Design of Monksland Community Hub project begins to takes shape

Residents living in the Monksland area of Athlone will have an opportunity to view the preferred building design for a proposed Community Hub at a Public Information Event which is due to take place this week.

Roscommon County Council will host the event in the Athlone Springs Hotel on tomorrow, Tuesday December 3, from 3pm to 8pm, at which individuals and groups can view the latest design plans and visuals for the Monksland Community Hub and speak with members of the design team.

This is the second public information event to take place on the proposed new Community Hub in Monksland, since members of the public were urged in November 2023 to make their views known on the type of building they wanted in their local community.

The Monksland Community Hub forms part of a major public realm enhancement project for the area which was unveiled by Roscommon County Council in 2022. The project, entitled “Putting the Heart Back into Monksland” has already attracted significant funding from the Department of Rural and Community Development under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme and other funding streams.

The Roscommon local authority says the Community Hub has been designed around “the feedback and needs of the people of Monksland, and next week's Public Information session is the public's opportunity to “be informed of the latest plans” for their local community.

With the council having identified “a preferred building design” for the proposed Monksland Community Hub, and secured Rural Regeneration and Development funding for the development of plans to further enhance the “social and community provision” in the rapidly-expanding Monksland area, they are urging members of the public and all interested groups and businesses from the area to come along to tomorrow's Public Information event in the Athlone Springs Hotel.

The planned community hub follows the opening of a regional innovation centre in the Monksland area in June.

Minister for Rural and Community Affairs Heather Humphreys performed the honours, before also turning the sod on a planned community park for the local area.

The 14,000 sq. feet innovation hub and life sciences centre is designed to be a major driver of local enterprise and job creation, providing a high-quality set-up environment for entrepreneurs with supports from local and regional agencies.

And work is ongoing on a new central park, incorporating a multi-use, multi-generational space, consisting of play areas and play equipment, a skate park and a shaded dwell area along with trails, seating, lighting and car parking facility.