Portlaoise gets €7.5m for Fort event centre
Fort Protector viewed from Fitzmaurice Place, Portlaoise. File photo
FUNDING of €7.5m has been announced for Portlaoise, for the development of The Fort Museum and Event Centre in the heart of the town.
A further €150,000 will go to Portarlington for the development of town centre regeneration projects.
The €7.65m funding package was confirmed today under the national Towns Regeneration Investment Fund.
The long-planned Fort Museum and Event Centre (An Dún) will see the creation of a new community, arts and culture space in the town centre.
The funding for Portarlington is aimed at supporting regeneration, development and new opportunities.
The Portlaoise project can now move on to the construction stage, promising first class arts and entertainment facilities in the town centre for generations to come. It will also revitalise the historic fort that was the foundation of Portlaoise, as the site of the original barracks when the English plantations began in the 1550s.
Also known as a Fort Protector, the Old Fort was built as a military stronghold and is a significant historical landmark, marking the origin of the town that played a key role in Ireland’s colonial history.
The Granary building will be retained as part of the project, which will see the development of a museum, exhibition and indoor performance space and will also provide a permanent home for the Portlaoise Plane.
The substantial funding was welcomed by local TDs, with Deputy Seán Fleming describing the Portlaoise project as ‘a game changer’.
He said: ‘I want to praise the work of Laois County Council in assembling this large 3.5 acre site in the centre of the town over many years.
‘This foresight will lead to a great new facility for the people in Portlaoise and County Laois. I look forward to the contractor moving on site and commencing works as soon as possible.'
The Portarlington fund of €150,000 will go towards the design of a Town Centre Regeneration plan. Laois Co Council will progress the design and plans, before seeking funding to move on to construction and development works.
