Young people of Kilkenny are to benefit from a fun new cafe, band rehearsal room and hang out space at MacDonagh Junction shopping centre following the hand over of The Drum youth cafe from the local authority to Foroige on Wednesday.
The paperwork was signed publicly before invited guests who were offered a tour of the contemporary facility which boasts ample space, a fully stocked cafe, office space, rehearsal space for bands and a hang out area.
The fit out was architecturally designed by Reddy Architects and Glenman construction completed the building of the facility. The €700,000 project was co-funded by Kilkenny County Council, the HSE and the Rapid programme.
Project manager Sean Cooke said the designers and contractors truly understood the brief - the sense of space and quality and durability of finish will ensure this centre will last the test of time.
The centre will be open to 10 - 26 year olds and it is planned that all youth clubs in the county will have access to it. The focus is that a range of services be provided for young people in one centre.
Emma Conway of Ballyhale Foroige officially welcomed all to the event and introduced the speakers to the guests.
First to welcome the space was the council chairperson Cllr Michael O’ Brien who congratulated all who had been involved in the project and he specifically mentioned the IAP monitoring committee who oversaw the project from inception to fruition.
The Lord Mayor Cllr Malcolm Noonan made a point of acknowledging the role of young people in the process and identified the Drum as one of the finest facilities of its kind if not the best. “The challenge now is to ensure it continues to get the required resources to make it a thriving success and there may be some doubt over this,” he said.
Marie Kennedy of the HSE added, “with the huge range of issues affecting young people today, it is timely that such a development should happen, the HSE is delighted to be associated with such a unique project and look forward to working closely with Foroige.”
Finally Donie Butler MacDonagh Junction manager said that he were extremely pleased to be associated with the new facility for young people. He added, “it is appropriate that it be located in the shopping centre area which already caters for young people’s needs with facilities such as retail and the bowling alley already in operation.”
He asked for there to be more of a focus on the development of tourism in the eastern environs, which he said did not receive the same attention as other parts of the city.”
The centre is now open for business and young people are welcome to come and have a coffee at the cafe which is located at the top of the outdoor courtyard to the front of MacDonagh Junction, (behind the credit union ). An official opening will take place in October when the programmes organised for the centre will be announced.
