Rolling, rolling, rolling...

The Belturbet Railway complex and conference centre have long since been an integral part of community life in the town and the dynamic Community Development Association have more exciting plans for this unique and expansive facility. They include the restoration of the narrow gauge wagon and the building of dressing rooms at the goods store, so that it can be used as a theatre for staging plays and other events. Susan Smith from the Belturbet Community Development Association says they are providing accommodation for the participants in the Fleadh Cheoil 2010 in the 11 units that forms part of the Railway Station Complex. A number of bands have already booked in for the August event; it is an ideal location for the members to practise and the accommodation is safe for the young people. The fact that it is being used extensively during the Fleadh will also help to heighten the profile of the facilities on offer in the relaxed setting. The Fleadh organisers favoured the venue for accommodation because there is also ample room for coaches to park and turn. The units are currently being organised to cater for the influx of people associated with the Fleadh activities. Susan says the railway complex is an integral part of community life in the town. This is reflected by the fact that myriad organisations hold their events there each week, including the Bowls people, the Erne Adult Social Club, Weight Watchers, the Irish Blood Transfusion Service and the VEC, as does the Tidy Towns Committee. They hold their meetings there and St. Bricin's uses it for PE. It is also used by the Pioneers, for quizzes and the 1st Belturbet Scouts are also based at the station. Tony Prior says the bowls have been an outstanding success over its five-year existence. The first chairman was John Bennett and there are around 25 members in the club, which meets every Thursday night. The club is also involved in the county league and the staging of home and away games adds to social involvement aspect. The popular car boot sales are hosted at the station on a regular basis. During the forthcoming Festival of the Erne the station complex will be widely used and such events as the fancy dress and the junior talent. There will also be a county and western night with Ian Corrigan, and Susan Smith says this will help to revive the jiving again and that will take place on the Monday, July 26. On the Tuesday there will be a heritage talk hosted by Cavan Library.Gerry Corrigan told The Anglo-Celt that he is a new member of the committee and an active member of the recently formed Heritage Group. He acknowledged the excellent work that had been done over the years in having the railway buildings restored to a high standard. Gerry said they are looking at the added dimension of restoring some rolling stock and having a fully functional train and carriages at the station. He added that it would be a fine tourism attraction and should be popular with those organising school tours. The members of the heritage group include Stephen Shannon, George Morrissey, Paul Lynch, Niall Fitzpatrick, Tony Prior, Michael Mulvanney and the chairman is Sam O'Keeffe. Tony Prior explained that there is a rare narrow gauge wagon located at the station and the group have set themselves the goal of having it restored. Stephen Shannon, a member of the Heritage Group, says their big goal is to see a number of carriages restored. The six-wheel passenger coach also catches the eye and they hope to have it transformed in the near future. The ultimate dream, according to both men, would be to have a train running on a track, which would be a great tourist attraction. Susan Smith and Mary Prior say the prospect of having tours on an ongoing basis and a coffee shop is something that is also on their radar for the future. It is all about providing varied attractions that will give tourists the incentive to come to Belturbet and explore what is on offer. There is already a site established on Facebook in connection with the project and already 50 people have linked to it. The chairman of the Belturbet Community Development Association Noel Smith said the restoration project commenced on the railway complex in 1993. "When we purchased the railway site in 1993, most of the buildings were derelict. We renovated the building under a FAS CYTP Scheme and restored the site." The Goods Store is now used as a conference centre and it is also used by the local groups when they are staging plays. There is also exciting news this week with the announcement that planning permission has been granted to construct new dressing rooms. This will allow the building to be also used a dedicated theatre. The main station buildings have been beautifully restored and they were the main administration area when the GNR service was in operation. The station masters building is currently occupied by the people from the Cavan County Childcare. Some archives have also been stored in the building as well. The AstroTurf complex is going really well and was put in place by a dynamic sub-committee of the Belturbet Community Development Association, which is also an umbrella body for the Tidy Towns Committee. Tony Prior explained that all the groups that come under the umbrella of the Belturbet Community Development Association can avail of funding for their various projects. He pointed out that a lot of good work has been achieved on the Tidy Towns front this year and it was encouraging to see active new members coming on board. He also pointed out that the rural scheme run under the auspices of Leader has proved invaluable to the station, the Tidy Towns and the GAA. It has been running for five years and Seamus Monaghan, Brendan Curry have been employed on the scheme and they have done outstanding work over those years. Noel Smith revealed that they have plans to give the complex further renewed impetus holiday letting of the apartments, as opposed to long term letting. The buildings on the complex have to be maintained to ensure the entire site looks appealing and there are plans to get the idea of allotments off the ground at the station - Noel says there is an ideal site there and he would see this an a community orientated initiative. The Belturbet Development Association Committee is: Noel Smith, chairman; Susan Smith, secretary; Tony Prior, treasurer; and committee members; Stephen Shannon, Mary Prior, Gerry Corrigan, Canon PJ Corrigan, Peggy Gray and George Morrissey.