‘Horrendous’ shop fronts in Laois towns called out by councillors

Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley said the Portlaoise Main Street resembles a beach strip in Ibiza

Published 30th Jun 2026, 20:25 BST Main Street in Portlaoise. Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley said the Portlaoise Main Street resembles a beach strip in Ibiza “Disgraceful looking” shop fronts in a number of Laois towns have been called out by local councillors.

Laois County Council presented their landmark €11.5 million redevelopment plan for the Fort Protector in Portlaoise at the June council meeting. The project aims to revitalise the Old Fort Quarter area of Portlaoise and the town centre.

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When discussing the plans to rejuvenate the town centre, Councillor Caroline Dwane Stanley took the opportunity to highlight the issue with “horrendous” shop fronts on Main Street.

“We've done great work, we have a state of the art library on the Main Street. But, attention needs to be given to some of the shop fronts where I believe they’re letting down the Main Street,” the Portlaoise councillor said.

She argued that standards have dropped in recent years and this needs to be tackled to maintain the status of the town’s main street.

“There’s vape shops on the Main Street and they look horrendous and there’s other shops. For me, I think it’s taken from the investment this council has made into the library and the convent.”

Cllr Dwane Stanley said businesses must be asked to put up proper signage rather than some of the existing shop fronts which she said resembled a beach strip in “Ibiza.”

Cllr John Joe Fennelly backed Cllr Dwane Stanley’s comments, adding that the issue goes beyond Portlaoise.

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“They’re popping up all over the place and I see it in my own town in Abbeyleix . The planning process is too long to deal with these kinds of people. Neon lights flashing in the windows at night, it’s crazy,” Cllr Fennelly said.

He noted that Abbeyleix is classified as a heritage town and yet people in the community are forced to turn to the council to have businesses remove plastic signs.

Cllr Fennelly added that the Tidy Towns group even produce their own booklet for new businesses to show them what standard of signage is expected.

Cllr Barry Walsh agreed with the points put forward and urged that something be done to address the problem in Laois towns.