County mayor's column: Spend in Cork this Christmas and support your community

December means a lot of different things to a lot of different people.

To some, it is a month of festivities with everything leading up to Christmas Day. This involves lists, shopping, and making plans with friends and family members, and seeing faces that have travelled long distances to be here.

Others use this time for reflection, before looking ahead at everything the New Year has in store. This is a quieter way to navigate the winter months, but it is still a great way to get through the dark nights and pitch-black mornings as we prepare for the coming of spring.

Cork County Council does a mix of both throughout December and January, as we look to provide and do right by our constituents.

A major part of this in recent weeks was the 2026 budget of €526m approved by members. This includes increased investment in frontline services such as roads maintenance, housing maintenance, library operations, public conveniences, and estates taken in charge. This is an increase on 2025, and it reflects our commitment to delivering the services needed to enhance communities across the county.

We want to make our towns and villages the best that they can be, with something for everyone. That means providing for people’s needs, while striving to constantly improve the existing infrastructure.

The budget also aims to support economic development with specific funding for land acquisition and the upgrading of industrial sites, and funding has also been allocated for burial grounds expansions as well as funding for piers, harbours, and climate action. 

This was joined by the announcement that Cork County Council has been allocated €651,176 for community projects nationwide under the 2025 Clár programme, with the funding coming from the Department of Rural and Community Development.

Funding included €100,000 to resurface the trail at Island Wood at Newmarket, €83,695 for upgrades to the lighting of the pitch at Gabriel Rangers, €65,000 for a community car park with landscaping for Cumann Peile Naomh Abán Baile Mhuirne in Ballyvourney and €50,000 available for the installation of a grid bank of batteries, which will be charged by solar power on Oileán Chléire, on the coast of West Cork. 

The benefits of these will be seen tomorrow, as we work and make plans for the New Year with the goal to make things better for everyone.

One objective we were able to cross off in recent weeks was acquiring three new fire brigade appliances to serve the communities of Clonakilty, Cobh, and Macroom and their surrounding areas. The vehicles were funded by the national directorate for fire and emergency management in the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage, and they have the latest in firefighting technology. The fire engines are an invaluable community resource as our stations respond to over 500 emergency calls each year, in towns and villages spread across Cork county, and we want to be prepared for every eventuality going forward.

Through this, and my other functions as Mayor of the County of Cork, I am thinking about Christmas and what needs to be done for my friends and family.

When it comes to shopping, I want to urge people to stay local and to make sure to check out what is on offer in their own towns and villages.

There’s so much on that will get people out exploring, with the markets and community events, and these give people an opportunity to buy unique gifts from locally run shops, and eat at local restaurants and cafes.

We encourage you all to support local this Christmas, and we hope you all have a wonderful time this festive season.