Councillors renew calls for Army headquarters to be in Athlone
Efforts to have the Army's national headquarters located at Custume Barracks Athlone must be "re-energised", Town Mayor, Cllr Frankie Keena, has said.
Addressing the monthly meeting of the Athlone-Moate Municipal District on Monday, Cllr Keena called on the Chamber to ensure that the Custume Barracks was selected as the proposed new headquarters of the Irish Army.
The possibility of Athlone's Custume Barracks being the base of a new Army headquarters arose from the Commission on the Defence Forces report published in February 2022, which recommended the creation of a 'centrally-located' headquarters to manage Army operations nationally.
The recommendation was one of a number which involved significant changes in the command and control structures of the Defence Forces, including the creation of a new overall chief of defence, a new Defence Forces headquarters, and the development of service headquarters for the army, air corps and naval service.
"This motion has previously raised within the Chamber by Cllr Paul Hogan and I am aware it is one we all support," Cllr Keena said.
"With a new Government now in place I feel it is essential that the issue is now re-energised and as a Council we stake our claim to having the Defence Forces headquarters permanently located at Custume Barracks. We need to get this particular matter over the line."
Cllr Keena expressed his concern that barracks' in Kildare would provide competition for the headquarters location, stating that a letter should be written to the Minister for Defence, Simon Harris, detailing the reasons why Athlone should be selected as the permanent base.
"We have to keep this issue on our agenda until it is resolved. Custume Barracks has played an important role in the lives of so many families in this town and the wider Midlands region who have relied upon the Army as a source of regular income through the years.
"I do believe a decision is imminent and I am hopeful that it will be in favour of the Custume Barracks," Cllr Keena said.
Cllr John Dolan noted that there were a number of "false dawns" and promises in previous times relating to the future of Custume Barracks.
"This is a superb facility to have in our town and a source of great employment. I have visited the barracks on numerous occasions and in my view, it needs to be the base for the Defence Forces headquarters.
"The air ambulance is also located at Custume Barracks. A very valuable service for our community, it is essential that it, too, is maintained at Custume Barracks," Cllr Dolan said.
Cllr Aengus O'Rourke said the selection of the Defence Forces headquarters was "going on way too long", but he was hopeful that a favourable decision would "copperfasten future investment in Custume Barracks".
Cllr Paul Hogan emphasised the benefits Army headquarters status could bring from a local economy perspective, stating that a decision was "imminent" a few years ago.
"We all support the upgrade of Custume Barracks to Army headquarters status. While the numbers in the barracks have declined since 2010, I still am of the view that it is the ideal location for the Irish Army base.
"Athlone is strategically placed to be confirmed as the headquarters location and hopefully this will be case in time," Cllr Hogan said.