From Department of Rural and Community Development
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Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, has today (Tuesday 14th September) turned the sod on the Trim Library and Cultural Centre.
The project involves the conversion of the former St. Patrick’s Chapel, located next door to the existing library, into an upgraded library, cultural and community facility.
When complete it will include a multipurpose performance space with seating capacity for 247 people.
It was previously approved for funding of €4.3 million from the second call for Category 1 applications to the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund with the remaining costs being provided by Meath County Council.
The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund supports large scale projects that will revitalise rural towns and villages and it is a key component of Our Rural Future – the Government’s ambitious five year policy for Rural Ireland.
To date, the Fund has delivered €249 million for 164 projects worth a total of €338 million across the country, with Meath receiving over €8.6 million for 8 projects costing €11.5 million.
Visiting the site today, Minister Humphreys said:
“The conversion of the historic St Patrick’s Chapel and the existing library into a new state of the art library, cultural and community space will revitalise your town centre.
“And I’m really pleased that my Department of Rural and Community Development has been able to fund this exciting project to the tune of over €4.3 million.
“This funding is being delivered under the Rural Regeneration Development Fund, which is supporting large-scale infrastructural projects which will be game-changers for communities across Rural Ireland.”
The Minister continued:
“The funding and delivery of projects, such as the Trim Library and Cultural Centre and the Trim Market House, are essential to revitalising our rural towns and villages.
“And I have no doubt they will also help in attracting people back to rural communities, which is a key objective of Our Rural Future, the Government’s five year rural development strategy which I launched a few months ago.”
RRDF projects located in Meath
| Project Title | Location | Lead Party | Description | Project Cost | RRDF Funding | Call | Category |
| Boyne Navigation and Greenway | Boyne Navigation and Greenway | Meath County Council | Technical assistance to address cumulative environmental impacts for restoring the Navigation and Greenway between Drogheda and Navan. | €1,127,000 | €845,250 | 1 | 2 |
| Community Facilities Enfield | Enfield | Meath County Council | Will develop a project to purchase a disused building and associated space in the town centre and develop plans to deliver a new community centre and park and ride facility on the site. | €968,000 | €726,000 | 1 | 2 |
| Kells Heritage Development | Kells | Meath County Council | Will focus on the regeneration and adaptive re-use of four key heritage buildings to develop an integrated network of arts initiatives, cultural facilities and bespoke dedicated spaces for artists and the creative industries. | €280,000 | €210,000 | 1 | 2 |
| Trim Castle | Trim | OPW | Will undertake all necessary project development to transform Trim Market House to a visitor centre for Trim Castle. | €350,000 | €262,500 | 1 | 2 |
| Trim Library and Cultural Centre | Trim | Meath County Council | This is a regeneration project which will redevelop the existing library in Trim and the adjacent chapel to provide a multifunctional space that will include an extended library and a theatre. | €5,811,655 | €4,357,741 | 2 | 1 |
| Kells Creative Placemaking (Phase 1) | Kells | Meath County Council | This heritage led regeneration project involves the regeneration of two heritage buildings in the town centre become the Kells Courthouse Cultural Hub and Kells Printworks and Centre for Typography. | €1,323,780 | €992,834 | 2 | 1 |
| Athboy Town Centre | Athboy | Meath County Council | This project will design upgrades to the public realm, street landscaping and public spaces | €811,000 | €608,250 | 2 | 2 |
| Enfield Community and Enterprise Hub | Enfield | Meath County Council | This project will renovate and refurbish a long-unoccupied building in the centre of the town to create a new Community and Enterprise Hub. | €895,170 | €671,377 | 3 | 1 |
The Department of Rural and Community Development’s Rural Development Investment Programme includes a number of integrated funding interventions:
The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund was established to deliver on the National Strategic Objective in the National Development Plan 2018-2027 of Strengthened Rural Economies and Communities and is also calibrated to deliver on the objectives of Our Rural Future, the Government’s 5 year strategy for rural development. The Fund is administered by the Department of Rural and Community Development.
The Fund provides investment to support suitable projects in towns and villages with a population of less than 10,000, and outlying areas.
Calls for applications to the Fund are sought under two categories. Category 1 relates to projects with all necessary planning and consents in place and are ready to proceed, while Category 2 relates to projects which require further development to become ready for Category 1 status.
In total the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund has now provided €249 million for 164 projects across Ireland, worth a total of €338 million.
Full details of are available at Item was unpublished or removed