Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I support all the Senator's comments on the historic regeneration of Castlebar town under our town centre first policy. It is critical that we support projects like this and it is what the funding is doing. It is a similar case with Castlebar Military Barracks. The Senator had a military career in those barracks. I was born in James Stephens Barracks in Kilkenny and I grew up on the campus there. I am aware of the immense cultural and heritage value of these barracks and what they mean to local communities in particular. I also recognise that Castlebar is the county town of Mayo . I am due to visit the county in the next couple of days. I am looking forward to that because it is a wonderful county.

The urban regeneration and development fund, URDF, is one of four funds established under the National Development Plan 2018-2027. It was launched in 2018, primarily to support the national planning framework's growth enablers for the five cities and other large urban centres. The URDF is providing part-funding for applicant-led projects that will support more compact and sustainable development and enable a greater proportion of residential and mixed-use development to be delivered within the existing built-up footprints of our cities and large towns, while also ensuring 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 and visit.

In keeping with the aims of the national planning framework and Project Ireland 2040, the URDF demonstrates a new and more tailored approach to the provision of Government support. Over its planned duration up to 2030, URDF support in excess of €2 billion will be targeted in an integrated, dynamic and responsive way to support the regeneration and rejuvenation of our towns and cities. Through the URDF, successful applicants receive targeted integrated support for innovative holistic solutions to the issues that have hindered the regeneration and rejuvenation of our large towns and cities.

To date, there have been two calls for proposals under the URDF with a total of almost €312 million allocated so far in respect of the 87 projects approved under call 1, while in March 2021 URDF funding support of €1.3 billion was announced in respect of a countrywide programme of a further 45 proposals approved under call 2. The 45 proposals approved under call 2 in 2021 build on the existing pipeline of URDF-supported projects launched under call 1. This URDF-supported programme of projects will ultimately contribute significantly to the transformative regeneration and development of our large towns and cities and to the achievement of national planning framework and Project Ireland 2040 objectives.

Under call 2 of the URDF, a total of a little more than €11 million has been provisionally allocated to Mayo County Council for the two projects to which this matter relates. The Castlebar historic core reactivation initiative project was allocated €8.527 million and the Castlebar Military Barracks project was allocated was allocated €2.5 million. The URDF support for the Mayo County Council's projects, as with all other successful URDF proposals, is approved in principle subject to appropriate appraisal, justification and advancement in accordance with the public spending code.

The Department works closely with the successful applicants in respect of project funding but responsibility for the advancement of URDF-supported projects through the various stages of planning, development and completion is, in the first instance, a matter for the sponsoring agency, which in this case is Mayo County Council. All URDF-supported projects must be carefully developed and managed by the sponsoring agency in accordance with the normal conditions and arrangements that apply to public sector-managed projects, including exercising appropriate cost control and delivering projects as approved, and managing its advancement through the various decision stages set out in the public spending code. As part of this public spending code process Mayo County Council has submitted a preliminary business case in respect of each of these two projects and following their evaluation the Department will be in touch with the council on the matter in due course.