IB SURVEY MEATH COUNTY COUNCIL
Meath has much to offer: proximity to the airport, commercial property and housing costs that are considerably lower than neighbouring Dublin. these high growth towns when considering a location for their business. Navan boasts the Purple Flag status for its night time economy. The Purple Flag is a town and city centre award similar to the Blue Flag for beaches that we’re familiar with. It aims to raise the standard and broaden the appeal of town and city centres between the hours of 6pm and 5am. Towns that have been awarded Purple Flags are recognised for providing a vibrant mix of entertainment while promoting the safety and wellbeing of both visitors and local residents. Navan is now on par with cities including Dublin, Cork and Galway who also have Purple Flag status. The Purple Flag programme is managed by the Association of Town and City Management (ATCM) which works alongside the Purple Flag Advisory Committee – a partnership of key stakeholder groups including, in this case, Navan Chamber of Commerce.
Above: At the Launch of the Meath Chambers meeting in Navan. (L to R) Cllr Alan Tobin (Ashbourne); Paul Mc Glynn (Navan); Bill Sweeney (Kells); Joe Giltnen, Sec, Meath Association; Jackie Maguire, CEO, MCC; Donal O’Brien, CEO, Aramark; Brian Fitzgerald, Chair, MCC; Donna Farrell (Navan); Noel French (Trim) and Joe English, Local Enterprise Officer, Navan. Jackie Maguire, Chief Executive, Meath County Council
BEHIND THE SCENES All of this work within Meath County Council and the business community is underpinned by the support, dedication and innovation of the Local Enterprise Office team in Meath. Led by Joe English, the team provide a range of supports to pre-start, start-up and established SMEs across the county. This teamwork is already yielding results. At the start of the year, Facebook announced it was investing a200m in a data centre in Clonee, County Meath. Employing 2,000 people during its construction phase, the facility will InBUSINESS | Q2 2016
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then provide at least 150 tech jobs in the longer term. The Council is working to create a cluster of data centres. Meath has much to offer: proximity to the airport, commercial property and housing costs that are considerably lower than neighbouring Dublin, and a large and highly educated workforce already living in the county. The year 2022 may appear a long way away, but Meath County Council and its partners in the County Meath Association of Chambers and Business Councils
are determined to deliver class-leading results during the lifespan of Meath’s Economic Development Strategy. For more information on the Economic Development Strategy for Meath contact Tara Smith, Marketing and Communications Officer, Meath Economic and Enterprise Team. Phone: 046 909 7525, email tsmith@ meathcoco.ie./economic@meathcoco.ie or visit www.meath.ie/business.
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