Will you live here forever?

ShoulderChip

Obviousely this question only applies to some here,
but when you grow up or get qualified, or married, or loaded or whatever it is
will you head away somewhere else or stay here?
and why?

deisemum

I'm not from Waterford but I met my husband from Waterford when we worked abroad. We moved here over 11 years ago and it took me 18 + months to settle. I hated the place at first and spent the first year wanting to move back to London.

Now I'm so well settled here and love the place. I have no intention of ever leaving here. My children have good friends and are very happy here too.

Waterford is a small city which I like. I'm originally from Galway but I find the traffic much worse than here and I hate how all the begging and busking is so in your face when I'm in Galway city.

I never really followed much sport, maybe cheer on Galway in the hurling but now I'm a Deise supporter and have the shirt, flags and hats and have gone to a number of hurling matches which I never did for Galway

ec18

nope i'm leaving asap

Not The Real Scarecrow

I'm married , qualified and whatever and even though have lived in different parts of the country and other countries I still plan at some stage to leave Waterford or even Ireland. I love the place but it is changing for the worse in my opinion.The money me and my spouse could get for doing the same jobs else where in the country is crazy, and if we were to move to England would get almost triple the amount for less hours.That would be one of the main driving factors behind leaving.Although saying that, would still consider Waterford to be the best place to live in Ireland.Majority of people down to earth and although wages aren't great don't have to sit in traffic for hours and things aren't as dear as Dublin.

Sully

I probably will end up staying here, but it depends on a number of factors such as business and how the country is in a few years time etc. I dont mind living here, but I wouldnt mind living abroad (in a sunny climate) or Dublin.

alpha2zulu

Interesting question to ask shoulder chip.
Hoping to leave after college myself,ideally London/ Edinburgh or the like for a few years at least. Waterford itself just doesent seem to have great prospects at the moment, even in comparison with other parts of this country.

Without meaning to be too downbeat about it, it is only when you travel to cities abroad that you see for yourself how miserable and depressing the city is looking recently.

Waterford to me,just seems to conjure up images of whingey, useless councillors, failed hurling teams, 'auld wans' ringing up Billy about all their little troubles and industry being held back by shop stewards that havent quite yet realised that the USSR is dead.:)

As a positive, what I think I would miss most would be the spins out to Tramore or Newtown with my mates between lectures

KingLoser

Aye, leaving as soon as destiny drags me away. 100%

But I'll probably (most definetly) come back at some point. Grew up here and it's home.

nadimmu

lol, i'd go back to Dubai or Qatar... i mean think of not paying any taxes!
things are five times cheaper than here ..well there are exceptions, such as hotels....and yeah- thats about it!

here are a couple examples:
cokes here = about 90cents
cokes over there = 15-20 cents

macbooks here = 1100 euros
macbooks there = 800-900
(and both have the same specs!)

yeh i had to use the macbook as an example because im a proud owner of one! :cool:

fricatus

alpha2zulu wrote: »

Waterford to me,just seems to conjure up images of whingey, useless councillors, failed hurling teams, 'auld wans' ringing up Billy about all their little troubles and industry being held back by shop stewards that havent quite yet realised that the USSR is dead.:)

Too true, alpha2zulu...

I love Waterford. It's home, and despite living 10 years in Dublin, I never quite settled there. I've bought my house here and this is where I plan to stay.

However I really get sick of the way we let opportunities to improve the city pass us by. We seem to be stuck in a rut/vortex/time warp, call it what you will, where the Celtic Tiger never quite caught on and we're still doing things the old way... plenty of plans, but little implementation.

I just wish for once we'd get on with things like they do in Dublin (I can't believe the changes even in the two years since I left!). Even if we could have the same sort of can-do attitude they have in Galway, there's tons we could achieve. Look at our historic quarter: run down and unloved, historic buildings vacant and allowed to go on fire, graffitti on one of the finest cathedrals in Ireland. Why isn't the whole area incentivised for designer boutiques, restaurants and cafés? Look at L'Atmosphere on Henrietta St - imagine what the area would look like if all the buildings in that area were similarly occupied, continental style.

I dunno... I just see so many opportunities where small improvements could be made (new thread methinks...) but all I ever seem to hear is why stuff can't be done, and then some of the stuff that gets done is just ridiculous (e.g. that ugly Guinness Brewery pumping its ugly industrial column of steam over the city - who cares if it's clean - it looks dirty!, or that eyesore outside Sam McCauley's chemist, or the way the city council in its infinite wisdom painted parking spaces in manky white paint over those lovely granite cobblestones. I mean for f--- sake!!!)

