What's the future for Sligo?

dingding wrote: »

One of the things I hate is that in many towns are exactly the same. You have a high street with the types of shops that you mention. I think what Sligo has in its retail offerings is a uniqueness that other towns have and rather than been a negative I think it is a strength.

You have lovely and unique and restaurants like cafe Fleur, sweet beets etc....

Much nicer than a the standard town centers that you meet in a lot of places.

Enniskillen is indistinguishable from a typical UK highstreet with the multitude of charity shops and rebranded weatherspoons. Although the lower part has some nice shops.

Controversial I know but give me Sligo anyday.

Its got to beg the question why? - why do all town look nearly Identical these days with the same old popular shops and loads of well known chains (mostly british , granted) well I am not into marketing but if I am going out on a limb I will say because this model must work ! - and thats why towns have looked at other towns and have welcomed and try to get these big names to come to their towns and set up, and the powers that be have even offered incentives and pulled out all the stops to get these big names that shoppers want in their town ..... and then we have Sligo who in some ways look at other towns and say we want to be original, we dont want to look like other town and high streets .... and then theres the empty units as well and there doesnt seem any enthuisasm of having a piece of the cake/success that other towns have had ... and whats more they know that people are shopping out of town to other towns and they still dont want any of the success of other towns ... because they want to keep it original (some might say outdated in this day of shopping meccas) and even some shoppers and people live in the town dont want it to end up looking like other towns , and then in the past if big stores wanted to open up in sligo they havent been welcomed they have had to face conditiions of where they can set up / operate from then planning permissions turned down (sometimes from other shop owners in the town, looking after their own business and not welcoming competition) so then the shops that pull shoppers into a town have gone to the next town along who have welcomed them with open arms. Yes they may look a carbon copy of other towns and high streets but they have footfall and less empty units

I'd say - if it was done properly and run properly , Sligo could indeed still have its uniqueness and its quaint little local run shops ... but alongside modern shop businesses (and yes chains , why not? - they normally / hopefully employ local people - so although the shoppers money is going to chain stores and not as such to local businesses they are at least most of the time employing / giving employement to local people and the money helps to keep people in jobs still) -

as long as chain stores and big shops are viewed in Sligo as these big horrible monsters and that they are 'taking business away from local shops' and that they are shaping the town centres with their logo's and buildings to make all the towns identical and look all the same (is that really that much of a bad thing?- the chain stores look bright and cheery and clean and improve the look of the area) - well anyway as long as people (people that live in the area and powers that be that have the final say on what the town centre should be/end up like) are saying big stores are taking business away from smaller local stores and that they are making every town look identical ... well then , nothing much will change in Sligo town centre - yes that will please some people that uniqueness ... but what if its a uniqueness of empty units and run down units because the rents and rates are out of the league of local run business to make a long term go of a shop, but are in reach of larger stores / chain stores - then is that a good thing too? ... yes Sligo will not look like all the other 'identical towns' .. but shoppers who should be shopping in their own home town will continue to shop out of the town because Sligo will not have the shops they want to shop in, and get everything they want in one go but nearby towns might have those particular stores that people want (all conveniently grouped together and not one shop here and then another shop they want to get to up the other end of town, dotted all over the place)

I get mixed messages myself .... I get sometimes that sometimes there are people moaning (including officials) that people should shop local, and they dont like local people spending their money in other towns ... but then the other mixed signal I get is that people want Sligo town centre to stay the same and not look like other towns and dont like the chain stores. And then I think its time for Sligo Town Centre and its people to makeup their mind one way or another - does officials and some people living in Sligo want Sligo to stay quaint, unchanged , old fashioned and not modern with a high street that doesnt look like other high street shopping centres in Ireland? ... fine if they do nothing wrong with that ... or do they want Sligo town centre to be a metropolitan , one of the most fantastic shopping hub in the northwest so that people even outside Sligo Town centre want to travel to and shop because it has some fantastic well known shops that people want to shop at and spend money in, and visit not only for the shops but also because Sligo has some great scenery, great beaches mountains and lake and facilities - because I honestly think at this stage , and this is my view, that you cannot really have both I think - not these days. You have to say what you want Sligo Town Centre to be / end up like and then you have to stick to it.

