Good news for the town.

The town of Skibbereen has been named as one of the 26 towns to be included in Ireland’s Town Centre First Plans.

The goal of the initiative is to revitalise rural towns, and Cork City Council has been granted €100,000 to devise a masterplan for Skibbereen in order to harness its potential and “identify projects that will generate social, economic and environmental benefits for the town.”

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Gillian Coughlan welcomed the funding, saying “Skibbereen is a fantastic, vibrant and bustling market town, known for its colourful, traditional shopfronts and buildings.

“The town has huge potential from a business and a tourism perspective. Skibbereen serves a broad population base, taking in rural and coastal areas as well as several inhabited islands.

“I know that the funding from the Department of Rural and Community Development will provide a major boost. Cork County Council will continue to work with community and businesses in Skibbereen, as well as the Council’s local Town Team who have a wealth of knowledge. It is through this collaboration and cooperation that we can reach the town’s potential and achieve great things.”

CEO of Cork County Council Tim Lucey also noted that a priority of the plan will be to tackle dereliction and vacancy. He said: “We have great plans for Skibbereen and this is an important first step. The Town Centre First Plan will be bespoke to Skibbereen – we want to revitalise the town by tackling dereliction and vacancy.

“There will also be a focus on decarbonisation and sustainability, maintaining a strong local economy, creating high value job opportunities and promoting compact growth. This is what rural development is all about, it is supporting places like Skibbereen to make our town and village centres more attractive places to live, work, socialise, visit and run a business.”