The Dundalk Business Improvement District Scheme (BIDS) which was first devised back in 2009 made history when Dundalk became the first town in Ireland to vote for a Business Improvement District Scheme. Over the last 15 years the BID’s initiative has transformed the face of Dundalk and nurtured and reinvented the rapid growth of the town centre as a vibrant cosmopolitan destination, reaffirming identity both within the existing communities locally and transcending this to a wider audience, both nationally and internationally.

This exciting collaboration project between DkIT and BIDS will be supervised by Dr Daithí Kearney of the Creative Arts Research Centre and Dr Kevin Burns of the Tourism Research Group at DkIT. Kearney and Burns have previously published on Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Drogheda and are supervising research on sustainability in Irish festivals and events, as well as the potential to develop music Tourism in the region.

Speaking about the project, Martin McElligott said,

“it’s a very exciting opportunity to build important partnerships to help support and develop Dundalk’s nighttime sector and its wider tourism sector. We are delighted to partner with DkIT and look forward to getting started on this vital work”.

The CREATE-DKIT project (Consolidating Research-Enterprise Alliances through Engagement with DkIT) is co-financed by the Government of Ireland and the European Union through the ERDF Regional Programmes.

For more information on engaging with the project or applying for the scholarship contact daithi.kearney@dkit.ie