New mayor wants to hear from locals

COUNCILLOR Paul Gogarty was elected Mayor of South Dublin County Council at the recent Annual Meeting of the council.

Tributes were paid to the outgoing Mayor, Cllr Guss O’Connell (non-party) and Deputy Mayor Martina Genockey (Lab), who thanked their fellow councillors, Chief Executive, Daniel McLoughlin and the management and staff of the council for their help and support during their term in office.

Cllr Gogarty (non-party) who represents the Lucan electoral area, was proposed for Mayor by Cllr Liona O’Toole (non-party) and was seconded by Cllr Danny O’Brien (SF).

Following a roll call vote Cllr Gogarty was deemed elected to the Office of Mayor.

In his acceptance speech Mayor Gogarty said: “I want our citizens to feel cherished and engaged. This also means we need to be proactive in asking questions and listening as a county to what our citizens want.

“I look forward to engaging with different groups to hear what they are saying and ensure the message is taken on board by the council. In this I include our older and younger citizens in particular, as well as parents and ethnic minorities.  I want to set up listening fora so that people can come with their ideas as to how to make South Dublin an even better county in which to work and live.”

Mayor Gogarty then outlined his priorities for his year in office which will include the theme of ‘A Healthy County – A Sustainable County – A Listening County’.

He added: “I want to highlight the work of the many volunteers in our communities who work tirelessly to improve the lives of our citizens.

“I want to bring the work of these selfless volunteers to the fore so that others may be inspired by their good works and follow suit. I want to showcase the many services already available in our county to help people develop their minds or improve their fitness.

“I want to promote the benefits of healthy eating and exercise on physical and mental well-being and look at ways of helping people to develop healthy habits that will help them to reach their personal and professional goals.”

Mayor Gogarty concluded his speech by stating: “I believe South Dublin County has an obligation to be a sustainable county.

This means building well-insulated homes and communities, not just houses, with access to community services and public transport infrastructure.

“It means making our public buildings energy self-sufficient.

“It means encouraging a greener lifestyle, through walking, cycling and public transport. And where people need to use cars, we should be encouraging car sharing and developing a meaningful infrastructure for electric vehicles.

“I want to set South Dublin with a target to become the leading local authority in energy-efficiency and energy self-sufficiency in Ireland.”

Councillor Breeda Bonner (Lab) representing the Clondalkin Electoral Area was elected Deputy Mayor.

Cllr Bonner was proposed as Deputy Mayor by Cllr Mick Duff (Lab).