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Construction work has commenced on a €1.6million Regional Enterprise Development funded Innovation Hub in Galway.
Supported by Enterprise Ireland, the Bowling Green project is located in downtown Galway City Centre and will be the home to 130 globally ambitious tech innovators and entrepreneurs from across the west of Ireland. The project sponsor is The Galway City Innovation District, the team behind The PorterShed tech hub in Galway’s Eyre Square.
The Bowling Green development is the first of two new developments by GCID funded by the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment through Enterprise Ireland. The next building at the Connacht Tribune will begin construction shortly and is expected to open in mid-2022.
The Bowling Green site will also serve as a regional centre of excellence, delivering programmes for founders from the West and Northwest, as well welcoming experts and innovators from further afield.
The PorterShed, the first building of Galway City Innovation District (GCID), opened in 2016 and quickly became the home of tech in Galway, opening its doors to the wider tech industry through talks, programmes, meetups and networking events. In just five years. GCID has supported the creation of more than 720 jobs in Galway and its members have had investments of over €35m.
Building on the success of the PorterShed, the new GCID location at Bowling Green will continue to build globally scalable tech start-ups and serve as an innovation space for the wider tech community. GCID is expanding its footprint in response to the high demand for city-centre locations for tech start- ups, which in just five years has outgrown the original PorterShed’s footprint.
Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Leo Varadkar said: "Today is an important day for Galway which will further enhance the West of Ireland’s reputation as a technology hub. The PorterShed’s expansion with these two new GCID buildings is highly anticipated by the tech community in Galway. Innovation hubs offer much more than desk space. They provide a supportive environment, mentoring, and programmes to start and scale innovative tech businesses. The start-up journey comes with all the usual challenges of starting a business, as well as the uncertainty of launching something totally new. The PorterShed community also gives start-ups access to other founders who have been on this journey and can lend their support. I congratulate GCID and Enterprise Ireland on this achievement and look forward to my return visit when the hub opens its doors."
