Louth County Council appoints consultant for Dunleer Town Centre Masterplan

Louth County Council has announced the appointment of Building Design Partnership Ltd (BDP) as the Lead Urban Design Consultants for the Dunleer Town Centre Masterplan.

In December 2021, the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD, announced €2.6 million in funding for local authorities to deliver the first-ever Town Centre First Plans under the Government’s new “Town Centre First Policy”. This policy aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into Irish town centres.

Louth County Council has been allocated €100,000 from the Department to support the development of a Town Centre First Plan (masterplan) for a selected town. Following a successful application for funding Dunleer was selected for County Louth.

With funding now secured, Louth County Council will work closely with local community organisations, the business community and other relevant stakeholders through the creation of a new town team in the preparation of the masterplan. The new masterplan will focus on Dunleer town centre and immediate surrounds. It will create a vision and set out specific objectives and interventions to help revitalise the town centre. 

Joan Martin, Chief Executive, Louth County Council, said: “Louth County Council was delighted to select Dunleer as the recipient of Department funding to re-imagine the town centre. Council will work with consultants, local businesses, and community members to implement a plan to improve Dunleer as a place to visit, work, and live.” 

Once the masterplan is delivered, national funding streams, through the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) and the Town & Village Renewal Scheme, will be accessed to assist in the delivery of the Plan’s specific objective and interventions.