LONG READ: Plans afoot to revamp the business life of this town in Tipperary

“We are on the cusp of making something happen,” Noel Buckley, Chairman of the Clonmel Town Team, stated when he addressed a meeting of Clonmel Borough District about the BIDS process that is in the pipeline for the town.

BIDS (Business Improvement Districts) have been shown to improve the trading performance of a town within specific geographic locations by improving the commercial environment, and proactively marketing the district.

The Clonmel Town Team, formed towards the end of 2023, is charged with the responsibility of town centre regeneration.

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Mr Buckley said that funding through BIDS was raised through the town’s business people agreeing to add a certain percentage increase to their rates, with the money to be used in the town itself.

He said that for business people who paid €3,000 in rates, for example, this would amount to an extra €130 or €140, which could even be written off as a tax expense.

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The big advantage that Clonmel has is the large number of multi-nationals based in the town, and these would be the biggest contributors to this fund, he said.

“This is an opportunity to enhance what this town has to offer,” said Mr Buckley.

“Every crisis is an opportunity and we have an opportunity to reimagine the town,” he added.

Mr Buckley said that online shopping is a fact but you could also look at the growth of new businesses, such as the Fetch coffee shop on the Quay.

The town would have to reimagine the type of businesses and experiences it offers, and cultural events and festivals would bring people into the town and into the shops.

He said that the BIDS process had been running very successfully in Sligo for the last number of years.

A meeting had been arranged in Sligo between businesses in the town, and business representatives and council officials from this area, to explore the idea.

Everyone was of the opinion that this could work in Clonmel. A presentation had also been given to a sample of 40 businesses in Clonmel. Again, the response was very positive.

A business plan would be drawn up and put to the rate payers of Clonmel. A CEO would be appointed and the scheme would have a budget, and would be run by businesses.

It would also have the ability to leverage an extra €300,000 or €400,000 in funding.

The businesses in Clonmel would have an opportunity to vote on this later in the year. If the vote was in favour, the BIDS process would be up and running by next January, he stated.

Any business people he had met were asking how soon it would get off the ground.

Mr Buckley said that the Town Team also supported other initiatives, such as the Christmas market on the Kickham Plaza.
Clonmel High School teacher Martina O’Reilly has asked the Town Team to assemble a group so that the Christmas experience in Clonmel could be enhanced and developed.

Mr Buckley said that with the availability of the Kickham Plaza, there was huge potential to grow the festivals in the town.He said that the Town Team saw itself as a conduit to bring parties together and work together for the good of Clonmel.

He also said that “data is king”. There were data counters in every street in Sligo that indicated the footfall in an area.
“When you have that anecdotal evidence when you’re looking for funding, you get listened to,” he stated.

Sligo was also investigating how it could boost its night-time economy and it also had an app for businesses to deal with anti-social behaviour.

“You hear a lot of negative commentary in the media about Clonmel; that does no good for the image of the town,” said Mr Buckley.

He said the only people who would save the town were the people of the town and the businesses. In his view Clonmel, which is the only town in the country where “you can walk directly onto a mountain,” has an amount of untapped potential.

The Town Team has representatives from the arts, education, community and business, as well as from Tipperary County Council. He said the council’s Housing Officer Shane Grogan was doing fantastic work and they would hold another meeting in the autumn in an effort to bring vacant buildings back into use.

Mr Buckley said that BIDS and other initiatives “would enable us to be the creators of our own narrative here in Clonmel; a narrative of possibility”.

He said that the camper van park in Suir Island, for example, was recognised as being one of the best in Ireland because it is located in the heart of the town. In other towns you had to walk a mile or two from the camper van park into the town centre.
He said that businesses such as Bob Fitzgerald’s, Hickey’s and Moran’s had noticed an increase in business because of the camper van park. There had also been an increase in footfall at the Main Guard because of this facility.

District Mayor Pat English praised the work of the Town Team and thanked Mr Buckley for his presentation.

Cllr Tom Acheson said that Clonmel could experience the same success as Sligo because it too was vibrant, and an even better town.

He agreed that we didn’t utilise the town’s location as much as we could. And every month the various arts groups had activities that weren’t supported, even though they were available on our doorstep and at a very reasonable cost.

Cllr Richie Molloy said that the BIDS process had been talked about for many years and he looked forward to seeing it come to fruition.

Cllr Siobhán Ambrose said that Sligo is the blueprint to see the way that money could be generated through the BIDS process.

Cllr John FitzGerald said that the BIDS process is a good news story. It would get off the ground and the funding would come through.