Enterprise and Employment

The creation of jobs and the promotion of enterprise is the single most important issue.  It is not just local authorities that must direct their activities towards this concern, but also any state agency or support organisation that has within their remit any aspect of job creation, maintaining and protection in the town.
 
Policies that worked in the past must not be abandoned in the face of challenging economic times.  Taxes on employment must remain low, supports for Small and Medium Enterprises must be provided, those seeking employment must be able to avail of opportunities to acquire new skills and sectors of the economy that have long term sustainability must be identified.
 
In Bray, three main areas have the potential to provide opportunities for enterprise and employment.
 
Retail Potential
Sites within the town that have the potential to create a new dynamic in the retail area need to be developed.  The Golf Club Lands, the outdated buildings at the DART Station and other smaller derelict sites around the centre of the town.
 
Planning permission for new shop units on Bray Main Street must only be granted where they are part of a mix that provides the required amount of space that can attract major retailing names or improve an existing shop that can allow them expand to offer a higher quality of retail experience.  Smaller units are also required to provide support services to larger retailers.

 
Tourism Related Activities
There is a need for a second day attraction in the town to compliment the National Sealife Centre and to retain visitors in the town overnight.  This will encourage spending in the town and develop the hotel and restaurant sector.
 
Development of properties, both in private and public ownership needs to be encouraged.  The emptiness on Bray Seafront must be tackled to provide a vibrant community of retail; leisure, commercial and tourist related activities set in attractive environment that lifts the aesthetics of the Seafront.
 

Industrial Progress
The development of an Enterprise Centre for Bray is one of the top objectives for many people in the town.  The Centre must not just consist of units let to small or start up businesses.  Rental of commercial space can more than be catered for in the rental marker.  Bray’s Enterprise Centre must stand out from those that have build in the past around the country.  It must be a centre that targets modern business ideas using new technologies and providing services in new markets, it must support entrepreneurship and develop projects with interested parties, it must provide ongoing assistance so that fledgling companies can leave the centre and become self sufficient in the economy.
 
The Council should set as its objective to create Bray’s Digital Mile on the Boghall Road. The four industrial estates on the road along with the two large industrial sites have great potential to develop cutting edge technology products in the area of ICT, Green, Bio and Nano industries.  Planning incentives could be introduced to encourage businesses in these sectors to locate in Bray and redevelop older sites into modern suitable accommodation.