James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Noel Ahern, for taking this matter. I wish to impress on him the need to clarify the position on once-off funding for Kenagh community centre, County Longford, which was built at a cost of €662,000 in a small rural parish of approximately 700 people. They are finding it difficult to pay the outstanding loan of €240,000 on this valuable community amenity and are seeking funding from the Government to pay half of the loan amount.

Between 2000 and 2003, the Kenagh community centre committee worked hard to raise funds and sought to put in place a first-class facility for sport, recreation and entertainment, a place for the community to meet and grow. This type of facility has been provided in Kenagh and in other communities throughout the country to combat the drug and drink culture which we all know is responsible for an upsurge in violence, killings and carnage on our roads. Such a centre is the heart of any local community and an invaluable asset. This facility is now in place alongside Kenagh football club and the two complement each other very well. Kenagh GAA club gave the site to the community on a 99-year lease, a very generous gesture that was much appreciated.

As with all such ventures, goodwill and funding are of greatest importance. The goodwill in the area was evident from the start and local support for fund-raising has been more than generous. However, funding at national level is required to support the outstanding voluntary effort.

The Kenagh community centre cost €662,000 to build. The sports hall has a maple floor that cost €44,000 to install. The committee received a grant of €114,000 from the national lottery fund, €38,000 from the Leader II programme and €10,000 from Longford County Council. In effect, the local community has received approximately one quarter of the total cost, leaving three quarters for it to find itself. This is hardly an equitable situation, given the current national prosperity and considering the benefits that have accrued to the community from this project.

The parish of Kenagh has a mere 240 families, which amounts to approximately 700 people. The community relies heavily on the catchment area for the use of this facility but this does not help it to pay off the loan, which amounts to €240,000 over a 15-year period. Last year the community centre committee laid a tarmacadam surface which cost €40,000 and installed an electric timer in the sports hall. The committee applied for a national lottery grant but was turned down because it was not considered a high priority, but these improvements were very necessary to the centre.

The Kenagh committee is seeking a once-off allocation, with no matching funding, and would be happy with an amount equal to half of the outstanding loan. Perhaps the Minister of State will consider this, given that small rural communities do not have large enough populations to finance projects such as this, which bring enormous benefits. I plead with the Minister of State to give the matter his consideration and ensure that the committee will be granted half of the €240,000 loan that is still outstanding. The local community will pay the remainder, if the Minister of State is generous with funding.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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While I hear what the Senator is saying, I am somewhat at a loss as to why he has raised this matter on the Adjournment. The Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs does not have funding available and does not operate a scheme of funding for the building of community centres. I accept that there may be a need for such a fund, but at present, there is none.

The programme of grants for locally-based community and voluntary organisations, funded by my Department, supports the activities of local voluntary and community groups addressing disadvantage in their community. I stress that the scheme is particularly geared towards disadvantage. The programme has benefited thousands of locally-based community and voluntary organisations throughout the country.

Under the 2005 programme, I provided funding in excess of €5.5 million for over 500 groups across the country. This represented a sizeable increase of some €2 million over the 2004 programme. The organisations funded cover a broad spectrum of local voluntary and community activity but the common thread in all projects is that they aim to address disadvantage in their communities. Details of the groups which received funding under the programme are published on my Department's website at www.pobail.ie. I am sure there are groups in the Senator's constituency that received funding.

The programme includes a funding scheme for small-scale refurbishment of premises, including community halls. Grants of up to €40,000 are available for refurbishment purposes. Priority under the programme is given to disadvantaged communities with a greater priority accorded to self-help initiatives by disadvantaged groups and communities over proposals involving direct service provision.

The programme is advertised widely in the national and regional newspapers on an annual basis. It will be advertised again before the summer, in six to eight weeks' time. However, as I said, funding is very much geared towards disadvantage and refurbishment of existing community centres. No application for funding was received by my Department under the programme from Kenagh community centre. Again, I must point out that the programme does not cover the construction of community centres and there is no funding available or scheme operated by my Department for retrospective funding of such projects.

With regard to Leader funding, I am advised by Longford Community Resources Limited, a Leader company, that funding of €38,092 was made available by it to Kenagh Community Development Association towards the construction costs of a new community facility in 2002. Grant aid of the amount approved was paid on completion of the work in November 2003. No further application has been made to Longford Community Resources Limited relating to the community centre. It is not possible to make Leader funding available retrospectively to meet any shortfall that has arisen.

I hear what Senator Bannon has said but I do not know that I have a solution. I do not know if the centre has any tenants or if any office space in the centre is rented to any Government-funded programmes. I have seen cases where offices were made available for Government-funded programmes and centres then had tenants who paid rent, which was of some financial help. The Senator mentioned the Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism. I do not know if the committee has approached that Department this year. How much did the Senator say the county council gave? Was it €8,000 or €100,000?

James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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â'¬10,000.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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That does not seem overly generous. Who provided the site?

James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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The GAA gave the site.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Some local authorities in receipt of development levies have been quite generous with regard to the provision of community facilities. Development levies were intended, in part, for such provision. However, the committee might have a problem there because of the fact that the centre is already built. There is no single agency that can bail the committee out. Is the loan from the local authority or is it a commercial loan?

James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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The loan is from the banks. Small rural communities need some sort of a centre where young people can congregate. That is lacking in many communities. There should be some grant assistance available towards community centres.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I accept there is a gap. Many such centres emphasise the sporting element and approach the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism. Other than my Department's refurbishment grant for such centres and community halls, there is a gap. In recent years, the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism seems to have adopted a purer definition of what is meant by "sport".

Either way, there will be a problem in obtaining funding for something that already exists. The Longford Community Enterprise Centre might be of assistance. Perhaps the committee has knocked on every door. If the committee wishes to apply for funding for refurbishment or repairs, the scheme run by my Department might be of assistance, but only up to a maximum of €40,000. However, that would be for something new within the centre or for refurbishment. Other than that, I am afraid that I do not have a solution to the Senator's problem.

James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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I mentioned the refurbishment works involving the installation of the timer and the provision of tarmacadam outside the centre, which cost in the region of €40,000——

Rory Kiely (Fianna Fail)
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We cannot have a debate on this now.

James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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Would the Department's scheme cover that?

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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The application system will be open for that scheme in the next six to eight weeks. I am sure that not everybody is rich in County Longford and there are some disadvantaged people in the community. In order to qualify for our scheme, the application would have to specifically outline how the project assists disadvantaged people.

I am afraid I do not have a solution or a scheme which would match the requirements of the Kenagh community, apart from the various bodies I mentioned earlier. I advise the committee to approach the Longford Community Enterprise Centre, the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism and the local authority. If the committee is unable to meet the debt repayments, an approach to the local authority for funding from the development levy fund might be of some value.

James Bannon (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State.