Green light for Laois Electric Picnic town's multi-million euro new fire station

Emergency services in the Laois town which hosts the biggest music festival in Ireland are set to get a major boost with confirmation that Stradbally is to get a brand new fire station.

Laois County Council confirmed in a statement to the Leinster Express / Laois Live that it was "delighted" to announce that the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management has given the Council the green light to invite tenders for the construction of a 'state-of-the-art' two-bay fire station in Stradbally.

County Councillors previously previously agreed Part 8 development proposals for the new station at the junction of Main Street and the R427 Abbeyleix Road. The overall cost is estimated at around €3.2 million. The new station in the Electric Picnic town will replace the existing Fire Station, located on Main Street, which was built in 1954.

In 2024, crew attached to Stradbally Fire Station were mobilised to 157 incidents making it the second busiest of the eight fire stations in Laois.

Declan Power is the Chief Fire Officer at the County Laois Fire and Rescue Service.

“This development will be of huge benefit to the firefighters of Stradbally. In additional to the 2-bay unit, the development provides additional facilities for training which, in turn, supports enhancements in the emergency response capacity available to the citizens of County Laois, together with those visiting and passing through the county,” he said.

The Cathaoirleach of Laois County Council, Cllr Padraig Fleming also commented.

“I welcome this significant investment, to deliver the new Stradbally Fire Station. Fire and Emergency Services play a critical role in our communities, and it is important that the facilities available to those Services are to the appropriate standard," he said.

READ ALSO: Increased crowd due at Electric Picnic 2025

Michael Rainey is Chief Executive Officer at Laois County Council. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Pictured: The already vacated old fire station.

"The new Fire Station will be a modern, fit-for-purpose, facility that will serve the community of Stradbally, and its hinterlands for many years to come,” he said.

The Council says Near Zero Energy Building (NZEB) is a key design principal, in keeping with its Climate Action Plan. A statement added that the works will introduce environmentally friendly features, including the installation of PV panels, air-to water heating systems, together with insulation of doors, windows, roof, floor and walls. The design also incorporates a training yard with drill tower, lecture room, canteen and staff facilities for 12 fire-fighters. The facilities will also include individual changing areas for each crew member.

The local authority says the project has approval from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the development has been designed by a multi-disciplined team led by NODE Architecture. 

The Station's fire crew has already relocated temporarily to the old Civil Defence building, a former squash court on a 0.34ha corner site near the junction of the N80 and the R427.

The money to construct the Station was approved in mid-2023. The design contract was signed in February 2024.