I thank the Senator for the opportunity to speak here again to highlight this wonderful project in Kerry. The Killarney House project involves my Department, the Office of Public Works, as project managers for the construction, and Fáilte Ireland. The Department first announced the project in 2011 with a budget of €10 million. Fáilte Ireland has committed funding of €5.2 million under its tourism capital investment programme and the balance is being funded by my Department.
The National Tourism Development Authority’s significant financial contribution to the project is a clear statement of its confidence that this project will make a significant contribution in the future to the south-west tourism offering. I am confident that the development will optimise the potential of Killarney House as a top class visitor and tourism centre. It will do this in parallel to respecting its prime focus as a visitor centre for Killarney National Park and by developing its status as a heritage property managed by my Department.
In 2016, it was decided to pursue the opening of Killarney House and Gardens on a phased basis. The opening of the gardens occurred during 2016 and the completion of the historic rooms and the interpretative exhibition is being prioritised for 2017. I recognise the significant interest at local level in opening the facility as soon as possible, and I assure the Senator my Department is working tirelessly to meet these deadlines.
The house is being developed as the main visitor and interpretative centre for the national park, highlighting the beauty, richness and significance of the park’s landscapes, habitats, flora and fauna as well as telling the story of human interaction with the park over the centuries. Some of the formal rooms are currently being restored to their former glory.
As the Senator knows, the original ornamental grounds and gardens immediately surrounding the House have been restored, creating spectacular landscaped areas that will merge into the natural areas of the park and provide vistas linking the town to the scenery of the mountain, woods and water.
The gardens were opened to much public acclaim in April 2016 and I formally opened them last August.
The visitor centre will have various aspects, including a newly built extension to the house. It will be a visitor centre for the national park, explaining its significance and importance to the town and region, providing information on the major themes of the national park: mountains, woods, water and the human impact on the environment. The final phase of building works to the house is now complete. I intend to open the historical rooms element of the exhibition during the summer. In this context, works in the restoration and refurbishment of the furniture collection for display are significantly advanced. The exhibition phase of the project, to be located within Killarney House, is advancing and I expect the various elements of the works to be completed this year. It is intended to open them to the public as soon as they are completed.
Visitors to Killarney usually stay in the town and visit other locations and attractions within the immediate area or the wider region. The length of stay tends to be quite short and, in the case of bus tours, may be just one night. Often a visit will be confined to Muckross House which focuses on cultural heritage and many tourists will leave Killarney unaware of the true extent and beauty of the national park that surrounds them. When completed, Killarney House and gardens will explain the relevance and importance of Killarney National Park both from a cultural and a natural heritage point of view which will be to the benefit of tourists and local businesses.
I thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity to update him on what will no doubt prove to be one of the country's most significant assets from a cultural and a natural heritage perspective.
