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Greystones

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Greystones, viewed from the North

Greystones (Na Clocha Liatha in Irish) is a coastal town in County Wicklow, Republic of Ireland, just south of Bray.

Greystones has two beaches. The North Beach at the harbour is a stony beach and some of its length is ovelooked by the ever-eroding cliffs of Bray head (south). The second beach is to the south of the 'grey stones'. It is a sandy beach, and is about a half mile long. Due to its expansiveness and quality (it is a Blue Flag beach) the beach receives many visitors and tourists during the summertime. Greystones now has the southern terminal station of the DART line; enabling easier access to and from Dublin, the capital city. It is also served by Dublin Bus routes. These good links with the capital foster tourism. The town is surrounded by the Irish Sea to the East, Bray Head to the North and the Wicklow Mountains to the West.

Greystones has kept its town image through the years, and is still widely thought of as a village despite a relatively large and growing population.

History

Greystones is built near the site of an ancient castle of the Barony of Rathdown. The town is first mentioned in "Topographia Hibernia", a 1795 publication. Here, Greystones is described as a "noted fishing place (often misquoted as "...noted fishing village") four miles beyond Bray." The town benefited greatly from two famous inhabiting families: the LaTouche estate and the Burnaby estate. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, under the ownership of William Robert LaTouche, Greystones' real development started. Colonel Burnaby; a politician and traveller; and his family also took up residence in the town around the same time. The names of these two families remain important and well-known today, with many roads and housing estates bearing their names.

Greystones was 'put on the map' with the coming of the railway: a difficult undertaking which was performed in consultation with Brunel, the famous engineer, in 1856. Greystones now had good links with Bray and Dublin and had plenty of room for development. Naturally, the population started to grow considerably. Around this time, the town first felt the effects of coastal erosion (which is still a major problem in the town); with the loss of houses, fields, a road and the costly relocation of the railway all coming as a result. Between 1885 and 1897, the people of Greystones campaigned for a harbour to aid the fishing industry and imports such as coal. This harbour remains today.

Population and development

Greystones has experienced a huge increase in its population since the 1970s, with the construction of several large housing estates. As of the national census of 2002, Greystones had a population of 10,303 with a further 1,610 in its environs, making it the second largest town in County Wicklow. The population is expected to have risen by 60% by the time of next census, largely as a result of the construction at Charlesland, including new housing and retail developments just south of the town with over 1,000 dwelling units. Today (early 2006), the population is estimated at 15,000.

Indeed, the population of Greystones has expanded steadily over the last 25 years. Some residents are concerned that over-population may result, and the town and its surrounding landscapes could be damaged.

Because of continuing housing developments over the years, road networks and facilities have been improved to cater for the growth. The road between Greystones and Bray has been widened and realigned; however completion of a new connecting dual carriageway to the N11 has been delayed by the presence of an illegal landfill in its path. A temporary connection is scheduled to come into operation in the Spring of 2006.


Politics

Greystones is part of the Ireland East EU constituency and the Wicklow Dáil constituency. In local government Greystones has four councillors on Wicklow County Council. It has a town council with nine councillors, headed by the Mayor. Though it is larger in population than Arklow and Wicklow towns, Greystones has been limited to Town Council status while its two smaller neighbours enjoy Urban District status, which gives them greater autonomy and control of their own finances. This is expected to change as continued development and population takes place in the town.

Currently the most topical issue in the town is the proposed €300 million redevelopment scheme for the harbour, which includes a proposed 375 apartments, to be built by the Sispar consortium in a public-private partnership with Wicklow County Council. The town is divided on the issue, with large groups for and against it: some 6000+ submissions have been received by the Planning Appeals Board. Those in favour look forward to the new facilities for the Sea Scouts, Divers, Rowers, Sailors and the general public including a major park and new beech. The oral hearing has been held and all sides have had their chance to have had a say and a decision is expected in the Autumn.

Famous residents

Greystones and its environs (including Delgany) are home to several Irish celebrities including:

Sport

The town has a plentiful supply of local clubs and caters for many sporting needs. Greystones Tennis, Rugby and GAA (Eire Og Greystones GAA) clubs are located on the Mill Road at the south end of the town and offer well-equipped and modern facilities. The GAA club is currently undertaking major development work with a new clubhouse under construction as well as improved floodlighting. The town also has a successful soccer club, Greystones United FC, which is based at a new location at Woodlands near the south beach. GUFC is the largest schoolboy/girl soccer club in the country and has in excess of 650 members. Due to its sea-side location, Greystones also has many marine based clubs including a sailing club, an angling club, a diving club, and a rowing club.

Education

Greystones has four primary schools: St. Kevin's NS, St. Bridgid's NS, St. Laurence's NS and St. Patrick's NS. St. Patrick's is a Church of Ireland school whereas the three others are Catholic national schools.

The town also has a secondary school; St. David's Holy Faith; which is a semi-private, non fee-paying, mixed gender school. It has approximately 500 students, and belongs to the Holy Faith Order (although is now run by a Board of Management).

Trivia

File:FATHER TED Down with this sort of thing.jpg
Local priests, Father Ted Crilly and Father Dougal Maguire protest against the proposed harbour development, outside the local Ormonde cinema Greystones
  • Greystones became part of television history in 1995 when its Ormonde cinema featured in an episode of very successful Channel 4 television comedy show Father Ted entitled 'The Passion Of St Tibulus'.
  • Greystones also featured as the backdrop for some scenes in the popular BBC series Ballykissangel.
  • Going further back to the early 1980s, many scenes from a series called "Rose of Dublin" were filmed around the harbour area of Greystones.
  • The town is also home to Taylor University's Irish Studies Program.
  • The town was also commonly used in the Irish programme Glenroe
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