City Council had hoped for better response to grants to improve Patrick St shopfronts

Cork City Council has said it is disappointed at the uptake on grants for improving shopfronts on the city’s Patrick Street.

In January of this year, Cork City Council announced that it was inviting applications for a facade improvement grant to help revitalise the city’s main retail street and strengthen its visual appeal.

The scheme has two key funding elements – one for painting and minor external works to shopfronts, and one for upgrading and restoring them.

It had allocated €200,000 for each scheme element, with up to €5,000, or 25% of costs, available to business owners.

The Council did not responds to queries from The Echo regarding how many people applied for each scheme, if grants had been awarded yet, and if so, to how many applicants. A council spokesperson simply said the scheme was still open.

The spokesperson added: “Cork City Council received a number of applications for the City Centre Façade Improvement Grant, and it has been working with the applicants and assisting them through the process.

“The City Council would have hoped for a higher uptake of the grant. But it is worth noting that the City Council is still accepting applications.” 

They added: “The grant scheme was launched to assist with the revitalisation of our city’s core retail area and strengthen the visual appeal and local economy of by providing financial support to businesses to enhance their building frontage.

“It was a genuine effort on the part of the local authority to financially support the owners of private buildings in the target area to improve the appearance of their buildings.” 

The spokesperson said that the scheme was promoted “strongly”, through press and radio, across digital and traditional channels, as well as direct engagement with businesses, including the distribution of leaflets directly to businesses in the identified target areas, outlining the scheme, the eligibility criteria, and the application process.

“As with any initiative, a review will be undertaken towards the end of the year to consider all aspects of the initiative and how it may be improved in future,” the spokesperson added.