.”

Cllr Séamie Morris praised Rosemary's drive and enthusiasm for the town. “Nenagh is lucky to have people like Rosemary driving this.”