First sod turned on new Meakstown Community Centre

The first sod has been turned on the new Meakstown Community Centre in Dublin 11.

Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Howard Mahony, accompanied by the Chair of Meakstown Community Council, Robbie Loughlin, and the Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, AnnMarie Farrelly, performed the ceremony at the site of the new centre in Lanesborough Park.

The spectacular new circular building, which has been designed by an Integrated Design Team led by Henchion Reuter Architects, will be energy efficient and will include:

• A three-court sports hall
• Four large multipurpose rooms for activities such as dance classes, yoga sessions, pilates, training workshops and community meetings
• An inclusive Changing Places facility
• Parking provision for 40 bicycles, including electric bikes, cargo bikes and scooters.

The new centre will cost €7.5million and is being completely funded by Fingal County Council.

The Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Howard Mahony, said: “I’m delighted we are beginning the construction phase of what will be a truly wonderful facility that will cater for a wide range of community, recreational, education and sporting activities in the area. Ever since the first housing developments were built, which is over 20 years now, there has rightly been a desire to get something like this new community facility in Meakstown.”

The chairman of Meakestown Community Centre, Robbie Loughlin, said: “We, as a community in Meakstown, welcome this massive project to our area. It will change the lives of our residents and we thank Fingal County Council for this. It is a massive investment in a young, diverse area that will bring people even more together in a time when we need it more than ever.”

The Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, AnnMarie Farrelly, said: “Building communities is a very important part of the work we do as a Council and the new Community Centre in Meakstown is going to be an important addition to the social infrastructure we have in place across the county.”

Around the new Community Centre there will be pedestrianised walkways and cycle paths to help encourage greater active travel in the community, alongside landscape gardening that will include a unique raingarden to increase biodiversity. 

This will be in addition to the wider development of Lanesborough Park which will deliver play & fitness spaces, a community and sensory Garden, a central avenue for community events and a viewing terrace that will function as a place to watch sports matches and additional seating.

The Council is currently finalising procurement for the development of a new destination playground in Lanesborough Park with a view to works commencing in mid-2023.  A further tender is in preparation for the redevelopment of the remaining areas in the park, in line with the approved Lanesborough Park Development Plan.