Councillor Pat Fitzpatrick elected Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council

Councillor Pat Fitzpatrick has been elected as the new Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council.

The annual meeting of Kilkenny County Council was held in the Council Chambers of County Hall this afternoon.

Cllr Andrew Mc Guinness proposed Cllr Fitzpatrick as Cathaoirleach and said that he 'firmly believes that Cllr Fitzpatrick will be a fantastic First Citizen of Kilkenny City and county'.

Cllr John Brennan said that it was 'a great honour and privilege' to second the proposal and commended Cllr Fitzpatrick for his work as Chair of the Joint Policing Committee.

The newly-elected Cathaoirleach described it as 'a great honour' and thanked all present along with his family and friends and neighbours in Muckalee.

"It is an honour that I have aspired to since I was first co-opted to the Council in 2004. Since then, I
have experienced the highs and lows of public life – being elected in my own right and then relinquishing the seat in 2009.

"However, such was my regard for the work of the elected council and the staff that I was determined to be able to participate again in the Council and I worked to regain a seat in 2014," he said.

The Cathaoirleach also made reference to a number of exciting projects that are in development around the city and county including  the further enhancement of the Abbey Quarter in the city; the new city library; the southern Kilkenny Greenway; flood relief schemes in Ballyhale and Graignamanagh; the commencement of work on the Urlingford Fire Station; the development of the new Biodiversity Park at the disused landfill at Dunmore, the improvement of the N77 road from Ballyragget to Ballynaslee and the all-important progressing of housing plans in each municipal district.

Tributes were also paid to outgoing Cathaoirleach, Cllr Fidellis Doherty for her hard work, dedication commitment to the role.

For more see next week's Kilkenny People