If Sligo town centre ends up a faceless retail hub with a town centre that looks like any other town centre - I welcome it. - If Sligo Town centre ends up being mostly local owned shops and not the popular chains then I will still like it - I am not going to gloss over it, if the local shops are going to be overpriced though because they have high overheads to meet because they are not part of a large organisation , or if they cannot carry the selection because they have only a local shop and not enough floor space then me personally , and i know loyalty goes a long way, but money is still tight these days, I am more than likely going to shop out of town if I cannot get selection of what I want at the price I want it at - I , the same as other people most pobably look into the logics of it (ie spending petrol to hope in the car to the next further away town) I will just require the item at the best possible price and the selection I want in a nice bright clean welcoming environment that the larger shops can offer - obviously I will look locally first in Sligo to see if I can get the item and at the price I want to pay (as I have done for years) but if I dont find it in Sligo or overpriced because its being sold in a local family run business - then I will travel to a town with better shops (as I have done in years) - I know local businesses are suffering and they need all the business they can get or they will close (yes I have heard too many time the saying "use it or loose it" and "shop local, your money stays locally and not goes to a british chain store") yes I have heard those slogans/sayings and I respect them ... but at the end of the day , I like hundreds of other people have to keep an eye on outgoings and shop for the product at the best possible price ... unless you happen to be rich!

One of the things I hate is that in many towns are exactly the same. You have a high street with the types of shops that you mention. I think what Sligo has in its retail offerings is a uniqueness that other towns have and rather than been a negative I think it is a strength.

You have lovely and unique and restaurants like cafe Fleur, sweet beets etc....

Much nicer than a the standard town centers that you meet in a lot of places.

Enniskillen is indistinguishable from a typical UK highstreet with the multitude of charity shops and rebranded weatherspoons. Although the lower part has some nice shops.

Controversial I know but give me Sligo anyday.

sligoblue wrote: »

.... Must admit, bedrudgers get up my nose,...

really? - cant say begrudgers get up my nose tbh. when i hear others say that other towns have better selection of shops , better parking, cheaper parking, pedestrianised main streets, modernised main streets and street furniture and mentioning that sligo has too many restaurants, cafe's , shoe shops barbers and little else i dont think they are begrudgers i just think they are disappointed that Sligo has been stuck in the past and not moved on like other towns have - thankfully with me I love Sligo town as a whole , the scenery the views the (not overly congested) and generally the whole area of Sligo because its beautiful - but if I get fed up with the shopping (or lack of shops) i can whiz in the car to Ballina , carrick on shannon , Galway, Castlebar and even enniskillen and get my retail fixes there - but feel sorry for the poor old 'begrudgers' that do not have the facility to travel and are just stuck with Sligo Town centre for the shopping .

Ah well if this long awaited revamp of o'connell street ever goes ahead (end of this year isnt it?) that might improve Sligo town greatly. - But if all the empty units are taken up with cafes or un-imaginative shops (when someone goes out shopping who says "oooh I love that town it has lots of cafes and restaurants" - no, they normally say oooh it has a marks and spencers or a big penney's or a Tesco superstore" or any other chains shops (sorry to mention chain stores and I know people should be supporting local businesses and shops but lets be honest, shoppers these day are veering towards all the chain shops thats where the shoppers are going to and supporting these days - if thats what it is veering to (and it is) and Sligo Town centre hasnt got a pull of well known chain shops ... then a lot of people (if they got cars and can travel) are simply going to shop and spend their money at a town which has a lot of well known chain shops.

sligoblue wrote: »

Ah, I don't think there is a shortage of units available for other retailers to choose from. Variety in any sector is good, I think ER's will be a good alternative to McD's/4lights etc and the location next to the cinema, in the town centre is excellent. Must admit, bedrudgers get up my nose, this restaurant will no doubt employ a lot of full time/part time staff, so here's my opinion, if you don't want it, don't go there.

