IF you’re down at Milk Market Lane then you should take a look at something special happening there.

The whole area is enjoying a regeneration with murals near The Mall side and plans for a heritage trail in this historic part of Tralee. Now a new enterprise has opened on Saturday which will breathe further life into the area.

Artist and fashion designer, Rebekah Wall, has taken over the old Maddens building — which dates back to the 1890s — and is presiding over an artistic and creative hub containing a coffee shop, artist’s workshop and a boutique.

Continued below…

“We have a coffee shop, a boutique with work from Irish designers — evening wear, day wear, hats, jewellery — we’ll have a tailoring service and the courtyard area has the potential to host exhibitions, movie nights and more,” said Rebekah, who has been working on the project for the past year and a half.

“We have House of Coffee which is a couture coffee designed by Edwin Byrne and Rachel Templeman, who are both from the area. I wanted to have something that was for local people rather than just the tourism industry and focus on people who work in the area who can pop in and have a coffee and look around,” said Rebekah.

The courtyard is a very attractive feature where people can enjoy a coffee sitting on furniture — made from found objects — by Mike Ahern from Killorglin.

Continued below…

“All the furniture is for sale and you could find anything out there; seats and tables made from mirrors and palettes, reclaimed oak, tractor seats,” said Rebekah, who stressed that if you want to find something of really good value that is locally made, you know your going to find it at Maddens.

Artist Jennifer Stack also has a studio upstairs while Maeve Moriarty has her Marketing and Consultancy business in the building. It all amounts to everybody complementing each other’s work.

Rachel Templeman, from St John’s Park, who will run the House Of Coffee with Edwin Byrne, is looking forward to the venture.

“It’s fantastic and a great opportunity. The town needs something different and we hope to provide it. We blend our own coffee and will roast it ourselves,” said Rachel.

Rebekah thanked Tim and Theresa Kelliher, who own the building, for their tremendous support throughout the process. With the centre opening on Saturday, Rebekah is hoping people call in to Maddens to see what they’ve done with the place.