I suppose I get so mad because the place means so much to me.

rohe

Ideally would love to leave this town as it has nothing to offer, no jobs, no proper housing, theres nothing here anymore

But realistically i will probaly never leave, mainly cos of family,my partner etc, but i can still dream of leaving this town some day

alpha2zulu

However I really get sick of the way we let opportunities to improve the city pass us by. We seem to be stuck in a rut/vortex/time warp, call it what you will, where the Celtic Tiger never quite caught on and we're still doing things the old way... plenty of plans, but little implementation.

That hits the nail on the head fricatus. While i would love to think i could have the choice to stay here, the mentality that exists at the decision making level here does not give any grounds for optimisim.
Off the top of my head I can think of:
1. Ferrybank docks re-development hitting the buffers.
2. Bolsters new tower down by the stanley factory-oh thats way too high
3. Newgate street shopping centre looking doubtful
4. The M+S rumoured potential development by the Airport road looking doubtful.

Literally thousands of jobs would be created by those 4 projects alone.

Its odd how seemingly the only development that has got the green light has been the ghettoisation of O' Connell and Bridge Streets.

would the various Waterford planning malitia men have kept their same tune if they were responsible for the planning of Canary Wharf in London...50 storey office blocks...oh thats way too high:mad:

tiny-tyno

ive spent 4 yrs this sept in waterford, just finished college and im staying here, i love waterford, the people the city the ease of access to all parts of the city without the major traffic that u can get in cork.

I never thought that i would fall in love with a place as much as waterford, i have a waterford boyfriend and because of working here over the years have made many friends to which i now have a god child , even tho it may be nice to move some where else i dont think i would be able to settle in as well as i have done in waterford, i have converted to supporting waterford hurling and even have the hoodie that i got for valentines day my cork family are not impressed as they are fanatic cork supporters lol.. and im after gettin the well boy blaa talk into me :eek: i just think waterford is the best city despite the lack of jobs other counties may offer, id prefer to be happy in a city than to be miserable

magick

Im currently living in San Franciso at the moment , while I love it here i do tend to look back on Waterford with rose tinted glasses,beacuse so many of my friends are there. However like most people summed it up, theirs a lack of jobs and industry there compared to other places. I do miss the craic on the weekends though!

run_Forrest_run

fricatus wrote: »

Too true, alpha2zulu...
..that ugly Guinness Brewery pumping its ugly industrial column of steam over the city - who cares if it's clean - it looks dirty!

do you really know what they do there now? I'm sure the people who are employed there are happy with their jobs (for now!). Can you suggest something else to put in its place that will generate revenue and provide employment? The city needs more thinkers and problem solvers..not moaners.

fricatus

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

do you really know what they do there now? I'm sure the people who are employed there are happy with their jobs (for now!). Can you suggest something else to put in its place that will generate revenue and provide employment? The city needs more thinkers and problem solvers..not moaners.

Your post is emblematic of the "jobs at all cost" thinking that allows such eyesores to be built in sensitive areas. Frankly, if Brendan McCann can derail the shopping centre that we need in the city centre, then how the hell did that ugly stainless-steel brewery (mistaken in the Lonely Planet for a "refinery"!) ever get planning permission?

What I wonder is, how many people are employed there? 50? 60? But how many hotel jobs have been lost over the past few years, especially with the closure of Jury's? How many potential hotel jobs could there have been if we'd been successfull in getting a Sheraton/Hilton/Radisson/Mariott (or all four) built here. (They're all present in Limerick, by the way, despite its "stab city" moniker.)

Now I'm not saying that the presence of the brewery has led directly to none of these hotels setting up here, but how many people have been turned off Waterford by the descriptions they read in Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, etc., or on tripadvisor.com? (worth a look...) How many hospitality jobs are undermined by our city's "industrial" look?

We're forever talking about wanting to attract more tourism here, yet when it comes to discussing this sort of thing, someone inevitably starts doing down the jobs in the hospitality sector as "low-paid", "yellow-pack" or whatever else, as opposed to the "real" (i.e. manufacturing) jobs that the brewery represents (not accusing you of this by the way). We should definitely promote ourselves as a tourism destination, since we have the raw materials in abundance, but we need to be serious about it, and that means not tolerating the kind of eyesores we see around the place.

I'm not saying either that the brewery should be shut down or we should lose the jobs there, but a few years ago, when Diageo were making their investment, they should have been encouraged to locate in an appropriate area (we have a big enough industrial estate for goodness sake...) rather than blighting one of the most aesthetically sensitive areas of the city. Wouldn't it be great if there was some sort of fund locally that could be used to assist owners of eyesores to relocate their businesses without being out of pocket themselves?

