Why has Waterford City falling so behind the other 4 Cities Dublin Cork Limerick Galway ?

irishrepeat2

As a young person, waterford property offers great value for money, as immigration increases, a great opportunity arises for waterford, if anywhere in ireland is likely to become the next proper city its waterford or drogheda, maybe both!

road_high

I’d pick Waterford over Limerick or Galway any day tbh. The weather is atrocious in them and they’re too far from Dublin for regular work and visits

Anaki r2d2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121721926#Comment_121721926

I think you will find that if you look at a map both Belfast and Derry are on the island of Ireland.

What you are trying to say is that they are not part of the Republic of Ireland.

which technically has nothing to do with this thread.

Anaki r2d2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121721940#Comment_121721940

If that the most uninformed comment you have read, you must be new to boards.ie!! It’s all down hill from here!!

this thread only has 18 posts, so most if not all are new.

Kind of a given for a “new” thread.

No sly kick, you might not like it. But Ireland is really a 1 city country. It’s all about Dublin.

orangerhyme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121722476#Comment_121722476

Good point about weather.

Is Waterford's climate noticeably better? As in, is it so much better that it would be a factor in living there?

Anaki r2d2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121722548#Comment_121722548

East coast weather is way better than West coast. If you lived in Donegal/Galway you’d know.

But have a look at Met.ie now and again, see how much better the east coast gets it

orangerhyme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121722569#Comment_121722569

Oh I know.

But is Waterford noticeably better than Dublin?

Dublin is a bit dryer but would Waterford be noticeably warmer and sunnier? I doubt it.

But it would be in comparison with Donegal definitely.

Waterford has a lovely coast for day trips & walking, all within a short distance. There’s charming villages like Dunmore East & Passage East, a great greenway, a good resort & commuter town in Tramore, the wonderful Copper Coast, mountains nearby for the more energetic.

Str8outtaWuhan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121722525#Comment_121722525

OP mentioned waterford compared to other Irish cities. Belfast and Londonderry are technically not Irish cities but UK cities.irish is a cultural adjective ascribed to a group or things belonging to a group. The GFA clearly states that NI is part of the UK and the majority in that region do not identify as Irish. Thus it is unfair to compare Waterford to UK cities.

beachhead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121721216#Comment_121721216

Would agree here but 1981-1985 and early 90s

Chiparus

The mentality of Waterford People has a lot to do with it, they are very negative and unfriendly bunch, especially to surrounding counties,

The county jersey bogmen mentality pervades everywhere, especially in the city.

Plus the city is junk to shop in.

azimuth17

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121723073#Comment_121723073

Look in the mirror and examinne yourself.

Valhalla90

Waterford has a lot going for it despite the fact the government neglects it compared to other cities. The University is a big issue and the region not being united when it comes to supporting Waterford as the gateway to the region. Waterford has good infrastructure with its bypass and outer ring road,M9 to Dublin. Retail lacks but hopefully the coming year will see improvements. Airport will be a game changer also. Finally the weather in Waterford is definitely much better than the western/mid western regions.

Curb Your Enthusiasm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121721657#Comment_121721657

How about frequent bus and rail connections that don't just rely on private companies (ie the 600 route)

Even Waterford to Kilkenny has a really poor connection and they're not far apart.

Anaki r2d2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121722903#Comment_121722903

OK Jeffrey. Don't think I have heard an Irishman refer to Derry as Londonderry before. The OP never mentioned Irish cities. You introduced the DUP unionist definitions.

road_high

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121723223#Comment_121723223

The rail service isn’t too bad though needs more earlier morning and later evening connections. Plenty of capacity on existing services. The 600 is fairly frequent too

road_high

Galway and Limerick in particular are treated as pet cities by central government- there’s no way these two small cities warrant two universities when other parts of the country are deficient in facilities but they got them anyway. Limerick is no more deprived than other smaller towns around the country but again is pampered beyond belief by state agencies

azimuth17

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121724183#Comment_121724183

The answer would have been a "normal" university in Waterford as Dr Edward Walsh of UL proposed as in the other region and a Tech Uni in Carlow, Kilkenny and Wexford. Politics militated against that fairly reasonable suggestion.

914

Hard to believe the port report was 2005 which supported Waterford becoming a stand alone University

Another report in favour of Waterford, ignored.

Almost 20 years later we now have a TU, and still await a new engineering building that was first promised in 2009!

That alone goes a long way in answering the OPs question!

WIT the only non University to have an institute of research. WIT number 1 IoT year on year, the reward, the same as everyone else!

http://www.edwalsh.ie/2005/09/12/waterford-university/

Economics101

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121724183#Comment_121724183

Galway has had a University since Queen's College Galway was founded in 1845. Nothing to do with favouritism from Irish TDs!

azimuth17

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121724944#Comment_121724944

I have nothing against the development of Galway, its the model that should have happened in the south east. Reasonable to suggest that the favouritism towards Galway started from a legitimate "Save the West" desire and has continued since. The comment from 914 above about SETU Waterford waiting since 2009 for a new engineering building renders much other comment here superfluous. That's it in a nutshell. State investment and a political desire to support is the kernel of the problem.

alias no.9

Waterford is described as the regional capital of the south east but it's supposed satellites don't appear to be in its gravitational pull.

Carlow town is more or less half way between Waterford and Dublin. It's very difficult to see how Waterford can reasonably pull Carlow into its orbit.

Clonmel is almost half way between Waterford and Limerick but the extra gravitational pull of Cork and even Dublin probably have stronger influence than either Waterford or Limerick.

