Latest news with #EoghanDockrell
Irish Independent
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
North Dublin art exhibition hopes to give a new platform to local artists
The Summer Art Salon will run from 11am to 3pm on both Saturday and Sunday, May 17 and 18, featuring between 15 and 20 artists from across Fingal, including Rush, Malahide, Balbriggan, and Ballyboughal. 'Some of the artists I met told me they had to go all the way into Merrion Square to exhibit their work,' said Eoghan Dockrell, a local Fine Gael councillor co-ordinating the event. 'One woman in Ballyboughal said her neighbours didn't even know she was an artist, because you'd be driving by her house and wouldn't see a studio – and not everyone's on social media.' The idea for the event came about during the recent local elections, when councillor Dockrell was canvassing door-to-door and speaking to artists in rural parts of the county. After being elected, he became chair of Fingal's Community, Culture and Sports Strategic Policy Committee, which oversees the arts. 'A group of artists from Lusk and Ballyboughal that are part of the Fingal Artist Collective approached me and said it would be great if there were more opportunities for artists in north county Dublin to exhibit their artwork,' he said. 'I then approached Séamus Ennis Arts Centre with the proposal to hold this Summer Arts Salon and they were very encouraging. Likewise, Fingal County Council has been supportive. 'It's hoped this inaugural year will be a success, people will come out to support these local artists and then this event will become a permanent fixture in the arts community's calendar in future years. 'I put out a call and received a huge amount of interest from artists in north county Dublin. Many of these artists have displayed their artwork in galleries and at exhibitions all over Ireland and further afield. 'They're delighted they can partake in an art exhibition closer to home and for an audience of people from north county Dublin. ADVERTISEMENT 'The weather is meant to be great this weekend so it would be brilliant if as many people as possible dropped by the Séamus Ennis Arts Centre and supported these local artists. 'I'm hopeful this Summer Arts Salon will become an annual event if we can get good numbers in attendance this weekend. 'The key is that they're from Fingal and predominantly north county Dublin, and they're being given the chance to exhibit their work in the place they're from,' he added.
Irish Independent
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Councillors back plans to create new youth and arts centre in Donabate
Fine Gael councillor Eoghan Dockrell, Labour councillor Corina Johnston, and Social Democrats councillor Paul Mulville, have all welcomed proposals from Fingal County Council to provide a 'much-needed' multi-functional centre. The three local councillors are working with the local community, youth groups and council management to urgently progress the project, which would be located at Ballisk House in Donabate. 'As councillors representing the Donabate–Portrane area, it became abundantly clear to us during the local election campaign in 2024, that the community needs a multi-functional youth and arts space, given our rapidly growing young population,' they said. 'The council's recent Community Sports and Recreation Audit backs this up. 'Such vital community infrastructure must be provided in tandem with residential development, and many in our community feel angry this has not been happening. 'The 2016 Local Area Plan for lands at Donabate, provided for an additional circa 4,000 homes, and also contains an important objective for the provision of a multi-purpose community, arts and youth centre. 'Following a very well-attended public meeting in 2023, the Donabate–Portrane Crossroads Campaign was formed with a mandate to campaign for a multi-functional arts, youth and cultural centre for our area. 'As local councillors working together, we kept this campaign on the agenda at council level and also during meetings with the CEO and senior officials. 'We greatly welcome the fact that Fingal County Council acquired Ballisk House when the credit union closed the facility. 'Previously, the proposals were to move the local library from the existing location in Donabate–Portrane Community Centre and provide a standalone library in Ballisk House. ADVERTISEMENT 'However, we feel these proposals did not have the benefit of targeted community consultation and engagement around the various possible uses of the building, nor were the proposals brought before the previous elected council for formal approval. 'The council will now be working to get the views of local Donabate–Portrane residents in the coming weeks around these new proposals, and we hope that the community at large will agree this is the best use for the site. 'We are confident this new space can be open for the local youth and arts community by the end of the year,' they added. Fingal is the fastest-growing part of the country, and the local authority sees the region as one of the main areas for residential development in Dublin in the years to come. The council said it believed the region has the capacity to facilitate the development of more than 16,000 residential units over the course of its current development plan, which runs until 2029. It said that in the first seven months of 2024, work had commenced on more than 3,300 units. The council said that in Donabate, about 1,200 homes were being provided in one of the largest developments in the country.
