€120 million is being provided under a new funding scheme to support local authorities and their citizens to re-imagine town centres and to transform publicly owned vacant or derelict heritage buildings within those town centres through renovation, renewal and adaptive reuse.
THRIVE – the Town Centre First Heritage Revival Scheme – was launched by Minister of State for Local Government and Planning Kieran O’Donnell TD. Co-funded by the Government and the European Union and managed by the Southern Regional Assembly, the scheme will provide local authorities with funding of between €2m and €7m to renovate, refurbish and adapt vacant and derelict heritage buildings in their town centres.
MALLOW & CLONMEL
Targeted at larger urban settlements – cities, regional growth centres and key towns – THRIVE is designed to complement other national funds targeting smaller urban settlements. Mallow is one of two key towns in Cork designated under the remit of Cork County Council, the other being Clonakilty. In the Southern region, Cork City is also eligible under Cork City Council. Clonmel in county Tipperary and Dungarvan in county Waterford are also included under their local authorities as being a ‘designated settlement’ qualifying for the scheme.
Heritage buildings under the scheme are classified as structures that form part of the architectural heritage and have unique architectural, historical, archaeological or artistic qualities, or are linked to the cultural and economic history of a place.
It is a competitive funding call and with 100% grant aid available, is expected to be highly competitive.
Projects are required to embrace the core values of the New European Bauhaus – sustainability, aesthetics and inclusion. The scheme promotes a citizen-centred community-led approach to planning, design and project selection under the Town Centre First framework. Grants of between €40,000 and €200,000 are available to support local authorities with the planning and design phase.
The first call for projects is now open visit www.southernassembly.ie
