A NEW community centre, set to breathe life into the village of Kilcoo, has been officially opened.
The facility, which cost over £600,000 is Kilcoo GAC’s long-held dream come true in providing a state of the art Community Centre for its people.
The centre hosts a number of rooms and a large indoor gym space, as well as kitchen and toilet facilities, the new centre is intended to be a shared space for the community and will enable a range of activities to take place including health and fitness programmes, courses and training, as well as events such as birthday parties and business meetings.
There is also potential for the centre to be used by a range of community groups such as Mothers and Toddlers, with significant interest already being expressed by other groups.
Driven by a desire to give back to the community, this project was made possible through the hard work and determination of Kilcoo GAC members.
They received funding of over £350,000 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Space & Place Programme. The project also received support from Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, and UCIT, with the remaining deficit was provided by Kilcoo GAC.
Club chairman Terry O’Hanlon said: “This new community centre is being met with a warm welcome from the people of Kilcoo and its surrounding community.
“It will no doubt fulfil the hopes, needs and dreams we all share but especially for the generations coming after us.”
“The new community centre will provide a social hub that will help improve the health and wellbeing for the whole village regardless of age, ability and beliefs through the new facilities and services.
“This new centre marks a milestone for Kilcoo and the surrounding area and I hope it will serve the needs of all of the people of Kilcoo and beyond.
Mr O’Hanlon added: “On behalf of the entire Kilcoo community I would like to thank the Big Lottery Fund, the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, Newry Mourne and Down District Council and the Ulster Community Investment Trust for enabling us to create this fantastic new facility. It will bring tremendous benefits to our community.”
Michael Hughes, co-ordinator of the Space & Place Programme, said: “The Space & Place Consortium is thrilled with the amazing space which has been created for the local community by Kilcoo GAC.
“This is a state of the art facility which has been constructed on derelict ground following a great deal of initiative by the club and a desire to provide an essential space which can be shared by everyone in the area.
“It is a really vital investment in community life and one which we hope will create greater community connections and help address social isolation in the area.”
Julie Harrison, Big Lottery Fund NI chairman, said: “We believe this wonderful new space, which has been made possible thanks to the generosity of National Lottery players, will make a real difference to the lives of many people by providing a space for them to come together and improve the area that they live in.”