It is anticipated that construction on the new Garrycastle Bridge will commence within the next three years, while the Abbey Road sewer should be completed within the same period.
An outline of the main projects in the county to be commenced or completed in the next three years was presented to councillors this week.
While county manager Dan McLoughlin admitted the current economic environment is not conducive to forward planning, citing restrictions on borrowing and the collapse of income from development levies, the report attempts to point out what it is hoped will transpire in the coming years.
The Abbey Road sewer scheme, scheduled for completion by 2013, is the first contract of the Athlone Main Drainage Scheme. The detailed design for the overall scheme will be completed within the same timeframe. A €6 million mains rehabilitation programme in Athlone and Mullingar is also likely to proceed, while a domestic water metering programme is likely to get underway this year, though the nature of the programme is as yet unknown.
Subject to finance, it is hoped that the Railway Field Road in Athlone will also be completed, while it is not specified when progress will be made on the Loughandonning Link Road.
Other local projects of significance which will be completed include the N55/ Two Mile Road junction improvement in Athlone, and cycle networks in Athlone and Mullingar.
County-wide, the manager says it is unlikely that more than 40 housing units will be added to the county’s housing stock within the next three years. There will be a continuing emphasis on long-term letting arrangements, with the Rental Accommodation Scheme in particular to grow from the current 275 participants towards 400 this year. Small schemes in Ballymore and Castletown will be completed in the second quarter of this year.
The Playground Provision Programme will continue with a greater emphasis on shared resources within communities, while the Lakeshore Amenity Programme will only be progressed to the extent that funding opportunities are forthcoming from Failte Ireland or the rural development programme.
