Phoenix' weekly column for Waterford News & Star

Waterford is in a beauty competition with other urban areas for business and commerce

History has shown us we have no guarantee of our place in the Irish urban rankings

A seat at Cabinet is a must, without it our voice won’t be heard

Who in opposition will hold the Government's feet to the fire in the Daíl for Waterford

Despite the Ireland 2040 strategy in the National Plan, which says that all cities are equal, some cities are more equal than others

Excuses about Covid, about PPP, about the price of concrete or the procurement process for state-funded investment are all excuses for Fine Gael’s failure to do what they promised to do in 2018

The National Planning Framework to 2040 proposes spending approximately €7,000 per head in Waterford and €19,000 per head in Dublin, the land of €350,000 bike sheds and €1.4m security huts

For 20 years between 1985 and 2005 as secretary of the Waterford University Action Group Ollie Clery spent an inordinate amount of his time and probably an uncountable amount of his own money pushing the idea of a university for Waterford

While tourism is developing in the Viking Triangle, perceived and real difficulties in accessing the historic core have undermined the vitality of the city centre

The impenetrable bureau-speak that accompanies HSE responses testifies to the “sweets in a jar” nature of its capital development process

It is patently obvious that most of the wages and salaries paid to commuters does not find its way back to the city in retail spend

Those who believe that the development of our North Quays is an adequate return for five years in government reinforce the notion that Waterford is not entitled to the same level of investment as its peers

Extrapolating from a low turn-out, local, personality-driven election to a national issues full-on general election is a dangerous gamble

The margarine spread of campuses and suggestion that almost every place is a university town is dangerous rhetoric

When a national plan is devised as in Ireland 2040, it should be delivered, regardless of who is in power.  Has Ireland any such thing as apolitical delivery? Is voting in Ireland a transactional arrangement? We vote for you, you do something for us.

The level of investment elsewhere makes Waterford seem like it's in a different country

In Waterford the urban fabric is very fragile and has suffered for many years from a conspicuous lack of investment

Our docile government reps seem unable to make a stand for Waterford

'P**s or get off the pot. Give us our new engineering building!'