Pictured at the commencement of enabling works for the Abbeylands Regeneration Project are Fiona McIntyre, Senior Staff Officer, Cavan County Council, Planning Section; Nicholas O'Kane, Senior Planner; Liam O'Reilly, Senior Executive Architect; Eoin Doyle, Chief Executive; Cathaoirleach, Cllr TP O'Reilly; Shane Hunter, MCB Civils Limited and Brendan Jennings, Director of Services.

Enabling works underway on Abbeylands Regeneration Project

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On-site enabling works are now underway to prepare the ground for the transformative Abbeylands Regeneration project in Cavan Town.

The works, which will include stabilisation of existing historic structures, demolition of the former McIntyre’s furniture store/bowling alley building and part of the former Donohoe’s Foodfare building, are being undertaken by MCB Civils Limited.

In recognition of the historic nature of the site, all work is being undertaken under the supervision of both a Grade 1 Conservation Architect and Archaeologist under licence from National Monuments Service at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. This work will be undertaken as sensitively as possible in order to preserve the area’s unique character and heritage.

Once this work is complete, it is anticipated that the main construction work will be awarded in late spring 2025 following the conclusion of the European wide tender process.

Cathaoirleach of Cavan County Council, Cllr T.P. O’Reilly, has welcomed the start of the enabling works, which pave the way for the commencement of construction work in early 2025. “It is truly exciting to see these initial preparatory works get underway at Abbeylands, ahead of the appointment of a main contractor next year,” he said.

“This project will be truly transformative for Cavan’s town core, breathing new life into an historic part of the town, which had sadly succumbed to dereliction in recent years. I look forward to following the progress of this exciting project in the months to come,” added Cllr O’Reilly.

In 2021, Cavan County Council successfully secured funding of €14.49 million for The Abbeylands Regeneration Project under Call 2 of the Urban Regeneration Development Fund (URDF), administered by the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage. When complete, Phase 1 of the project will include:

- The design and construction of a re-imagined multi-functional public plaza, including a new 2,255m2 civic space in the heart of the town, with shared surfaces onto Abbey Street, establishing this as a civic destination, and with new pedestrian links to Town Hall and Main Street.

- A state-of-the-art 939m2 community hub building, integrating services together in one place, to work collaboratively, and provide a centrally located, dedicated one-stop-shop for the public.

- A new Remote Working/Business Innovation Centre with the capacity to accommodate up to 100 persons per day.

Chief Executive of Cavan County Council, Eoin Doyle, said: “The Abbeylands Regeneration is a hugely significant project for Cavan Town and the commencement of this initial enabling work is most welcome. I want to acknowledge the efforts of our staff who have brought the project to this stage, the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage for their funding support, and of course our own elected members who have provided support in the form of match funding for this and many other significant projects in the county.”

The project is expected to be completed in quarter four of 2027. As with any large project of this scale, there may be some traffic disruption as a result of construction traffic, however a detailed traffic management plan will be implemented to limit this disruption.

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