Edgeworthstown Continues to Expand

The Park House Hotel in Edgeworthstown has announced an €8,000,000 renovation and expansion of their premises. The new hotel will have 50 rooms and new retail units, underground parking, bar, restaurant and conference rooms. The project is being undertaken by Cllr. Frank Kilbride. This is the second hotel planned for the town. Bannbrook Properties are soon to start on their five star hotel and retail complex in the centre of town. The project will have a 72 bedroom hotel, 30 apartments, five houses, 12 shops, a pub, restaurant and offices. The new hotel will also include a swimming pool and fitness centre as well as a bar and restaurant. Directors of Bannbrook are John Fergus and Fergal Sheridan.

Commercial properties remain unsold after auctions

Two properties on the main shopping streets were recently up for auction but did not reach their reserve prices and are currently in negotiations. The bookshop building was withdrawn at auction on Friday at €875,000 and O'Reillys premises are taking bids through CBRE.

New Report Shows Continued Growth in Longford Property Prices

The new quarterly report from Daft.ie is out and shows some interesting statistics for Longford.

• Longford houses are 49 % cheaper than Dublin Houses.
• April 05 – April 06 Longford house prices are up 13.8 % and since Jan this year house prices are up 5.5 %.
• April 2005 average house price €220,000 - Jan 06 average house price €252,000.

Longford near top of Tables for Social Housing

The Comptroller and Auditor General has released a report saying €1.6 billion was spent on rent supplement since 2000; More than 60,000 are receiving support. Longford continues to have a disproportionate number of renters on rent allowance or in local authority housing. Full details of the report are available at the Auditors website.

Carrigglass Manor Launches

Local developer Tom Kearns has launched his ambitious new development at Cullyfad. The village close to Longford town is growing fast with several new developments eithier underway or in the planning stages. The development will include: Superb 18-hole championship golf course and 3-hole golf academy, co-designed by World no.3 Retief Goosen and renowned golf course architect Jeff Howes. Brand new landmark 96 bedroom four star hotel, spa and leisure complex. Carrigglas Manor will be restored to comprise 19 five star suites. The house was designed by Daniel Robertson and completed in 1840. New homes are set around a purpose built village centre within the walls of the estate and on the edge of the championship golf course. Over 600 acres of parkland and woodland offering walks, equestrian centre and leisure activities all with the security offered by a walled estate. The first phase of houses will be launching in the Autumn.
Full details are available from the Longford County Council Website.

Positive Trends in Longford Property Prices

Longford house prices continue to increase with strong gains in 2005. Year end reports show prices nationally are up 9.3% with Longford beating the average and showing 11% increases. Most of the growth in prices came in the last few months of the year as prices increased dramatically after the summer. Westmeath prices are up 11% while Leitrim are only up 2%. Cavan is up 14% and Roscommon prices are up 12%. More details can be found at the ESRI website.
Total house completions last year were 973 which is a 7% increase over the previous years total. These numbers are small however when compared to Cavan which completed over 2100 houses in 2005. There is continued strong demand for farmland in County Longford with many local farmers looking for grazing land to let.

High Speed Broadband Comes to Longford Town

Crossan Cable are now one of the fastest internet providers in the country with over 9MB download speed available over their cable lines to their customers.

Property and construction are booming

The property and building sectors are currently enjoying a boom due to the Rural Renewal tax incentives. It seems as if the whole county is under construction and every second person you meet has planning in for a few houses or a new development. Here are a few projects currently under way.




On the construction side there are projects on the Market Square at the old Longford Leader office....And at the Courthouse.........



Lyons old meat factory on the banks of the Camlin is being demolished.......



Homebase are building a new store on the Sligo road (N4) just out side of town.....

Longford is changing fast

Like the rest of Ireland, Longford has seen an influx of immigrants in the past few years and they are starting to change the appearance of the town. Most seem to have settled in well and a few have opened stores. Here are a few of them.

This one is on the Market Square.



Here is an Eastern European store......



A couple of internet cafes and phone centers have also opened up to cater for this growing community.
Here is a new one specializing in international phone calls.



This cyber-cafe was opened recently by a guy from Pakistan. Nice new computers and friendly service.

First Post

Here is a potential blog about Longford if I ever pursue it.............