John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Boyhan for raising this issue and providing me with the opportunity to discuss the support available under the urban regeneration and development fund, URDF. The URDF is a flagship element of Project Ireland 2040, comprising an allocation of €2 billion in the national development plan, NDP, to 2027, with €58 million available in 2019 and an overall Exchequer allocation of €550 million earmarked for the fund up to the end of 2022.

The URDF was established to support more compact and sustainable development through the regeneration and rejuvenation of Ireland cities and large towns, in line with the objectives of the national planning framework and the NDP. This is to enable a greater proportion of residential and mixed-use development to be delivered within the existing built-up footprints of our cities and towns and to ensure that more parts of our urban areas can become attractive and vibrant places in which people choose to live and work, as well as to invest in and visit. Bids were invited from public bodies for funding under the URDF and a total of 189 applications were received by the Department under the first call for proposals. There were a number of such proposals from County Clare, but I cannot recall the exact figure at the moment. On 26 November 2018, the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, announced initial URDF support of €100 million for a total for 88 projects throughout the country. The applications received concerned a wide variety of themes and sectoral areas, from urban regeneration and public realm works to enabling strategic infrastructure to leverage further development, and cultural and amenity development.Applications received fall into two categories, namely, projects that are ready to go and, second, funding to support the initial development of projects, also referred to as master planning or feasibility, to ensure a pipeline of projects into the future. As part of the first call, Clare County Council was awarded urban regeneration and development fund support, including for the advancement of a master plan to enable planning for future projects in the Shannon area. The Department continues to engage with successful applicants from the first call, including Clare County Council, to agree project composition and sequencing, establish project cost certainty and manage URDF allocations. Once that process is complete, the Department will review the first call, and lessons learned will inform any refinements required for the next call.

In the meantime, Clare County Council should, in anticipation of the next call, consider further projects that might address the social and economic decline in the Shannon area. The Department of Rural and Community Development administers the rural regeneration and development fund, an allocation from which may be available for appropriate projects in the Shannon area. For sport and leisure facilities, we expect an announcement in the not too distant future of a call for new applications to the sports capital programme. In addition, the town and village renewal scheme is another scheme administered by the Department of Rural and Community Development that might be a source of funding for the Shannon area.

I am somewhat familiar with Shannon town, but I do not know it as well as the Senator does. Will he clarify what he said regarding the development plan? Clare County Council has secured funding for the master plan setting out what development should happen in the town and its surrounding areas into the future. The clear indication from the Department is that it is interested in developing Shannon, but there must be a properly planned series of programmes and initiatives for the greater Shannon area. Perhaps the Senator's colleagues in the council might be in a position to indicate when that master plan will be concluded.