Refurbished Mallow landmark reopens

Tudor-style Spa House will become home to a local enterprise office, tourist office, and meeting centre

Cork County Council chief executive Tim Lucey, Mayor of the County of Cork Danny Collins, and Avondhu Blackwater Partnership CEO Valerie Murphy officially opening Mallow Tourist Office and Spa House. Picture: Denis Minihane

A landmark building which has been extensively refurbished has just reopened in Mallow, Co Cork, and will now house the county council’s local enterprise office and a new tourist office and will act as a meeting centre for regional development company Avondhu Blackwater Partnership.

The Tudor-style Spa House was officially opened on Tuesday and coincided with the launch there of the pocket-sized Mallow Historic Town Map, which provides a self-guiding tour of 35 heritage sites in the area.

The Spa House got its name from the fact that in the 1720s a hot spring was discovered on the grounds and, with its supposed medicinal benefits,
it became a Mecca for people seeking relief, similar to the great spa in Bath, England.

The Spa House was constructed in 1828 to replace the existing pump house and was commissioned by C.D.O. Jephson, the town’s 'proprietor' who lived at Mallow Castle. It contained a pump room, an apartment for medical consultation, a reading room, and baths.

Over the years the house became a private residence and was more recently used by Cork County Council’s Energy Agency.

The refurbished building was opened by the Mayor of County Cork, Independent councillor Danny Collins.

“The legacy of the Spa House is one that blends tourism and entrepreneurship," said Mr Collins. 

"Visitors flocked from far and wide to experience the health benefits of the spring water and will be returning again to the new tourist office. It is also fitting that the Spa House will also be the location of Cork County Council’s North Local Enterprise Office as well as a meeting space for Avondhu Blackwater Partnership.”

The refurbished Spa House, Mallow. Picture: Denis Minihane

County council chief executive Tim Lucey said, as a protected building, the Spa House had been extensively and carefully renovated.

Ambitious plans for Mallow

He said the redevelopment is just one element in the council’s ambitious plans for Mallow. These include the recently opened boardwalk in the town, a new playground, Mallow Castle walled garden restoration, and an upgrade to Tip O’Neill Park, which is named after the late 47th speaker of the US House of Representatives whose family roots were in the town.

“Planning has been granted for improvements to Mallow Town Park and the feasibility assessment on the Mallow to Dungarvan greenway is progressing well,” said Mr Lucey.

Work is getting underway on repairing the roof in Mallow Castle, which the council purchased in 2010. 

Meanwhile, plans are in place to turn the former town hall into a centre for theatre and the arts for North Cork. The town hall project is expected to cost up to €7m.

Mr Lucey said the council and its partners will have spent in the region of €25m on the Mallow projects in a relatively short space of time.

He predicted the enhancements will see Mallow “boom” in the next few years.

"I think that Mallow really deserves everything it is getting," he said.