Military Assets as Public Spaces (MAPS) - trans-national meeting, Longford.

MAPS aims to revitalize former military areas as new urban hubs for social cohesion and urban growth. Cities from Italy, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Lithuania, Germany, Ireland, Portugal and Spain came together to share experiences and learn from each other. MAPS aims to create a more conscious and participatory urban planning process, which promotes cohesion and inclusiveness.

Within the network there are a diverse range of military sites including barracks, compounds, fortifications, towers and administrative buildings. Many of these sites are already owned by the city administrations, but many are still in a phase of change of ownership. MAPS is examining the development of new methods, tools and approaches to create alternative uses for these structures.

A dynamic agenda for the two day event included interactive group sessions, workshops and World Café sessions facilitated by three URBACT experts. Integrated action plans which aim to respond to policy challenges in local circumstances were discussed and the activities of the Urban Local Groups (ULGs). The dialogue then turned to how partners would sustain their activities post project. Partners are working on short films of their project activities in order to visually present MAPS outputs. A tour of Longford Cathedral and Connolly Barracks provided a welcome break from the classroom activities.

In Longford, work is ongoing on a movie, an oral history of the barracks and a walking trail of Longford town. A survey of the barracks is due to be conducted. Additional funding streams will be identified to support further work in the barracks. Engagement with the tourism office and community groups is ongoing. Philip Crowe and Aoife Corcoran from Space Engagers presented an app ‘Longford Nua’ which is a community mapping tool aimed at engaging as many citizens as possible with the regeneration of the town and the work of the Longford URBACT group.

URBACT experts did an excellent job in providing feedback and facilitating and encouraging discussion. A big thank you to all participants and especially to Terry Rooney and Lorraine O’Connor for their hard work in making this visit a success. There is only a couple of months until the MAPS project ends, the next and final meeting of the MAPS network takes place on the 24^th and 25^th of April 2018, please see the MAPS URBACT webpage for more details: http://urbact.eu/maps