After a number of years lobbying Bord Failte to move the tourist office from its inaccessible site in Athlone Castle, the town council was able to announce some measure of success this week when it was revealed the office would spend “the entirety of 2010” on the ground floor of the Civic Centre.
Knowing there were major renovations planned for the castle for next year, a three-member delegation from the town council met with the head of Bord Failte last month and he agreed to a temporary relocation for the duration.
This was revealed by town clerk, Mr John Walsh, at the monthly meeting earlier this week (November 2 ).
Due to its difficult location and poor signage, a number of previous attempts to move the office from the castle to either the Fr Mathew building or the Civic Centre on account of its underuse fell on deaf ears at the tourism HQ over the last number of years.
However, with the planned renovations to start early in the new year in the castle, the delegation of Sheila Buckley-Byrne (Ind ), Alan Shaw (FG ) and Aengus O’Rourke (FF ) was able to find a more amenable ear at the previously intransigent agency.
“I am delighted with the outcome. The issue was about accessibility,” said Cllr Buckley-Byrne.
“I look forward to see what the evaluation [of the situation] brings out at the end of next year.”
