Council seeking return of streetscaping grant for Laois village 

AT the latest meeting of Portarlington/Graiguecullen municipal district, councillor Aisling Moran sought the reintroduction of the streetscaping grant for Ballylinan.

The grant dates back to 2022, when then minister Humphreys allocated a €2.6 million fund nationwide for the enhancement of streetscape and shopfront enhancements, effectively a grant dedicated to the visual pampering of a neighbourhood. However, such specific streetscape measures are now more down to the individual council’s ability to source money from their annual budget or other similar funding allocations such as the Town and Village Regeneration Scheme.

In response to the councillor’s request, a representative of the area office, Don Brennan of the business support unit, made the following statement: “The business support unit has been supporting streetscape schemes throughout the county over the past few years. Ballylinan village can be considered for a street scape scheme in 2027, depending on availability of funding.” On principle, Cllr Moran found that response frustrating, arguing that it should either be a “yes” or a “no,” believing that saying anything else would just confuse where the actual issue stood. But notwithstanding the usual refrain from budget allocation teams, the councillor said that it would be a fantastic thing to get the funding for streetscape enhancement in Ballylinan, especially in light of the fact that a recent council report highlighted that Ballylinan was in need of similar regeneration measures.

Cllr Paschal McEvoy seconded the motion.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.