Since it can't compete on gravity alone, Waterford needs a niche, something it does better than other places and is known for. Make it a more attractive place to live or visit and the rest will follow. It has huge potential but the quay in particular is so underwhelming. It should be an environment that draws people in, a hive of activity full of locals and visitors alike, but it's a car park and bus station. It's time to give up the car parks for a better city. Start by looking at other port cities and how they regenerated their historic docksides, then mix and match the best options for Waterford.

azimuth17

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121725655#Comment_121725655

The process of reclaiming the quays has started with the new bridge (200m Euro project) at the Clock Tower which contains, when completed , a small plaza aound the Clock. These are the necessary things to improve visual, transport access, urban permeability, civic presentation and appearance. Proper investment in UHW, SETU and FDI requirements drive the process as they underpin commercial confidence.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121724944#Comment_121724944

And UL was the amalgamation of 2 smaller colleges and the coming together of various local and diaspora businessmen.

It was the culmination of a campaign that ended the shocking bullsht that the independent Irish state had done fuk all to build on Victorian infrastructure in 3rd level education.

Its certainly not some perceived government hatred of Waterford.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121721741#Comment_121721741

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121722133#Comment_121722133

Europe had many cities as small as Irish ones. Take Carlisle or Cuidad Real for example.

Limerick/Galway/Waterford not being cities is a very outdated self deprecating lie the Irish telly themselves.

Tried to find info on demographics for Limerick and Waterford but couldn't find much. I know Galway is relatively new as a city but didn't know about the rest.

When were Waterford and Limerick the same size ?

azimuth17

In Waterford's case a third level teacher training college De La Salle, which educated many GAA presidents and even Enda Kenny's father I believe, as national teachers, was closed in 1939. The campaign for a university in Waterford predated that event but later crystalised around it as in 1945 it was on the point of becoming a constituent college of the NUI when it was torpedoed by the president of UCC, Alfie O'Rahilly. There have been several iterations since then of a university action group in Waterford. The last ended in 2005 when uni status for WIT appeared certain.

I dont believe in government hatred of Waterford but their priorites always lie elsewhere. The 15 year wait for a new engineering building, or any new building at SETU Waterford as alluded to by 914 above is unequalled in Irish third level recent history, certainly in Galway or Limerick.

Muttley79

Geographically Waterford City is in no man's land.its been stunted by cork who have aligned themselves to working with limerick on a lot of issues and kilkenny-wexford see themselves closer to Dublin within Leinster.

I believe if Waterford City was in the province of Leinster it would have everything going for it as an alternative to Dublin.

It simply comes down to no political clout and gaa mindset.

Waterford will never in our lifetime ever reach it's potential.

914

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121725726#Comment_121725726

I agree, I don't believe it is hatred towards Waterford but it is more to do with personal political ambition which has a negative impact on Waterford.

I can use four examples since 2009 that might highlight this.

All reports below were independent reports commissioned by government.

2005, the Port report recommended WIT should be put forward to become a stand alone Uni. Ignored.

2012, (the name of the report escapes me now), again recommended Waterford for a stand alone Uni and if not and Ireland was to go the TU route then WIT should be granted TU status on its own as it was exceeding the TU criteria since 2009, again ignored

Both examples above were ignore as political representatives at the time wanted their own legacy, mainly Howlin wanted a campus in Wexford and Hogan wanted a campus in KK, Waterford going it alone would not see their plans come to fruition and WIT has been starved of funding since 2009.

Next up, boundary commission report, recommended Waterford expand its city boundary into parts of South Kilkenny. This was around the time of Enda Kenny stepping down as leader and Convey had his eye on leader of the party, due to the backlash in Kilkenny he chose to ignore the report for his own ambitions.

Finally the herity report into 24/7 cardiac care which concluded with not expanding 24/7 cardiac care in UHW. Then minister for health Simon Harris quote "there is no way government can go against an independent report"

From the above, three independent reports that supported progress in Waterford were all rejected for personal political gain. The fourth report which did not support Waterford was rubber stamped.

We can also go on with how the hegerty report was flawed and proved to be flawed. How Leo called consultants in UHW liars about the mortuary issue, and once investigated turned out all reports to be true and government were shamed into building a new mortuary.

The list is really endless. Politics in the South East is a mess and SETU will be a prime example.

Which every county gets a full ministerial positions then that county will thrive with funding towards their campus.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121726631#Comment_121726631

Waterford does seem to have a problem none of the other cities have which is that it is not the obviously recognised hub for it's region. Nobody would claim that Tralee, Nenagh or Ennis are rivals to Cork and Limerick the way Carlow and particularly Kilkenny Town (not city) feel they are. Tipperary kinda has a similar issue as do the midlands but Waterford is unique as a city in that regard.

azimuth17

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121726631#Comment_121726631

F##k them all. Resilience is the word. We're never giving up. We're never giving in.

Dum_Dum_2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121726631#Comment_121726631

An excellent summary on the two-faced nature of it all. Of course, the reports themselves can often be excuses to defer matters until they 'go away' or as stated, if they conclude with the wrong answer, then just ignore them.

The airport is another saga, and is a totem to all that's wrong with political representation. The jibe directed at Waterford is that 'it doesn't do enough for itself', 'expects handouts' or 'just waits for something to happen'. And yet, when local business and local authorities do take initiative, and I'm talking about the business case for the Airport here, the plans just sit on the Ministers desk, unread and unacknowledged. How on earth do you come back from that?

The fact is that Waterford was a factory town that lost it's factory. Just like Northern England and the US Rust Belt, government just sat back with it's thumb up its ar$e and watched it all fall apart.