Mayo's Michael Davitt House marks Golden Jubilee with eyes on the future
Minister of State Alan Dillon has pledged to push for additional jobs at Michael Davitt House in Castlebar as the landmark civil service hub marked its 50th anniversary this afternoon.
More than 600 staff and past employees - spanning Revenue, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Justice and Social Welfare's Intreo service - gathered on the Breaffy Road to celebrate the golden jubilee of a building that has become one of the most important administrative centres in the west of Ireland.
Dillon said he would be engaging with Minister Boxer-Moran to explore potential expansion of services at the site.
"We have a great story to tell in terms of 50 years of success here, and we want to build on that," he said.
"There is available space, there are opportunities, and Mayo has always been seen as a good place for government agencies and departments to deliver services."
Among those marking the occasion was Mick King, who grew up on Spencer Street and remembers the Breaffy Road site as a child when it was a fire brigade water reserve then, sitting amid open fields.
He joined the civil service at 20 and has 37 years of service at Michael Davitt House, including a stint driving for the Irish Embassy in London.
"Michael Davitt House means an awful lot, not just to Castlebar, but surrounding areas," he said. "One job creates another three. Families were reared off the back of jobs here”
“We also made so many friends working here, especially those who have now passed - who we are all thinking of and remembering today.”
Catherine Foley arrived in March 1977 as part of the second tranche of civil servants decentralised from Dublin, having swapped offices at the back of Chancery Street for the west of Ireland.
Decades later she too is recalling all of the great memories shared amongst colleagues.
There were great characters in the place - John Galvin, Pat Lynch, the late Tom Prendergast from Claremorris.
"We were kind of like a big family. People watched out for one another. That's the way it was."
At the event, speakers recalled the phrase long associated with the building across Mayo: if you have a problem, give Michael Davitt House a call and they will sort it out for you.
Catherine Foley said that reputation and commitment to the community was very important to the people who worked there.
"If there was a way you could sort somebody out, even over the phone, you would. And many of them would come back and thank you. It was worthwhile."