Funding For Major Midlands Infrastructure Projects Announced

Tuesday, 16 June 2026 12:48

They are getting the green light under Government funding.

Two key infrastructure projects worth €10m in Laois are getting the green light under Government funding.

The Borris to Dublin Road Urban Distributor Road in Portlaoise will connect the two corridors, and directly unlock land for just over 1,900 homes.

While junction enhancement works from Dublin Road to Colliers Lane will upgrade access, and allow for wider development of zoned lands in area.

Fine Gael's Willie Aird says it's needed for development in the town:

Projects in Westmeath include the Cornamaddy to Coosan Link Road, in Athlone and the Ardmore Road to the N52 Baltrasna Roundabout Link Road, in Mullingar.

Meanwhile in Offaly projects include the Rectory Fields, Land Activation Scheme, in Birr and the Birr South Land Activation Scheme (Birr Southeastern Distributor Road).

Announcing the projects being funded, Minister Browne says:

“Today, we are making our first announcements under the Housing Infrastructure Investment Fund. In our first call for applications, we invited Local Authorities and the Land Development Agency to apply for funding to progress infrastructure projects that will unlock housing in towns and cities across the country – with an emphasis on shovel ready projects and works which can be quickly started.

“Having examined all the applications, today I am announcing 82 projects which will be supported and accelerated under the programme. These 82 projects can unlock land to deliver 86,000 new homes and create potential for a further 113,000 homes. This is exactly the type of result we were looking for when designing this fund.

“I am intensely focused on delivering more homes but also on delivering the best possible environment for constructing more homes. Across the country, we see zoned land lying idle because the critical enabling infrastructure needed to support housing development is not in place.

The projects I am providing funding for today will directly tackle this problem. By investing at scale now, we can accelerate home building.”

Offaly is set to benefit from the Investment Fund as three major projects are being approved in Birr and Tullamore.

Projects at Rectory Fields and Birr South could facilitate up to 926 homes, while the Clonminch scheme in Tullamore could see over 1,300 homes.

The fund is the largest housing infrastructure investment programme announced in Ireland in many years.