Dereliction and vacancy in the streets has left Drogheda looking down at heel and uninviting and has been the subject of much criticism in recent years but now Labour Councillor Pio Smith has put forward an idea that might just be the start of the fight back.
He has suggested that a good way to tackle dereliction, particularly regarding our historic buildings, is through use of funding from the Irish Wall Town Network Thrive Funding Scheme.
“Drogheda is rich with heritage and history and there has been a lot of talk lately about dereliction and rightly so. However we need solutions that will help eradicate dereliction and at the same time enrich our heritage and historic buildings.”
“This scheme has two strands” Cllr. Smith explained.
“Strand 1: Grant amounts of between €40K and €200K towards integrated urban strategies and project pipeline development. While Strand 2 involves Grant amounts of between €2M and €7M towards the renovation and adaptive reuse of vacant or derelict heritage buildings in public control or ownership.
“The two strands can feed into each other which makes the funding quite attractive” Cllr Smith explains.
“I have proposed to the council that we can use this funding stream to address some buildings in our ownership. For example we have historic buildings in Fair Street and on Narrow West Street.
“I have agreed with the team in Louth County Council that West Gate House, The Tholsel and St Dominicks Church will form the basis of the application.
“The Tholsel already has part 8 approval so it would be a quick win for us to have it fully redeveloped. However, West Gate House is located within the West Gate Vision and regeneration of this building would have a positive impact on Narrow West Street.
“This is an exciting proposal and offers hope that we can recreate a cultural quarter around Narrow West Street and the town centre.”
