Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 May 2026
331. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht when the 2026 town and village renewal scheme will be opened for applications; the amount of funding that will be allocated to the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38286/26]
View answer332. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht the amount of funding that was allocated to groups in Cork under previous iterations of the town and village renewal scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38287/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 331 and 332 together.
The Town and Village Renewal Scheme (TVRS) introduced in 2016, is designed to rejuvenate rural towns and villages throughout Ireland. This scheme places particular emphasis on projects which support sustainable employment creation, town centre resilience and regeneration, the enhancement of our streetscapes, and bringing derelict buildings and sites back into use as multi-purpose community spaces.
TVRS is delivered in partnership with local authorities and primarily targets funding at areas with populations of less than 10,000 people. Applications for towns with populations of up to 15,000 people are also accepted where the project is of a high quality, displays good value for money and has the potential to significantly benefit the town.
Over €210m has been allocated to over 1,900 projects since the launch of the scheme. Of this, over €11 million has been allocated to 103 projects across Cork City and County Councils. I announced the most recent round of funding under the 2025 Town and Village Renewal Scheme in December of last year, where €26.2 million was allocated to 116 projects. Of this, almost €1.4 million was allocated to 8 projects across Cork under the Main Scheme and Project Development Measure.
In April I announced a new call for proposals under the Building and Land Acquisition Measure of the Town and Village Renewal Scheme. This makes up to €500,000 available to each eligible local authority to purchase up to three vacant or derelict buildings and lands for regeneration purposes. Under the previous iteration of this measure, Cork County Council received funding of € 410,000 for the acquisition of properties in Mitchelstown and Dunmanway.
TVRS priorities are reviewed and updated at the end of each scheme year. The details of the next iteration of TVRS are currently being developed and it is my intention to issue a call for proposals under the Main Scheme and Project Development Measure strands of the scheme later this year.
