Page 2 - Sligo X North West

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Sligo reels you in with poetic beauty but its real assets are the people
In Sligo
This place,
my place
For artistic director Niall Henry,
life in Sligo is about wonderful stories, the people and the power of the sea.
It’s less than a three-hour drive from Dublin and home to a growing army of illustrators, digital creators, filmmak- ers, foodies, cutting-edge artists, and award-winning writers.
There are designers, modern archi- tects, playwrights, pro-surfers, adventure photographers, pharma-experts, engi- neers, and a raft of new tech firms, all tak- ing advantage of the start-up economy’s mushrooming opportunities.
They’re smart, highly-skilled and fero- ciously ambitious, creating a 21st–century story for Sligo, a county steeped in crea- tive history and boasting an embrassment of aesthetic riches.
In this special supplement called ‘Sligo X North West’, we bring you some of the stories of the people who live, work, learn and create here.
There are also special contributions from those who love Sligo and the North West including the IMPAC-winning nov- elist Kevin Barry and the global surf-star Easkey Britton.
Sligo has attracted a lot of attention in recent years with the well-versed narra- tive around tourism, sufring, WB Yeats and all of that.
This year alone saw the Fleadh Cheoil attract over 200,000 visitors to the town, a family-friendly event with an unmatched and infectious cultural scope that sweeps up young and old.
The Wild Atlantic Way has re-ignited the appetite for spectaculur tourism and next year, Yeats 2015 takes centre stage, with events to mark the great poet’s birth 150 years ago.
All of this is wonderful but there is so much more.
Sligo has become a lifestyle choice, a destination for many people seeking the space and environment in which to have a family, build a career and enjoy life.
The attention is justified. Sigo’s stun- ning North West setting, bound by the Atlantic sea and outrageously beauti- ful mountain views of Benbulben and Knocknarea, says so.
But is location everything? Well, there’s brains here too. Sligo is developing and evolving with a creative, inventive twist, driven by a coalition of the willing that’s been dubbed Team Sligo.
There is a growing start-up culture, a pool of talent nurtured and supported
by the Innovation Centre at IT Sligo, the region’s largest third-level facility, En- terprise Ireland, under its New Frontiers programme, and IDA Ireland, which has a
strong presence in Sligo.
Sligo Chamber of Commerce is also
at the forefront of driving change, with a string of recent initiatives designed to kickstart and promote business in the town.
Added to that is a diverse lineup of professionals and others who volunteer time, effort and expertise to oversee flag- ship events such as last summer’s Fleadh Cheoil in conjucntion with Sligo County Council.
For those who dream of fleeing more crowded climes, there is much to recom- mend; Sligo’s Irish Rail link to the capital, a shorter car journey time than the Dub- lin-Cork route, plentiful and affordable housing, good schools with no waiting lists and open space; lots of it.
There are world-class tourist attrac- tions in surfing and heritage and, of course, Lissadell House, the recently re- opened landmark.
It’s not hard to see the lure of swapping a €1,200 a month two-bed apartment in Dublin when you can move into a four- bed family home in Sligo, for less than €700.
Factor in travel times – 10 minutes is considered commuter hell in Sligo - and you’re beginning to think of a lifestyle transformed.
Of course, it’s not all Utopia. The local airport has lost its connection to Dublin, attracting investment can be a challenge, broadband coverage can be patchy in some areas and there’s no Brown Thomas. (The last bit’s a joke.)
Anyway, don’t take my word for it.
In ‘SXNW’ learn about the many ways people relax, learn, work, and create, in this remarkbale corner of Ireland’s North West. For those interested in learning more, there’s a great Twitter hashtag to follow called #sligowhoknew and a raft of other resources such as lookwest.ie, newly launched by the Western Development Commission, sligot-
ourism.ie, itsligo.ie
and newfrontier-
snw.ie.
Enjoy reading Sligo’s many com- pelling stories.
Ciaran Byrne
Iwas born in Sligo, my family home was in the very centre of town on Union Street. It was a small street with about eight families living on it. The Duffys, the Lorimers, the Feehilys, Mrs McTeir- nan, Dr Murphy, the Weirs and us,
the Henrys. Over the years people either moved away or died and, as is the way in all towns in our time, the houses were either removed for shops or turned into apartments.
Union Street was the main access road for trucks coming to Sligo, and going to and from the docks. As a small boy I can distinctly remember being woken each morning by trucks as they rattled past my window in the early morning, with the sound mixed in of the nearby train warm- ing up at McDiarmada Station. I live in the country now and still find the absolute silence unnerving.
My first twenty years of memories more or less belong to that house in Union Street, and that part of town. We had
a small garden to the side of the house and I can see my mother sitting outside the garage facing the sun setting in the evenings. I remember having family tea in the garden on sunny days. I can remember lots of birthday parties and I remember the family rhythm being interrupted by my crazy uncles returning from England for their holidays. My most vivid memory from that time is this; I am five and in my father’s car (a green Hillman Hunter), it
Sligo is a place whose stories reach further back into the past than any history books we have to hand
was Christmas Eve, though I didn’t know that at the time. He was bringing me back from Gordon Barry’s house and I asked him, as my daughter asks me now, ‘where are we going?’ He told me Santa Claus was coming tonight and that I had to get to bed early! The sense of comfort and security from that vivid memory is as intense now as it was then.
When I was bold (often/seldom) I jumped on my tricycle and zoomed down the small hill at the front of our house. Taking a left, I passed Weirs and contin- ued straight on until Union Street met Wine Street at the corner of Rowlette’s house. Another left, I travelled quickly down Wine Street passing more homes; Henrys, McCarrick’s flower shop, the old Gaiety Cinema, McGoldrick’s News Agents and Anna’s. Sometimes at Anna’s you got stopped by travellers that minded your bike, gave you money to go into the shop to buy ice cream. The old man that owned
Irish Independent
26 November 2014