Fundraising, Financials and Footpaths!

As the development at the centre of Murroe village has taken shape in the past two years it is time for an update on its progress and future plans. Many of you now exercise on our new 800m walking track or come to the artificial surface pitch for sports. Very soon your teens and young adults will have a state of the art skatepark to enjoy and get some outdoor physical activity. Just before going to print with this article we have received funding to extend the walking footpath around the entire site with accompanying lighting. We hope to see this completed by Autumn 2020, just in time for winter nights of walking.

The community of Murroe/Boher rejoiced with the Board of Murroe Wood Park when we received news late last year of our successful application to the Rural Regeneration & Development Fund. We have been awarded a fund of €3.8million in partnership with Ballyhoura Development. Of course, this money is not sitting in our bank account and is only released in stages after each piece of work is completed and certified. This very significant investment will allow us to create a true community centre as phase three of this extensive project. We will deliver a building and outdoor spaces for recreation across the generations. Early in the New Year we will appoint the team of professionals who will design the community building and manage the construction. It is planned that we will break ground on this site in the second half of next year.

This grant funding is one of many which Murroe Wood Park has been successful in obtaining since 2016. These are listed in the table below. Each and every one of these grant bids takes a volunteer team many weeks work. The application forms are often very long and tedious, running to hundreds of pages. It is important to remember that while the funds received seem very large, they will not complete the project in its entirety. The local community is always expected to contribute a ‘matched’ amount of money, often in the region of 10%. In order to complete the full Murroe Wood Park vision, we must still fundraise a minimum of €400,000. Of course, this will not be possible by depending on donations from the people of Murroe/Boher alone but we will be returning to the fundraising stage in April 2020 so keep a close eye out for our next extravaganza. Each fundraising effort brings us closer to the day when we complete Murroe Wood Park to its full potential, enriching our community and its people.

Name of schemeFunding organisationAmount of funding
Town & Village Renewal Scheme 2019Dept of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs€70,879
Digital Technologies Fund 2019Dept. of Rural & Community Development€17,250
Sports Capital Programme 2018Dept. of Transport, Tourism & Sport€55,621
Rural Regeneration & Development Fund 2018Dept. of Rural & Community Development€3,800,000
2018 Community Enhancement ProgrammeDept. of Rural and Community Development€5,000
LEADER Rural Development Programme 2014-2020Dept. of Rural & Community Development €127,671
Sports Capital Programme 2017Dept. of Transport, Tourism & Sport€67,500
Communities Facilities Scheme 2017Dept. of Rural and Community Development€1,000
Healthy Limerick Funding 2017Local Community Development Committee, Limerick City & County Council€5,000
Town & Village Renewal Scheme 2017Dept of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs€99,389
IPB Community Social Engagement Fund 2016IPB Insurance€10,000
Hinterland Fund 2016Dept of Housing, Planning, Community & Local Government, & Limerick City & County Council€500,000

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