Tourism - Waterford City & County Council

24th November 2017

By Waterford City & County Council

Waterford Greenway project wins award at Chambers Ireland “Excellence in Local Government” Awards 2017

(Left to right) Aidan O’Reilly, Principal Officer, Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, Paul Daly, Senior Engineer, Waterford Council, Paul Keeley, Director of Business Development at Fáilte Ireland, Cllr. Joe Conway, Waterford (Deputy Mayor), Ian Talbot, Chief Executive Chambers Ireland.

Waterford City and County Council fights off stiff competition to win the “Supporting Tourism Category” for the Waterford Greenway,
at Chambers Ireland, Excellence in Local Government Awards 2017

Waterford City and County Council has deservedly won first prize at the Chambers Ireland Excellence in Local Government awards in the ‘Supporting Tourism’ Category for the Waterford Greenway project. The award was presented to Cllr Joe Conway, Deputy Mayor of the City and County of Waterford at an event held in Dublin on Thursday 23^rd November 2017.

The award was presented in recognition of the development of the 46km off-road shared use Greenway along an old railway line between Waterford City and Dungarvan, which was developed by Waterford City and County Council with the assistance of state funding. Waterford Greenway is an important national tourism asset with the potential to be one of the key signature experiences in Ireland’s Ancient East encouraging visitors to engage with the wider tourism experience in Waterford in a meaningful and authentic way.

Greenways have a particularly strong appeal to visitors, both domestic and overseas. There is a rise in the popularity of walking and cycling holidays, while emerging consumer trends are towards good health, self-improvement and wellbeing.

Cllr Joe Conway said “Waterford Greenway is expected to provide a positive effect on increasing business in line with that experienced in similar projects within Ireland, such as the Great Western Greenway where 46.7% of local businesses have reported an increase in turnover. We are very fortunate and appreciative of this opportunity in Waterford”.

23rd June 2017

By Waterford City & County Council

The Greenway Bug Hotel is open !

Two local schools from the city and the county partnered together to create a hotel for bugs on the Waterford Greenway. The twinning of the schools was coordinated by Junior Achievement Ireland with the volunteering support of staff from the Waterford City & County Council.

The collaborative workshop between the school and council staff, was designed to help the pupils learn about their local ecosystem and explore the natural world around them on the Waterford Greenway. The workshop also facilitated team work with the hope that the 4^th class students might be encouraged to visit their ‘hotel’ on an ongoing basis to see how the bugs are settling into their new home. Fifty three 4^th class students from St. Mary’s N.S. in Dungarvan and St. Saviour’s N.S. in Waterford City took part along with 11 Waterford Council staff from across many different departments.

Thanks also to John Hayes from Special Branch Carvings, who is well known for his specialised carved sculptures, who helped the students erect a wooden carved bug on the top of their hotel. Each student was awarded with a Certificate of Achievement to recognise their participation.