Carlow often felt as if Kilkenny got preferential treatment from the government but its proximity to Dublin drove its growth, writes FRANK McDONALD
CARLOW HAS long felt “hard done by”, at least in relation to its old rival Kilkenny. Thus, when the latter was designated as a “hub” under the 2002 National Spatial Strategy, there was outrage that the Government had overlooked Carlow yet again – despite its superior location on the national road and rail networks.
But it was the town’s relative proximity to Dublin that drove population growth during the boom years. It was estimated in 2007 that up to 6,000 people in Co Carlow, or about one-sixth of the county’s workforce, were commuting to Dublin daily – a distance of 80km, on average. And many were new residents of Carlow Town.
The town’s population grew by 12.5 per cent between 1996 and 2002 and by a further 15.9 per cent in the following four years, bringing it up to 20,724. Graiguecullen, a new suburb grafted onto an old village across the River Barrow in Co Laois, grew more explosively, with its population rising by 71 per cent to 3,115 by 2006.
This was largely due to the more liberal planning policies of Laois County Council, which was determined to capture its share of Carlow’s growth. But when the flash floods came in August 2008, Graiguecullen was badly hit. Historically, it had been swampy ground; the public park there was once called “Begley’s Bog”.
The flood waters reached a height of 1.83m (6ft) where the Barrow burst its banks opposite Carlow’s rowing club, flooding three new apartment blocks on the town side. More than 100 residents had to be evacuated, in some cases for the second time that year.
More flooding last winter saw residents being rescued by boat, yet again.
Centaur Court had been marketed under “Section 23”, and several of the buy-to-let investors lost out as a result of the floods. Tenants had to be accommodated in hotels at the landlords’ expense and insurance premiums became prohibitive for ground-floor units; they were “worth nothing now”, one investor said.
A sympathetic John Gormley pledged priority for a €30 million flood relief scheme when he waded through the area in 2008. The scheme, part of a larger replacement of Carlow’s sewers and drains, is currently under construction. Town Clerk Joe Watters, who’s retiring on July 31st after 30 years in the public service, is convinced it will work.
Carlow suffered other setbacks. Braun Ireland, which manufactures Oral B toothbrushes and health care products, made more than 200 of its staff redundant, and automotive component maker Läpple Ireland closed down altogether in 2007, with the loss of 140 jobs.
But the biggest blow was Greencore’s 2005 decision to close the sugar factory – almost synonymous with Carlow itself – due to the ending of EU subsidies for domestic sugar production. A proposal by the Green Party’s Mary White (now a minister of state) that it should be turned into a bioethanol plant was not taken up.
Instead, Greencore unveiled a €1.1 billion plan to transform the 200-acre site into a business park called “Carlow Gateway”, with a focus on food. At the time, in 2006, developer Liam Carroll was building up a substantial stake in the company, with an eye on its property assets; the Carlow site alone was said to be worth €150 million.
But that was then, at the height of the boom. Apart from clearing, cleaning and fencing the site, Greencore has made no further move to advance its ambitious plan; not even a planning application has yet been lodged. “It now looks like a future opportunity rather than an immediate prospect,” as Watters delicately put it.
Plans to redevelop the former Minch Norton site as a shopping centre, unveiled by developer Myles Crofton in 2004, also didn’t proceed even though permission was granted and even extended. Also stalled is a scheme by Thompson Holdings for another major retail development, incorporating a 25-metre swimming pool and multiplex cinema.
Carlow County Council had pitched for a share of the Government’s decentralisation programme, even before it was announced in 2003. At one stage, it looked as if Teagasc, the agriculture authority, would transfer to Carlow, where its national tillage centre is already located. But strong opposition from staff in Dublin scuppered this move.
There was no enthusiasm in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment for moving to Carlow either. A 2004 survey found that only three of the 103 in senior ranks of the department – then headed by Mary Harney – were interested, and just over a quarter of more junior staff. But the decentralisation steamroller could not be stopped.
A new spec-built office block on O’Brien Road, east of the town centre, was leased to accommodate the first tranche of 100 civil servants from the Companies Registration Office, the Registry of Friendly Societies, the National Employment Rights Authority and sections dealing with work permits, redundancy and insolvency payments.
Under a public-private partnership (PPP) project with Macquarie, three purpose-built blocks, with office space for the full complement of 250 “decentralised” staff, were to be built on the Town Hall’s car park by the end of this year. This hasn’t – and won’t – happen, as it was one of the “PPP bundle” of decentralisation projects shelved in 2008.
Meanwhile, Carlow County Council is facing an investigation of alleged planning irregularities by an independent inspector – probably from abroad – who is expected to be appointed shortly by John Gormley. It is understood that this follows the presentation by a locally based architect and his client of a 500-page dossier detailing complaints.
The dossier was examined in 2008 by the local government auditor, who found that there were “corporate governance” issues within the planning department, questions over the use of special development contributions, planning time being extended at quarries, planning enforcement and safeguarding the council’s assets.
But at least Carlow can rejoice in its new Visual Arts Centre and George Bernard Shaw Theatre. designed by London architect Terry Pawson. It was built on on a site donated by St Patrick’s College at a cost of €15 million to the Carlow local authorities and opened last September. “We were thinking big,” Joe Watters said at the time.
“It’s doing fantastic,” he enthused last week, with 24,000 theatre seats filled over the past nine months – an occupancy rate of 77 per cent, compared with a national average of 58 per cent. No headcount has been done for visitors to the huge art spaces but he said exhibitions were attracting a “good footfall” and the cafe is “thriving”.
THE TOWN’S REAL ANCHOR and largest employer is Carlow Institute of Technology, with 3,000 full-time and 2,000 part-time students making it one of largest third-level institutions in Leinster (outside the Dublin area). It is estimated to generate about €70 million annually for the local economy and underpins the rental market for apartments.
Amenities within easy reach include Mount Wolseley Country Resort, which includes a four-star 140-bedroom hotel, 66 holiday cottages and a golf course. Developed by Donal Morrissey, it is said to be doing well – not least because of its relative proximity to Dublin. Even more captivating is Kilgraney Country House and spa outside Bagenalstown.
