In this era of boom, few Irish towns exude such a healthy air of prosperity as Mullingar. But then, as any visitor to the area will soon be told, "the thing to realise is that Mullingar has always been a wealthy place."
Set in the centre of rich agricultural land, for centuries this was a market town to which farmers were drawn. "Mullingar is a town with a degree of old money," explains Michael Fitzgerald, employment services manager for FAS in the midlands region, adding that the wealth of the area has provided a lot of stability.
Although there have been industrial closures - notable losses in recent years included Tarkett, which made floor coverings and at its peak had more than 400 employees - new businesses, such as IT company Foxtec and the American GMAC Commercial Mortgage Corporation, have taken up most of the slack and long-established ones, such as Van Nelle (formerly Douwe Egbert) and Data Packaging have settled in comfortably.
According to Mr Fitzgerald, at just over 5 per cent, unemployment in Mullingar and its immediate surrounds conforms to the national average.
The bypass which opened six years ago does not appear to have done the town any harm. On the contrary, no fewer than three technology and business parks are being built along the road and a fourth awaits planning permission.
Of these new developments, the Lake Point Retail and Business Park is due to start trading later this autumn, having confirmed Atlantic Homecare as its anchor store, taking 31,000 sq ft of the 80,000 available. On a 125-acre site, Lake Point will also include 400,000 sq ft of commercial buildings suitable for information technology, industry and business, as well as a mixture of 640 residential units.
Lake Point is located on the Dublin side of Mullingar, reflecting a key point in the town's favour: its relative proximity to the capital. The improved quality of roads in the region means that it is now possible to travel between Dublin and Mullingar in little more than an hour.
Many of the new housing estates going up on the outskirts of the town, therefore, are being built close to the Dublin road. This could mean that the town risks becoming yet another dormitory suburb for commuters working on the east coast.
However, Ned Timlin and Aine O'Meara, president and CEO respectively of Mullingar Chamber of Commerce, insist that Mullingar is sufficiently well-established and has enough indigenous businesses to ensure this fate does not await the town.
"I feel it's a centre which is attractive to families and they don't have to earn their money in Dublin," Mr Timlin states. He points out that Mullingar is the headquarters for Westmeath County Council, is home to an Army barracks and Garda divisional headquarters, holds a number of public and private hospitals and a range of schools and is the centre for the Meath diocese.
As a result, the town's population is expanding rapidly. Four years ago, the figure stood at 16,876 for the total catchment area and is now estimated to be 22,836, rising to over 30,000 by 2005.
To meet the requirements of the burgeoning community, the Chamber of Commerce is now hoping Mullingar might be able to provide third-level education locally. Last week, Ms O'Meara wrote to the Department of Education inquiring about the possibility of an outreach faculty. "We think it's something with potential," she says, "and it would add greatly to the town."
The chamber's other keen aspiration is for Mullingar to become the base for a decentralised government department. Most other major urban centres in the midlands - Longford, Tullamore, Athlone and Portlaoise - have benefited from the decentralisation programme and Mullingar feels distinctly neglected in this respect, despite the other advantages it enjoys. A decision in the matter is expected later this month.
Perhaps what Mullingar needs to acquire is a Cabinet presence. As local businessman Con Gilsenan observes, although the late Gerry L'Estrange of Fine Gael was a junior minister in the early 1980s, "there has never been a full minister from this town."
For the past 17 years, Mr Gilsenan has owned Con's on Dominick Street, one of the most popular bars in Mullingar, which, after taking over a former drapery shop next door, doubled in size last winter.
"The town is growing at a great pace from the residential and business point of view," he agrees. However, both he and many other residents say the most severe difficulties now faced by Mullingar relate to traffic congestion and parking.
Although the 1994 east-west bypass removed some traffic from the town centre, for the moment there is still a considerable volume of cars and lorries headed north and south through the relatively narrow streets.
In addition, because of the town's traditional role as a shopping destination for the surrounding area, incoming traffic remains heavy. Unfortunately, having reached their destination, there are few places in which these vehicles can park.
"Traffic and parking here are absolutely appalling," comments Garvan McGinley, former general secretary of the PDs and owner for the past two years of the Newbury Hotel. The hotel's former owner, his brother-in-law Sean Hughes, is planning to build a five-star hotel adjacent to one of the new technology parks on the bypass.
"It's going to have a very negative effect on the town's development if people coming in can't park," Mr McGinley predicts. "The Chamber of Commerce is endeavouring to move the thing on and encourage the development of a multi-storey car-park because there are a number of sites available."
The same point is also made by Mr Gilsenan, who warns that "the county council are going to have to deal with the situation; otherwise, traffic congestion will lead to our own downfall."
"The ringroad around Mullingar needs to be completed," Mr Fitzgerald says.
But this is one of the very few negative remarks to be made by anyone living and working in the town. The consensus seems to be that Mullingar's prospects have rarely been better. "At the moment, this is a sought-after place," Mr McGinley says.