Roscommon native wants Athlone to become country's first green city

A masterplan for a new green sustainable city in Athlone to cater for a population of 100,000 by 2040 has been developed by the Ballymore Group and its founder, County Roscommon native Sean Mulryan

Mr Mulryan has shared his vision for the Athlone of 2040, a sustainably planned, 15-minute city with a wide range of stakeholders, including government ministers and opposition spokespeople, and with senior stakeholders across the Irish education sector, industry, state agencies and local authorities.

The plan proposes a transformation of Athlone as a blueprint for sustainable urbanisation, one that could be replicated to provide regionally balanced growth while enabling Ireland’s green transition. 

Athlone was identified as the ideal pilot as it has all the fundamental building blocks in place including the university, a town centre with room to expand and enable green transport and the natural resources to allow 90% of its energy to be generated from renewal sources and to support the national energy transition. It’s central location in the heart of Ireland and bridging the North-West and Midlands regions also ensure a wide economic benefit.

The masterplan proposes: 

* Growing TUS Athlone campus up to 25,000 students as a centre of excellence in green technology.

* 5,000 bed eco friendly student village.

*Planning for Athlone’s population to reach 100,000 in the first phases.

* 20,000 new zero carbon homes in the first phases.

* An enhanced and expanded riverfront city centre.

* Road networks tailored for electric driverless buses, EVs, bikes and pedestrians.

* New health care facilities, schools, arts and sports facilities.

* 5,000 hectares of rewilded wetlands, callows, and rewetting of bogs.

Ballymacurley native Sean Mulryan, Ballymore’s chairman and chief executive, said: “Over the past seven years, my colleagues and I in Ballymore have been engaging with numerous stakeholders to create a plan to deliver a new green city in the heart of Ireland.

“Our vision could drive genuine balanced distribution of the impending population growth in Ireland and offer a blueprint for sustainable, education-led, employment-driven, and environmentally focused urban development nationwide.

“We are sharing that vision now with wider Irish society, and we will do all we can to help it become a reality. But this plan needs to be driven from the top by government – by this administration and by the successor governments that take office in the years ahead – if it is to come to pass.” 

Having already shared details of the plan with senior policy makers across many sectors in Irish society, and with a range of local political and commercial representatives, Mr Mulryan has assembled a steering group to bring this new green city to life.

The group will comprise Josephine Feehily, chairperson of the Governing Body of Technological University of the Shannon, and former executive chair of the Revenue Commissioners; Adrian Jones, chairman & co-head of Global Private Equity at Goldman Sachs; Joan Kehoe, founder and CEO at Alchelyst; Prof. Brian MacCraith, senior advisor to the President of Arizona State University (ASU), and former president of DCU; Jim Meade, CEO at Irish Rail; Linda Mulryan-Condron, deputy managing director at Ballymore and Sean Mulryan.