On your comment about "thinkers rather than moaners", well just do a search on my contributions to this forum (particularly the latest thread I created about improving the city) and I think you'll agree I'm doing a lot more than moaning.

And what should go in there? Well, horses for courses, and that's a perfectly located site for a hotel or apartment development. I don't believe it's really suited to cultural or retail uses - and our old historic quarter is ideal for cultural facilities like private art galleries or workshops, as well as restaurants and high-grade (i.e. designer) retail.

CantGetNoSleep

I'm gone already, been in Cork for the last few years,

There was no question of staying around, the only thing that could have changed it would have been a University

Going to head abroad now, i'll probably stay a few years before I decide what to do with myself, but I'll return to some part of Ireland. Probably Dublin if hopefully Waterford, if I'm still single, just to try live the big city life and earn as much as possible until I want to settle down, then i'd intend to return to Waterford, or if not, Cork or Galway maybe.

BazBox

tiny-tyno wrote: »

ive spent 4 yrs this sept in waterford, just finished college and im staying here, i love waterford, the people the city the ease of access to all parts of the city without the major traffic that u can get in cork.

I never thought that i would fall in love with a place as much as waterford, i have a waterford boyfriend and because of working here over the years have made many friends to which i now have a god child , even tho it may be nice to move some where else i dont think i would be able to settle in as well as i have done in waterford, i have converted to supporting waterford hurling and even have the hoodie that i got for valentines day my cork family are not impressed as they are fanatic cork supporters lol.. and im after gettin the well boy blaa talk into me :eek: i just think waterford is the best city despite the lack of jobs other counties may offer, id prefer to be happy in a city than to be miserable

i spent a fortune on that hoodie, if waterford play cork in this years all-ireland ur up for waterford yeah??:D

i was born and bred here and cant see myself leaving, i have a good job here and while its not the best paid i like it. ideally would love to live in australia but that would take years of saving etc.

rogue-entity

I have no intention of staying.

Waterford City, is like my old DSL provider. I switched from them to another, because they are unable/unwilling to provide me with services I want, or provide me an uninterrupted service (not counting obvious things out of their control).

By the same token, Waterford lacks the services that I would like, so I am moving to where said services are available. Of course, the whole country is lacking thanks to inept government, so Im probably going to feck off to Britain anyway.

fricatus

rogue-entity wrote: »

By the same token, Waterford lacks the services that I would like, so I am moving to where said services are available.

As a matter of interest, what sort of services or facilities are you talking about?

tiny-tyno

BazBox wrote: »

i spent a fortune on that hoodie, if waterford play cork in this years all-ireland ur up for waterford yeah??:D

i was born and bred here and cant see myself leaving, i have a good job here and while its not the best paid i like it. ideally would love to live in australia but that would take years of saving etc.

yes yes dear u did spend a fortune thanks sure dont i wear i thing?? go on the deise :p:D

Sully

A hoodie for valenties day?!?!

KingLoser

Different strokes for different folks.

BazBox

Sully wrote: »

A hoodie for valenties day?!?!

its what the lady wanted, honestly:D

tiny-tyno

ya that was only one of the many gifts i got ah sure i wont complain :D

rogue-entity

fricatus wrote: »

As a matter of interest, what sort of services or facilities are you talking about?

[rant]
We dont have decent stores like Zavvi (Virgin) or HMV, no decent places to buy DVDs or Games, and Gamestop, is just overpriced, they don't even have student discounts (which Zavvi does).
We always seem to be the last place to get anything and always seem to lag behind Cork and Dublin.
Is any company rolling out FTTH in Waterford? I doubt it.
If I want my ideal job, which would be to work for a communications/telecoms company, I have to move to Cork or Dublin. There are no datacenters in Waterford.. and even if one was built.. backhaul probably costs 6 times the price of Cork.. which itself is much more than what Dublin based centers have to fork out.
On an unrelated note.. why the fcuk are hosting services in Ireland so overpriced.. compared to the US?
[/rant]

Maybe I am a wishful thinker, but I'm sick of everything revolving around Cork and Dublin.

Deisenaut

I'd love to move out of the city at some point - ie. when I earn a lot more than now, but the wife is from Dungarvan and even that seems to have gone to the dogs in the last few years !!!

Giggles86

I have lived here 20 years and was in cork for 2 years and even though cork is a mad buzz its not as nice as waterford. Like theres easy access to everything such as trains and buses and everything. i kno the shopping aint to die for but shur the place and the people make up for it.

Giggles86

BazBox wrote: »

i spent a fortune on that hoodie, if waterford play cork in this years all-ireland ur up for waterford yeah??:D

Shes shouting for Cork here now lol :mad: