Pictured with the Budget Book for Galway City Council marking an ambitious €19.5m Investment Plan for Galway City are (left to right) Leonard Cleary, Chief Executive Galway City Council, Mayor of the City of Galway, Cllr Peter Keane, and Helen Kilroy, Director of Finance Galway City Council.
The Elected Members of Galway City Council today (Friday 13 December 2024) approved an ambitious proposal by the Local Authority to invest an additional €19.5m in the city over the next five years.
The €143m budget invests in targeted areas including the delivery of social and affordable housing; new climate action projects; the development of a city campervan facility; bringing derelict sites back into use; street cleaning; the introduction of a shop front enhancement scheme; grants towards local community improvements and projects; and maintenance of housing, parks, footpaths and public amenities.
The Mayor of the City of Galway, Cllr. Peter Keane, welcomed this investment in the city, saying, "This investment reflects Galway City Council's planning for the growth and development of Galway. It includes enhanced services for the business and community sectors, local residents, and the two million tourists visiting Galway City annually.”
At the Council’s annual Budget Meeting, Chief Executive Leonard Cleary outlined a series of target measures for 2025.
They include progressing the Kingston, Millers Lane, Southpark and Renmore Sports and Recreation masterplans to design stage; the delivery of a ‘Galway City Tourism Destination and Experience Development Plan’ and ‘Night-Time Economy Action Plan’; mobilising the newly formed Derelict Sites Team; continuing Climate Action and Sustainability projects; and the development of an implementation plan for the delivery of Galway City’s EV charging infrastructure.
Galway City Council also plans to expand the tourism, architectural services, and frontline outdoor teams, including those directly engaged in street-cleaning, roads and footpaths maintenance, grass-cutting and housing repairs.
At the annual Budget Meeting, Elected Members approved the adjustment of the Annual Rate of Valuation (ARV) from 0.217 to 0.23 - which is beginning to catch up with the majority of the 30 other local authorities across the country.
Mr. Cleary said the approval of the Galway City Council Budget for 2025 puts Galway City Council in a position to make a significant investment in essential public services and capital projects over the next five years:
“Significant investment is required in aging infrastructure such as our public lighting, public conveniences, footpaths and housing stock. Rising operational costs driven by inflation, wage increases and the rise in energy costs, obligations in meeting sustainability targets and the increased demand for services posed by population growth add to the challenging tasks that the Council must contend with,” he explained.
Mr. Cleary continued, “The approved Budget will ensure the sustainability of the Galway City Council finances and enable us to meet rising demands whilst maintaining competitiveness and fostering a vibrant, thriving city. The increased funding will have very real impact in areas including street cleaning, bins, playgrounds, grass-cutting, housing maintenance, and capital projects such as Leisureland, and Masterplans for Kingston and Millers Lane, Southpark and Renmore”.
Helen Kilroy, Director of Finance, Galway City Council commented, “The decision of Council on Budget 2025 is a welcome uplift in income for 2025 and is the first step in addressing underinvestment in the city over recent years. We look forward to working with the Elected Members on a multi-annual basis over the term of the council to increase our capacity to invest in the communities, services, infrastructure, and people of Galway, to realise the ambitions and potential of Galway, to be a world class, inclusive, and liveable city”.