£75bn city bid for the west
By BRIAN McDONALD
A £75bn plan for a new city in the west has been presented to the Government.
The plan, compiled by international defence consultant William A Thomas, will be included in the National Spatial Strategy to be published by the Government next year, he said yesterday.
The new city should be located in the centre of the west, ideally within 10 miles of Knock airport, and cater for a population of 100,000, according to Mr Thomas.
Among his proposed facilities are:
- Three government departments (environment; enterprise, trade and employment; education and science ).
- A university or national academy for sciences,
- International hospital.
- A national conference centre.
- Bord Failte HQ.
- IDA headquarters.
- A second national sports stadium.
- A national swimming pool.
The city, which could feed off the two major gas fields discovered off the Mayo coast, would require a new minister for the west, who would sit at the cabinet table.
Mr Thomas, from Galway, said his proposals were very real and there had already been considerable interest from major international construction companies in the project.
He called on the Government to take the first step by seeking architects' designs for Ireland's first purpose-built city.