Courtown Should Be Regarded As Wexford's 5th Town - Byrne

Courtown should now be considered the county's fifth town according to a local TD.

Wicklow Wexford representative Malcolm Byrne says a population surge to the area recently means the facilities there need to be upgraded.

He's calling for Courtown Harbour beach to be regenerated as visitors flood the area for the summer once again.

Deputy Byrne says the area should be seen as a real success story:

"We traditionally talked about the four main towns, Wexford, Gorey, Enniscorthy and New Ross, this is the fifth biggest urban area in the county.

"We know in North Wexford in particular, we've seen rapid growth.

"Between the last two Census, we saw 14% growth in the population and there's a real sense of regeneration here."

Key to that regeneration is plans for a breakwater off the coast which it's hoped will revitalise the beach.

Wexford County Council recently secured a Marine Area Consent Licence to establish the coastline infrastructure close to the town.

A breakwater is an installation of material such as sand or rocks in a harbour to reduce erosion and protect against storm surges.

Courtown and Riverchapel locals say they want the beach upgraded to take advantage of the increase in population.

Fianna Fail's Malcolm Byrne explains what can now happen after the securing of the licence.

"What that allows is, for exploratory works about putting the breakwater back in place into the Irish Sea.

"The intention then is, along with the beach re-nourishment scheme, we will be able to restore the beach that we remember from our childhoods."

That report was funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.