is it going to be an eddie rockets though .... or an eddie rockets 'type' restaurant place? - there could be a big difference between the 2

sligoblue

Ah, I don't think there is a shortage of units available for other retailers to choose from. Variety in any sector is good, I think ER's will be a good alternative to McD's/4lights etc and the location next to the cinema, in the town centre is excellent. Must admit, bedrudgers get up my nose, this restaurant will no doubt employ a lot of full time/part time staff, so here's my opinion, if you don't want it, don't go there.

red sean wrote: »

When units lie idle people post sarcastic remarks on here, and when a unit is being re-opened the exact same happens.
A classic no-win situation.
If the opening of this unit leads to just 2 jobs, then it's great news.
But sure why give up the opportunity for a bit of negativity!

lest us not forget that everyone should be able to have an opinion on something or anything, even if it doesnt set well with others who have different views and people are not setting out to upset other peoples views or bring the town down by having different views, especially on something that is happening in the town where we live and for a lot of people havent got the luxury to drive or travel to another town if they are not happy how their town is turning out.

I personally think the poster has a point yes there IS too many eating establishments in the town (thats where most probably the sarcasm point comes from) - I dont like empty units, but on the other hand I dont like empty units taken up by cafes/restaurants and other units because that could (granted it couldnt as well) be a unit that could have been taken up by another business / retailer that could even be there longer than an eating establishment could be and pull more shoppers into the town - (because there are only so many eating establishments a town can hold for the footfall that comes to the town and hungry visitors and some will do well... but some will be there for a while and find out they have got so much competition in the way of restaurants and cafes etc )

but saying that I think an Eddie Rockets style eating place will indeed (or should do) do very well there because its in the right location, right next to the cinema , and it seem an ideal place for one (hope its not too costly because it is already costly to buy a cinema ticket and food, and then if you come out and fancy popping next door for a bite to eat then it will end up quite an expensive night out)

In the UK before I left in the 90's cinemas where already expanding and they were no longer just a place to go to watch a movie they realised their was a market for people to have a full experience . in fact the cinema that was only half hours drive from where I lived had 10 screens, a Bar serving , a burger place (like eddie rockets) and a niteclub and a bowling alley all built into the same building of the cinema.

red sean

When units lie idle people post sarcastic remarks on here, and when a unit is being re-opened the exact same happens.
A classic no-win situation.
If the opening of this unit leads to just 2 jobs, then it's great news.
But sure why give up the opportunity for a bit of negativity!

mano79

Vlove wrote: »

Great another restaurant *sarcasm*:rolleyes:

I would have thought this would be good for town. A diner beside the cinema you would think it would do well. Its probably one of the things thats missing in town - an affordable hang out spot for young people and couples heading out to cinema etc. Supermacs and McDonalds are based out of town and the 4Lanterns is not exactly the cool hang out spot so the options are limited at the min

[Deleted User]

_feedback_ wrote: »

"Eddie Rockets style dinner" coming next door to the cinema

https://m.independent.ie/regionals/sligochampion/news/new-restaurant-for-wine-st-36998880.html

Great another restaurant *sarcasm*:rolleyes:

_feedback_

"Eddie Rockets style diner" coming next door to the cinema

https://www.independent.ie/regionals/sligochampion/news/new-restaurant-for-wine-st-36998880.html

redarmyblues

dingding wrote: »

Hopefully, it will coincide with the eastern bypass and the western distributor road, but it is Sligo thinking may not be that joined up.

There is no plan for an Eastern bypass, there is a plan for a road between Ballinode and Cranmore Road, maybe that's the problem with Sligo people aren't informed enough, there was a plan for a western bypass but the council in their wisdom removed it from the county development plan.

marvin80 wrote: »

The follow-on from this is getting jobs in Sligo to ensure graduates stay to live and work in Sligo.

The announcement that the road between Caltra and Mitchel Curley Park is significant.

The main purpose is to serve lands owned by the IDA for industrial development.

marvin80

T-Bird wrote: »

It certanly has changed since then. I graduated from there 3 years ago and have noticed huge differences.

