Castleisland ‘best placed to expand’ with services to cater for growing population
Castleisland Chamber Alliance chairperson Michael John Kearney with Cllr Bobby O'Connell.
The town of Castleisland, located in close proximity to both Tralee and Killarney, has been highlighted by Kerry County Council as an area of strategic importance and potential development.
According to the latest figures, the town has a population of around 2,500 people.
However, locals say that the demand to live in the area is growing and the demand for housing is increasing along with it.
The Killarney Municipal District Plan from 2018 to 2024 stated that at least 30% of new housing should be delivered within the built-up area of Killarney and Castleisland on infill and or brownfield sites.
Speaking to the , local Fine Gael councillor Bobby O’Connell said: “Castleisland now has become a much more attractive place to live.
“Firstly the housing isn’t as expensive and we have great facilities.
“It's also a well-knit community and it’s the town that’s best placed to expand because Tralee and Killarney are almost at capacity, and we are definitely in a very good position at the moment here and we have to take advantage of that.”
However, despite planning being granted for the development of 70 homes earlier this year, there is still a dearth of new homes.
“Housing is a big issue in Castleisland, as it is in many towns of that size — the housing just wasn’t there,” explained Mr O’Connell.
“The town has become a bit of a satellite to Tralee. Subsequently, it has become a poor relation in terms of jobs and industry coming into the town and that is something that we have to rectify.
“Castleisland needs to grow and for that to happen, we need houses and we need people living here.”
As well as increased housing, Mr O’Connell highlighted the need for improved public transport in the town of Castleisland.
Much like most other towns in Ireland, traffic is increasing in recent months as more people return full-time to offices, and with the weather set to worsen in the coming months, it is likely this will become more of an issue.
“The public transport system could definitely be improved,” Mr O’Connell said.
“We have a daily bus service and a very good transport system for older people — they’re bused in and out daily to the care centre.
“But you can never have too much when it comes to public transport.
“We also have the airport nearby, the development of which will be very important for Castleisland and the surrounding area.
“The airport is very active with daily domestic flights and flights to the UK.
“But if a need is identified for increased bus services or things like that, it would have to be looked at because we’re a growing town and need the services to cater for that.”
Mr O’Connell highlighted the importance of companies like Walsh Colour Print, which employs more than 100 people in the town, setting up shop in Castleisland.
The Castleisland Chamber Alliance highlighted the town’s potential for becoming a retail hub in the Kerry region.
The organisation’s chairperson Michael John Kearney, spoke to the about the vision for Castleisland, which involves becoming a retail destination.
“We’re right at the centre of Kerry with easy access to Cork and Limerick,” he explained.
“There’s a huge population that uses the town as a shopping centre — we’ve been described as the fashion capital of Kerry.”
Mr Kearney also highlighted a steady stream of tourism and business in the area, aided by a number of festivals and events hosted by Castleisland throughout the year.
Castleisland was recently commended in the .IE Digital Town Awards — The Community Digital Category, with Mr Kearney describing it as a “shot in the arm” for the growing reputation of Castleisland as a place to shop, visit, live, work and play.
“The award carries substantial reputational benefits and a financial award of €2,000, which will be ploughed back into promoting the town to further realise its potential,” he said.
“The strategic location of the town in the Kerry, West Limerick and North Cork region makes it an ideal place to locate light industry or service businesses serving the area, and beyond and an attractive place to live and commute the short distances to work in the Castleisland region, other towns in the county or further afield.
“The town is well endowed with educational and sporting facilities, and many other services, both business and community based, that you would normally expect in a much bigger urban setting,” he added.
“As a shopping destination, Castleisland has few equals in the county and beyond.
“Retailers, customers, locals, and visitors alike all confirm that Castleisland town and district is on the up, attracting increased footfall monthly, and there is still more to come from this vibrant district of ours in terms of more offerings for more customers and visitors as time goes on.”
While school places and the availability of GPs are becoming issues of increasing concern in towns and villages across Ireland, that is reportedly not the case in Castleisland.
“The town is very well serviced with GPs,” said Mr O’Connell, a former chair of the HSE’s regional health forum in the south.
“A GP retired recently and two more came in to replace him.
“They’re a husband and wife team and it’s great for the area,” he added.
“It’s not an issue that has come up and, even with a growing population in the surrounding area, it hasn’t been expressed as a concern.”
Meanwhile, Mr O’Connell said the town also boasts an adequate number of schools with school place availability not an issue.
“We have a very large community college, which is a relatively new school, and we have the Presentation secondary school and a boy's secondary school.
“We also have an abundance of national schools in the town as well.
“In a way, they’re competing for students because they’re trying to keep their teachers and that competition should be a plus for us in terms of attracting young families,” he added.
Denis O’Donovan, principal of St Patrick's Secondary School in Castleisland, agreed that the school-going population in the town is being catered for.
“Castleisland would have several primary schools, including the boys' national school, girls' presentation and the gaelscoil.
“In terms of post-primary, you also have three of these schools in the town — St Patrick’s, Presentation, and the Community College.
Mr O’Donovan also highlighted a number of schools in surrounding towns which ensure an abundance of places across the region.
While the population of Castleisland may not be huge at present, the local principal highlighted a large catchment area for schools in the town.
“There is a big catchment area because it goes as far as a number of villages on the Tralee, Killarney and Ballydesmond sides.” Looking to any future population growth, Mr O’Donovan said he is optimistic that any surge in the number of people in Castleisland can be dealt with comfortably by the schools in the region.
“The thing about the growing population, the way it appears to me is, it’s going to be growing within the town,” he explained.
“The rural population is not going to increase hugely because of planning and all sorts of other things.
“So if people are moving into the area it will be into housing estates, we’ll say in the town or maybe a housing estate outside of Tralee or wherever, but you can see it building at a very young age in primary schools at the moment,” he added.
“You can see it building again but I couldn’t see a need for any extra school places because what's there will cater for what's coming.”
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