Is Kilkenny ready for a late night economy?

Chairman of the Kilkenny City and County Vintners Association, Anthony Morrison, has 'cautiously' welcomed the announcement of a pilot expansion of the Kilkenny Night-Time Economy.

"We are unique, it’s condensed, if you go from my place (Christy’s Bar) to Pat Carroll’s that’s the town covered, you’ll do that in 17 minutes, you’re passing everything from theatres to nightclubs to bars to restaurants, everything you’re looking for is in that walk," commented Mr. Morrison.

"It’s going to be good no matter what comes out of it, it definitely can’t go backwards."

In October 2022, Minister for Tourism, Arts, Culture, Arts and the Gaeltacht, Catherine Martin, announced Kilkenny as one of nine towns/cities across the country to receive funding as part of a pilot initiative to support the development of a vibrant and diverse Night-Time Economy.

An allocation of €6 million has been granted towards the implementation of a range of new measures, with the project set to be rolled out in Kilkenny alongside: Dublin City, Cork City, Limerick City, Galway City, Longford Town, Sligo, Drogheda and Buncrana.

However, Morrison, the owner of Christy's Bar on upper Patrick Street, believes more clarity is needed for publicans in order for the pilot scheme to be a success in the city.

"There’s many layers to this, we’re only a tiny cog in the wheel. It has to be managed, it has to be policed, it has to be enforced and it has to be paid for," said Mr. Morrison.

"We probably do need to be brought into the modern world and the 21st century with the whole licensing laws and the sale of alcohol bill, but then you have cultural events, health and safety, the public realm, all these people need to be considered," he added.

The Kilkenny publican believes more entertainment events will need to be organised in order to garner public interest.

"Anybody that does anything late in the evening generally does it under the consumption of alcohol, and if not, under the ideology that their getting something else from it, be it food, a band, it’s not people walking the streets and I think they’re trying to get to the stage like Europe, where there’s always somebody awake, alive, walking around."

Each location will be allocated a night-time advisor who will work with businesses, communities, venues, residents and artists to create a more vibrant night-life. 

Mr. Morrison also asked for clarity on how assessments will be conducted and whether it'll vary based on location: "Superintendents up and down the country do different things for different scenarios, so I mean, it’s no different for any walk of life. The man/woman that’s appointed in Kilkenny may have a different approach to the man/woman appointed in Longford."

No date has been confirmed for the beginning of the scheme and the process of hiring night-time Advisors is ongoing.