Cllrs hear of plans for community facilities at old Gilson School

Plans for a community centre in the old Gilson School in Oldcastle were outlined to councillors at a meeting of Kells Municipal Council last week.

Concerned at the lack of community facilities in town, the Oldcastle Community Development Association (OCDA) is hoping to develop community facilities in the original 1832 Gilson School building, which was replaced by the current National School in 1977.`

"The Old Gilson School, an iconic building in Oldcastle, could become a wonderful community hub and focal point,"said Tracey Holsgrove of OCDA.

"We do not have a community centre, we don't have a focal hub that is open for everyone to come into. We do have vision for one of our iconic buildings in Oldcastle, the old Gilson School.

"When you come into Oldcastle cannot but notice the old Gilson endowed school, a building which dates back to 1800s.

"The building is a beautiful building. It is a huge resource and a huge part of Oldcastle's history."

She explained that it currently comprises of a central building and two wings. "The roof is caving in on those two wings. Sometnhig needs to be done soon. The central part would have to have something to do with education because that was laid out ion Laurence Gilson's endowment. It could be a place for classes to be held and community offices. One wing could be a heritage centre and the other a social centre.

"We are very keen to celebrate our heritage and culture. A lot of people are not catered for in the community. There is a whole lot of new housing coming. We have a plan, a vision for a beautiful, beautiful building in the heart of the town. There is a lot of good will towards it."

Director of Services, Darragh McGowan, said if the building is in danger of falling down it could be a priority for funding and he would go to Oldcastle to look at it,

Meanwhile, Ms Holsgrove said they recognised the importance of the Oldcastle Public Realm and Fair Green Regeneration plans to the town of Oldcastle, and asked councillors to do all in their power to help get these projects over the line. she emphasised the value of an amenity such as is planned for the Fair Green in enhancing community cohesion.

She said that they had been disappointed that funding hadn't been made available but hoped the the schemes could be put forward for the next tranche of RDF funding.

"As a committee we fully recognise that both plans are of equal importance. Some times the community feels that they don't see very much happening. We feel the Fairgreen regeneration would be very visible, very tangible. We don;t have many public amenities in the town. We think this would be a good one to push. We would love the see the public frealm completed, but if we had to chose between the two, if one had to happen first, we like to push that one forward.

"It would be great to see this going ahead and for us to have something we could say is for everyone. Not just the proposed playground, although that is an imporant part of it, but just somewhere where people could sit down have a coffee and watch the word go past. It would help enhance community spirit."

Sue Russell raised questions from other community groups in Oldcastle about derelict buildings in the town, litter and bin emptying.