Johnstown Hollowed Out: Centra Closure Leaves Village With "No Shop, No Pub, No Community Hall"

Wednesday, 21 May 2025 22:19

By Martin Osborne

Centra, located in the centre of the village, will shut down following failed attempts by the owner to expand or relocate.

The only remaining shop in the village of Johnstown will close its doors on June 7, leaving its population of 1,320 residents with no access to basic retail services in the area.

Centra, located in the centre of the village, will shut down following failed attempts by the owner to expand or relocate.

Speaking to Kfm, Fine Gael Cllr Fintan Brett described the closure as a “shock” and part of a pattern of decline that has hollowed out the village over recent years.

“Well, obviously, like everybody in the village, it's a shock,” Brett said. “I had heard rumours around that the owner had been looking to get a bigger premises… what he had there was just not big enough to get the type of heavy goods that would draw more customers in.”

The store’s owner, Alan Jordan, invested €250,000 in upgrading the current location, but was unable to find a suitable alternative site.

According to Brett, Jordan explored three other locations, but all were unsuccessful.

Jordan’s Centra is not the first local facility to close in Johnstown.

"It's one bad story after another at the moment. It was right in the centre of the village," Fintan said.

“We lost our pub and restaurant some years ago. That was a major blow to the village,” Brett said. “We lost the Johnstown Inn a couple of years ago. We have no shop, we have no pub, there’s no school, there’s no community hall."

He said locals are stunned by the news. “Not very well - shock,” Brett said when asked how people had reacted. "They’re just shocked and surprised.”

He said the store functioned as more than a grocery shop.

“One of the things they said to me is, ‘Where am I going to go at now for a bottle of wine?’” Brett said. “Because you get that cohort that decides they'll have a bottle of wine late at night, and they can hop around to the Centra… but that’ll be no more after the 7th.”

Residents will have to travel to Naas or Kill for basic necessities.

Brett paid tribute to the store’s owner, who he said had long been active in the community. “Alan Jordan, through the years, he’s been an absolute super supporter of every organisation in the village - not alone in Johnstown, but Kill… It's an absolute shame that he has to close the shop.”

Kfm spoke to Cllr Brett in more detail and you can listen to the full interview below.