All they need to do now is to take some ideas on how Waterford IT advertise...

The follow-on from this is getting jobs in Sligo to ensure graduates stay to live and work in Sligo.

dingding wrote: »

Also plenty of place for students to meet and study. A number of restaurants / coffee shops, the ground floor of the library, about 20 meeting rooms in the library and in the new Business and Social Sciences block a number of student areas and meeting rooms for self study.

The screens in the labs also support school work. In that the lecturer can handle control over to the individual students in the vicinity of each screen.

While all the universities in Ireland are of a bigger scale, the environment in IT Sligo would largely be better. There are a number of areas to refurb but most of the institute would have been refreshed in the past 15 years.

I was a student there in the early 90's and it is completely transformed.

It certanly has changed since then. I graduated from there 3 years ago and have noticed huge differences.

All they need to do now is to take some ideas on how Waterford IT advertise...

dingding wrote: »

Also plenty of place for students to meet and study. A number of restaurants / coffee shops, the ground floor of the library, about 20 meeting rooms in the library and in the new Business and Social Sciences block a number of student areas and meeting rooms for self study.

The screens in the labs also support school work. In that the lecturer can handle control over to the individual students in the vicinity of each screen.

While all the universities in Ireland are of a bigger scale, the environment in IT Sligo would largely be better. There are a number of areas to refurb but most of the institute would have been refreshed in the past 15 years.

I was a student there in the early 90's and it is completely transformed.

sounds really good ...

T-Bird wrote: »

I had a look around the new School of Business block when the TDs were up the a couple of weeks ago. It's a fine modern looking place now, and I agree with the use of light. Great open areas and big screen computers in all the tech rooms.

Also plenty of place for students to meet and study. A number of restaurants / coffee shops, the ground floor of the library, about 20 meeting rooms in the library and in the new Business and Social Sciences block a number of student areas and meeting rooms for self study.

The screens in the labs also support school work. In that the lecturer can handle control over to the individual students in the vicinity of each screen.

While all the universities in Ireland are of a bigger scale, the environment in IT Sligo would largely be better. There are a number of areas to refurb but most of the institute would have been refreshed in the past 15 years.

I was a student there in the early 90's and it is completely transformed.

dingding wrote: »

The Science block is just one of the many capital projects over the past 10-15 years.

The running track, knocknarea arena, all weather pitches, library extension, student services building, the science building, the student canteen, the aurivo auditorium together with a number of smaller refurbs and most recently the school of business and social sciences block. Also with the amount of land on the campus it would be one of the finest institutes of technology in the country.

The great thing about the Sligo campus is that it was designed before it was built so there is a great flow to the building, not many IoT's have this. Also the use of light inside is great.

I had a look around the new School of Business block when the TDs were up the a couple of weeks ago. It's a fine modern looking place now, and I agree with the use of light. Great open areas and big screen computers in all the tech rooms.

T-Bird wrote: »

IT Sligo is in partnership and seeking university status via The Connacht-Ulster Alliance [CUA]. Their science block is state of the art and has customised courses for local businesses.

The Science block is just one of the many capital projects over the past 10-15 years.

The running track, knocknarea arena, all weather pitches, library extension, student services building, the science building, the student canteen, the aurivo auditorium together with a number of smaller refurbs and most recently the school of business and social sciences block. Also with the amount of land on the campus it would be one of the finest institutes of technology in the country.

The great thing about the Sligo campus is that it was designed before it was built so there is a great flow to the building, not many IoT's have this. Also the use of light inside is great.

IT Sligo is in partnership and seeking university status via The Connacht-Ulster Alliance [CUA]. Their science block is state of the art and has customised courses for local businesses.

doolox

...to which many services are moving from the Northwest and Roscommon and elsewhere.

The same thing is happening in the likes of Kilkenny, Waterford and the smaller potential cities, all the complex services and educational activity are being sucked into Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway because of the existence of the holy trinity of 3rd level unis, large hospitals and a technical presence in one place.

