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From:Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne TD, has today announced the list of projects that will be included under the new Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund programme.

With almost 120 projects across every local authority in the State, this new Government investment will fund transformative town and city regeneration projects.

Projects prioritised include the redevelopment of vacant or underused sites, public realm enhancements, and community and civic infrastructure.

The fund will support policies such as ‘Town Centre First’ and seek to focus funding in the most disadvantaged areas of our towns and cities.

An investment of €409 million will be available if local authorities can meet the targets set out in their applications for support.

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne TD said:

"I want the centres of our towns and cities to be places people want to hang out in, meet up, do the shopping and live in.

“We have to improve these areas in our towns because not only should they look well, but they should be usable and accessible. They should be places where everyone from teenagers to older people feel safe in and want to use, be proud of and enjoy.

“I am committing a major injection of funding for towns around the country and I want to see transformative regeneration. I know it’s badly needed particularly in some areas.

“People are frustrated with decline in some of our towns and I want to see councils put this funding to good use and quickly.

“I am funding what I see as a really decent pipeline of good projects that have an eye to the future.

“I am particularly pleased to include over 30 projects that will be designed for, or built in, areas of disadvantage, providing local authorities with the money to drive on with much needed regeneration and renewal in key areas where local communities cannot and should not be left behind.

"I wish to commend local authorities for their submissions which reflect their ambition and commitment to the programme. I would also like to thank the community groups and social enterprises who have collaborated with them in creating projects that will have a lasting effect on their locality."

The Department will now begin contacting local authorities regarding the next steps they need to take to deliver on this ambition.

Projects supported under the Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund fall into two categories.

Category 1A projects will support longer-term projects that will be delivered in the later years of the National Development Plan (NDP), while Category 1B focuses on projects that can be delivered in the short-term with up to €9m available in shared funding for projects that can be on-site by September 2027.

A full list of approved projects under Round 1 of the Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund can be found here:

On 5 March last, Minister James Browne, T.D., Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage announced a new Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund which, while replacing the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF), will continue to build on its success to date and apply many of the key criteria established by Government in 2018 for the URDF. The new Fund will continue to support urban regeneration projects and the development of sustainable communities through the provision of part-funding for applicant-led projects. In doing so, it will significantly contribute to the regeneration and rejuvenation of Ireland’s cities and other large towns, in line with the objectives of the National Planning Framework and the National Development Plan.

There have been three calls for funding provided under the former URDF which has resulted in the allocation of €1.9 billion of funding, with URDF supported projects active in every local authority area in the Country. While Calls 1 and 2 were for specific regeneration projects, the third round of funding (Call 3) is specifically focussed towards addressing long term vacancy and dereliction, while supporting the key objectives of Housing for All and Town Centre First.

In line with commitments set out in the Programme for Government, a review of Census data was carried out to also include towns with a population of 9,000 in the criteria for eligibility. Portarlington has been added to the list of Towns and Cities Regeneration Investment Fund eligible towns on that basis. The new Fund will also continue to apply to some smaller towns with fewer than 10,000 people where they generate 2,500 jobs or more.

Most Local Authorities were restricted to applying for a maximum of two projects under each category. Local authorities with 5 or more eligible towns or city areas, were allowed to apply for 3 projects under each category.