CURRAN IS FRANK ABOUT DUN LAOGHAIRE RATHDOWN!

One of Frank Curran’s first major roles as the new Chief Executive of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown has been to oversee the launch of the County Development Plan 2022-2028. He outlines the council's current strategies for housing, climate change, sustainable infrastructure and new ways of working.

ICONIC BUILDING SHOWCASES DUBLIN’S RICH HISTORY

The refurbished Custom House Visitor Centre - a key element of the Government’s Decade of Centenaries programme - features new and interactive exhibits, which relate the rich history of Dublin’s landmark building and showcase its exceptional architecture over the last two centuries.

NEW HOUSING DELIVERY OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CAPITAL

Dublin City Council's new housing delivery process aims to enable private developers to engage with the local authority on sites with existing planning permission to potentially supply and deliver a significant volume of public housing units. 

THE POTENTIAL OF SMART COMMUNITIES (PART 1)

In the first of a three-part series on the ‘Smart’ approach to local and regional development in Ireland, Pat Kennedy, Chief Executive of eTownz, focuses on the roll-out of the ‘Smart Village Training Manual' to empower communities to take ownership of their own planning and management.

FIRST RESEARCH PROJECT TO GIVE IRISH COUNCILLORS A VOICE

The International Centre for Local and Regional Development (ICLRD) at Maynooth University (MU), in collaboration with the Association of Irish Local Government, is now undertaking research on the role of the councillor in the 21st century.

EU WORKSHOP MAKES PROGRESS ON MAPPING ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVITY

Ireland's Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly, Southern Regional Assembly and the School of Geography at UCD shared best practice for improved landscape governance for sustainability with European colleagues at an international training workshop in Florence, Italy.

FUNDING ON TRACK FOR RURAL TRANSPORT INTEGRATION

Greater connectivity, a wider selection of destinations and more frequent transport services are top priority for all rural public transport users, according to the findings of a public consultation by the National Transport Authority.

CLOSE COLLABORATION WITH LOCAL AUTHORITIES CONTINUES

Working in close partnership with the local authorities on the delivery of affordable homes, the Land Development Agency aims to accelerate a core Government policy of creating a large-scale affordable and social housing sector in line with norms in many other European countries.

GENDER EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT

One of the key messages from the recent ‘Promoting Gender Equality & Diversity in Local Government’ seminar, hosted by Clare County Council in Ennis, in association with the ‘See Her Elected’ project, is that more women need to support each other as allies in a bid to bring about a cultural shift in politics.

WICKLOW COUNTY COUNCIL REAPS SEVEN LAMA REWARDS

Wicklow County Council was crowned ‘Council of the Year’ in addition to picking up six category awards at the All-Ireland Community & Council Awards for 2021, hosted by LAMA and IPB Insurance, which were presented in Dublin in April.

MAYO MAKES ITS MARK WITH GREATER EFFICIENCY STRATEGY

Mayo’s Efficiency Strategy - the first local authority initiative of its kind - aims to make Mayo County Council a leading exemplar organisation in efficiency to help promote best practices whilst focusing on new and innovative ways of service delivery, according to Tom Gilligan, Director of Services.

APARTMENT DEVELOPMENT SCHEME TO BRIDGE ‘VIABILITY GAP’

The Croí Cónaithe (Cities) Scheme – a new fund to support the building of apartments for sale to owner-occupiers – aims to bridge the ‘viability gap’ between the cost of building apartments and the market sale price (where building cost is greater).