No plan for a Cork Christmas lights switch-on event  

THE chief executive of Cork City Council has said that a large-scale public Christmas lights switch-on event is not planned for this year amid calls to bring back the popular event this festive season.

Chief executive Ann Doherty confirmed at November’s sitting of Cork City Council that the event would not go ahead due to safety concerns related to crowd crushing and difficulty in facilitating emergency access should it be necessary.

She acknowledged the popularity of the event, which she said had grown significantly over the decade that it ran for prior to 2019 - the last time a switch-on event was held.

Speaking in the chamber at City Hall on Monday evening, Ms Doherty said: “The switch-on event had taken place for a decade prior to 2019, the event grew hugely in popularity with the public and the numbers growing considerably to 2019.

“In 2019, a tipping point was reached in terms of the ability to run the event safely and in a manner that was not at risk of a major incident occurring.” 

Ms Doherty said a meeting had been held among stakeholders following the event in 2019,  during which it was strongly advised that it could not go ahead in its current form again.

In 2022, a motion was raised at council which requested the reinstatement of the Christmas lights switch-on event, in response to which Ms Doherty said it was noted that public safety is “of paramount importance and risks cannot be underestimated”.

“Officials agreed to review plans for 2023 and consider options for an alternative format, noting that it was very unlikely this could be capacitated on Patrick Street as any alternative dispersed approach would have serious capacity concerns and that any future event would have to be a controlled environment and likely be ticketed and limited capacity,” she said.

In place of a large-scale Christmas switch-on event, Ms Doherty said stakeholders from across the city will gather at Cork Opera House on Friday evening to mark the launch of ‘Corkmas’ and the lighting up of the city.

“The city centre’s traditional Christmas lights and Christmas trees will be turned on this Friday as part of 'Corkmas', the new name of Christmas in Cork,” Ms Doherty said.

She said that an all-new and unique lighting experience called Solas is being introduced this year on Emmett Place and that City Council staff have been working since early 2023 to completely reimagine the Christmas offering which she said she is “excited to share” with the public.

Ms Doherty said the city’s retail, hospitality, and cultural sectors “are all gearing up to create Cork's unique and magical Christmas experience” but Sinn Féin councillor Kenneth Collins raised concerns for businesses, saying they will miss out as a result.

“It’s very disappointing, especially for the children and families of Cork, along with the businesses, because the businesses pay a lot of high rates and it gives back when you have an event like this,” he told The Echo.

“You don’t have to have an event as such to close down the whole city. You can have an event and have the casual traders on the street and people walking into the city and have that Christmas feel and have Santa turn on the lights on the side of a building and everyone will benefit from it.

“The businesses will get a bit of business and the city will get kudos for having it and the children and families of Cork will have a Christmas feel. We just can’t cancel Christmas every year. I don’t think that’s right.”