A night mayor is set to be appointed to help pubs, clubs and other nightlife businesses in Dublin to recover from COVID-19 closures.
Dublin City Council passed a motion to allow for the appointment of a night mayor to support night-time culture in the wake of the pandemic at a meeting on Monday.
The motion, put forward by the Fine Gael group, also makes provisions for additional bins, portaloos, outdoor dining spaces and outdoor spaces for events.
Cities across Europe have night mayors or night czars to promote night-time culture and ensure the night-time economy booms.
DJ Sunil Sharpe said a night mayor could certainly help Dublin recover from closures — but it’s not yet clear who the night mayor will be or how much power they will hold.
Mr Sharpe, of the Give Us The Night campaign, said: “A lot will depend on the aim of the role and what the role actually involves.
“Is it a cultural role or an economic role? Is it a paid role or a voluntary position?
“A lot has yet to be defined, including who is going to pay for it. That has to be decided for us to know whether a night mayor will be effective.
“It can do no harm having someone in that position but questions about how much power that person will have still have to be answered.
“It’s a positive move but nothing has changed within the executive of Dublin City Council.
“It will all depend on how much power the council is willing to give the person in the role.
“There are lots of aspects of the night-time economy and culture so as many hands on deck as possible is great.
“There are lots of challenges ahead, not least getting businesses open again. The more people assigned to this area, the better.”
