Construction has begun on the new Meakstown Community Centre in Dublin 11.
A new centre for the area has been in the pipeline for several years after councillors raised concerns about the lack of facilities in the community.
Mayor of Fingal, councillor 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,” a council spokesperson said.
It 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, and 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, councillor 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.”
Sinn Fein TD Dessie Ellis says the new community centre is “really fantastic looking” and that local representatives “have been chasing it for years.
“There are 3,000 more units due to be built in the area and there are no facilities,” he says.
“This is the first time something major has been delivered for the community.”
The chairman of Meakestown Community Centre, Robbie Loughlin, said that “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.”