‘Street ambassadors’ may welcome visitors to Cork

ROVING “street ambassadors” could be a feature on Cork’s streets next year.

City officials have agreed to examine setting up a system which would see the ambassadors welcoming visitors to the city and offering them advice on the “must-see” sights.

The project will be examined in association with the Cork City Marketing Partnership.

The move follows a request from Fianna Fáil Cllr Tom O’Driscoll, a director of the partnership, who was impressed with the scheme set up in Limerick last year.

“If we are serious about making Cork a year-round tourist destination, it is vital we make visitors welcome,” he said.

“Employing street ambassadors during busy periods such as the Jazz weekend and the summer months would be a very positive move.”

The Limerick Coordination Office ran the scheme from June 1 to August 30 this year.

Its nine street ambassadors, who included students, retired people and tourism graduates, and a supervisor, spoke to over 18,000 tourists during the summer and monitored streets and parks for litter.

The project was funded under a European programme called Sustainable Promotion of Atlantic Area (SPAA).

It seeks to promote the economic development of European towns, cities and regions in a sustainable and innovative way.

The project involves partner cities and towns including Chester in England, Ourense in Spain, Valimar in Portugal, and Limerick.

Training and employment costs for the Limerick project in 2007 were €22,230, funded by the EU, with added costs of €5,000 toward uniforms and logos which were met by Shannon Development and the Limerick Chamber of Commerce.

Cork’s city officials said the Limerick scheme met with public and media support.

The city’s councillors are expected to give the go-ahead for the feasibility study at a full council meeting tonight.