Columb Barracks regeneration must proceed says local deputy

The stalled regeneration of Columb Barracks for housing and community groups must proceed for the benefit of the town of Mullingar, a local TD has said.

Deputy Robert Troy was recently informed that after more than a year of inaction, the advisory committee established by the Land Development Agency to help inform a regeneration plan for the barracks is to re-convene.

Since the advisory committee last met, 50 temporary accommodation units for Ukrainian refugees, 20 of which are now occupied, have been installed in the parade ground and a further 12 are due to be completed early next year. A further 160 IP applicants are being housed in tents on the site.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner, Deputy Troy said that while he supports a section of the barracks being used to house Ukrainian people and other IP applicants, plans to regenerate the barracks must continue. The first thing that has to happen, he says, is that the ownership of the site must be transferred from the Dept of Defence to the LDA.

“It has exceptional potential and my fear is that without the appropriate plan, that will be compromised – to be frank, it has already has been. I have no objection to the site being used to support the response to the Ukrainian and International Protection crisis. It was always my belief that the buildings should have been used rather than temporary units. Even with temporary units on the site, they should have been allocated a space that doesn’t compromise the future use of the buildings around it. However, while it has made the future development of the site more challenging, it is not impossible. This is why there is an urgent need for the LDA to take ownership of the barracks and to pursue a plan for the site.”

Deputy Troy says the LDA has to draw a plan “for the short, medium and long term use of the site”.

“There are historical buildings that need to be protected, there is an urgent need for community buildings in our town and a museum. We know from the work done by the Mullingar Youth Project and YoYo Youth Cafe that the buildings can be put to good use.

“I have been impressing to Minister O’Brien the need for a masterplan. The LDA was established five years ago and it’s almost 2024, and the barracks still hasn’t been transferred into its ownership. It’s not something I am proud of.

“The EV training centre is not going there. That was a missed opportunity and we don’t want any more.”

In a letter to Minister O’Brien about the barracks, the LDA said that when the advisory group reconvenes, it “can build on the initial work carried out by the LDA, including capacity studies and engagements with stakeholders”.

“The outcome of that work was a regeneration vision anchored around educational, housing and community use. In the meantime, much of the subject property has been put into use for accommodating Ukrainian Temporary Protection beneficiaries. However, we agree that reconvening the advisory group will help address the complexities surrounding the current uses and establish timelines for the development of the site.”