Regeneration is front and centre on Flower Hill

Substantial funding will be available to property owners on Flower Hill to improve their frontages, as part of the regeneration of the area under the Urban Renewal Scheme.

There are proposals for the Active Travel cycle and pedestrian scheme and options are being explored for community facilities, while planning permission has already been granted for the riverside park which will form part of the regeneration of Flower Hill.

At a meeting of Navan Municipal Council, senior engineer, Wendy Bagnall said that as part of the Street Enhancement Scheme, there were proposals for site by site improvements to building frontages and their settings along Flower Hill. This will include shops, other commercial businesses and residential properties.

"Works will also involve the restoration and lighting of historic frontages to highlight Flower Hill’s built heritage," she said.

Every building on the street has been assessed and the work needed to be done has been detailed by consultants who have identified where buildings need new work on chimneys, soffit, guttering, pipes, windows, doors, walls, plaster and signage.

"We will need to have buy in from the property owners, but there is excellent funding for this work, nearly 100 per cent funding," she said.

Ms Bagnall was updating councillors on the current status of proposed public realm schemes in Navan, including the redevelopment of the former Spicers Bakery and Andy Brennan Park, Railway Street/County Archive, Flowerhill and the Johnstown Village Project.

She said the Public Realm and Regeneration Plan for Johnstown village included the preparation of a single planning application for the development of a key vacant site in the centre of the village and the implementation of the proposed public realm and active travel interventions. Consultants have been appointed for this project, background research is ongoing and a pre-draft public consultation survey will take place.

Cllr Francis Deane said Johnstown was a great village. "I'd like to see any development blend into the village itself and I would not like to see anything too high density," he said.

As regards the proposals for the Spicers site, a Part 10 application has been under consideration by An Bord Pleanála since December 2022.

Meanwhile the planning application for the County Archive in the old St Patrick School has been completed and an application will be made for funding of €6.5million for that project.