Waterford and Kilkenny need to enlarge by setting up a degree awarding institution of some sort, also Sligo, Letterkenny and possibly Athlone need to form a partnership between their IT's in order to get the power to award level 8 degrees and Masters in a similar way to DIT, I think theirs are accreditied by Trinity.

The thing that allows growth in Leinster is education. It is what allowed North Leinster to get Intel and the same needs to be done in the South East and North West.

5rtytry56

JupiterKid wrote: »

Sligo has a lot going for it ,

Sligo successfully faught off the very much intended complete closure of it's railway infrastructure (port as well as Dublin Sligo passenger line) in the 1970s.

Roll on 40 years and It seems that the fighting spirit has gone out the same authorities nowadays.

JupiterKid

The fact that Ireland's population has grown by over a million in the past 20 years yet Sligo town's has shrunk is a damning indictment on the fortune of the town. Letterkenny passed Sligo out in population over a decade ago.

Something is very badly wrong. I think some sort of a forum should be set up- involving the local authority, the enterprise board, the town centre retailers, the IDA, the IT and other relevant stakeholders should be set up with urgency to try to flesh out a coherent strategy for the town. To figure out a way to selling the town to inward investment and not just another talking shop.

Sligo has a lot going for it and should be the pre-eminent town in the North West- it is actually incredible that it has not grown in line with other Irish towns its size. It should have doubled in size over the past 30 years.

Remember that Galway was once a peripheral, poor, and remote town in the West only just over 50 years ago. It had less than 25,000 population as late as 1966. And look how it has grown since. Over 80k population today and still growing.

Why can't Sligo capture some of that energy?

dingding wrote: »

Also the number of negative people who knock things in Sligo

depends what you mean by knock Sligo ... I Love Sligo for the place that it is , the scenery, the beaches , the breathtaking mountains, lakes and rivers, the way of living (although I would say it was more laid back in the 90's to what it is these days) the people, most of them are lovely. - I am not that into arty farty image Sligo likes to push a lot of the time (the wife is though) and pretentious places that seem to pop up around sligo - I am not that much into arty farty food either - give me something plain good food any day - just a normal good quality cafe does me, we dont need so many pretentious eating establishments that are in Sligo - but hey if it brings tourists in and other people like it then why not I suppose - after all thats what really sligo seems to push most these days , food, art and yeats related stuff and wild atlantic way. (I suppose its pushed for surfing as well)

My wife would kill me for putting up on here but we are like chalk and cheese she loves arty farty things , and different arty farty pretentious food - give me a plate of egg and chips and a mug of instant coffee any day in a cafe at a very reasonable price not an arm and a leg and I am happy LOL

Also the number of negative people who knock things in Sligo

cor im in me element now, just found this page on facebook - there be no stopping me now!

Whats-wrong-with-Sligo-Facebook

just wondering , Im not that well up on projections and plans these businesses have to give to the banks , but if a company/retail shop wants to open up what 'population' is it people resident or are Tourist's to the area that are factored in?

Sligo is in a difficult situation. Population is small because there are no jobs. Abbott came here in the late 70s and are the only real company with pulling power here. They (or sister company) have announced big expansion but most jobs will be temp and also specialised.

Our infrastructure is terrible. We may not need a motorway from Dublin but we should at least have it 90 percent dual carriageway. If you're an overseas company looking to save a bit out tax by coming to Ireland and looking for a county to establish poor Sligo has not got a chance against the likes of Galway, Cork or Dublin.

As a result the population of Sligo is shrinking. The big shops will not come here because of the small footfall and the existing ones are closing for this reason.

Sligo has become a forgotten county and I believe was also going to be forgotten again in this new 2040 plan. Luckily some constant lobbying from a few TDs and others have hopefully made a difference and things will start to get better.

BenBulben18

New people coming in and settling comes first I reckon.

I've heard that attitude too over the years, but the fact is, many older, family-run businesses have closed down too and are still closing, so there's no point in people thinking just because they stick with the older shop and don't go to the chain, that the older business will remain viable. There's still competition and good old supply and demand to factor in tbh.