Construction To Get Underway On Clare County Library In New Year

Construction work on the new county library in Ennis will begin on January 6th.

The sod turning ceremony for the project, which now has a projected cost of over 13 million euro, has taken place in Ennis today.

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Minister for Rural and Community Development Michael Ring, and Mayor of Clare Councillor Cathal Crowe, formally turned the sod for the new county library, a project which is one of the biggest infrastructural investments in Clare in recent years.

The new facility will be connected with glór, and will operate on an out of hours system, meaning members will be able to access its services on a 24/7 basis.

The costs are now projected at close on 14 million euro – this number has jumped, it has understood, in part because of construction inflation.

Kilmihil-based Keating Construction are the lead builders.

Despite some delays over the past few years, County Librarian Helen Walsh says it will progress quickly now.

Funding has come from a range of sources, including a Council loan, from Europe, from the Southern Regional Assembly, and from government.

Minister Ring says he’s pleased that it’s getting off the ground.

This lunchtime, Minister Ring is attending an engagement at the People’s Park in Clarecastle and this afternoon he travels onto Ennistymon to open the latest of Clare’s digital hubs.

Over €2 million in total has gone into this multi-service innovation centre; €1m from Clare County County and a further million from the government’s Rural Regeneration Fund.

The facility will be located in the old Super Valu building on Parliament Street, which has been refurbished to include internet suites, office space and more.

Head of Information Systems with Clare County Council Urban McMahon explains why it’s so significant.