Community asked to step in and save Westport’s Christmas light display as council confirms no funding
The Christmas lights in Westport last year transformed the town into a winter wonderland, lighting up its streets and squares and bringing the festive spirit to life.
But despite the Christmas magic they brought to the Mayo town, the future of the much‑loved display is now in doubt.
Rising costs, limited contractor availability, and the absence of council funding have left the Westport Chamber of Commerce warning that the Christmas Lights Programme for 2026 might not go ahead.
The Chamber is looking for a new way to fund and manage the programme to ensure that the town does not miss out this year.
Dermot Langan, President of the Westport Chamber of Commerce, and CEO Geraldine Horkan attended February’s meeting of the Westport-Belmullet Municipal District to outline the scale of the challenge and to ask councillors for support.
The Chamber took over responsibility for the lights in 2024 after Mayo County Council withdrew support. Mr Langan said the group stepped in as they felt the display was “too important to lose”.
While last year’s lights were described as “absolutely amazing” and drew visitors “from all over the county and all over the country”, the cost of delivering them has become too high for the Chamber to shoulder alone.
The programme currently relies, in part, on councillors' GMA funding, which Mr Langan said was “critical” to keeping the lights going, but even with that contribution, the financial burden has become overwhelming.
“Our view is simple. The lighting is not just a Westport issue, it [concerns] the whole area. We are all interconnected from Louisburg to Carrowteige - when Westport thrives, the county benefits,” Mr Langan said.
The impact of the lights stretched far beyond the town itself. Across Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, Westport’s Christmas content amassed nearly one million views, Mr Langan said.
“That kind of exposure can’t be bought. It supports tourism, retail, hospitality and community pride,” he told the meeting.
He stressed that the lights are important not only to local businesses, many of whom also add to the festive feel by decorating their own shopfronts, but to families, residents and visitors who visit Westport “in their droves” each Christmas.
“They bring joy to children and the elderly alike, and they are a ‘Welcome’ for those visiting the area,” Mr Langan said.
Planning for the 2025 lights began as early as July, but the Chamber struggled to secure electrical contractors. They sought seven different quotes and only received one response.
Fundraising initiatives “did not gain any traction”, leaving Mr Langan and Ms Horkan to personally contact more than 100 local businesses in an attempt to secure enough support to ensure the lights went ahead.
The most common responses they heard were: ‘Don’t the council put up the lights?’ and ‘Where is all our [commercial] rates money going?’.
Many businesses stepped up to support the programme, with some able to make financial contributions and others offering assistance in different ways to help ensure the lights went ahead.
In total, €50,150 was pledged, including €18,000 in GMA funding, but Mr Langan explained the Chamber cannot keep returning to the same businesses every year.
Ms Horkan said that while many were supportive, they also faced “quite a lot of opposition” from owners questioning why their commercial rates were not covering the lights.
She said that before support came from local businesses, the Chamber was unsure if it would have enough funding to put up any lights at all, and now faces a similar uncertainty as planning begins for the 2026 programme.
Mr Langan and Ms Horkan outlined two potential solutions for councillors to consider.
The first would see the council ring-fence a percentage of commercial rates to fund festive lighting in towns and villages across Mayo.
The second would involve each community establishing an independent Christmas lights committee to manage and finance its own programme.
In response, Cathaoirleach Peter Flynn asked council officials whether any funding in the current budget could be ring-fenced to support the Christmas Lights Programme. Officials confirmed that no such funding is available.
Cllr Flynn said that, in light of that position, a community-led solution is now essential. He also requested a detailed breakdown of the €50,150 expenditure to inform further public discussion.
“We need the community to come forward because the council has made it clear here today that there is no money in the budget. It’s not going to happen otherwise,” he said.
Councillors agreed the lights are an important part of Westport’s Christmas season, attracting visitors and brightening the town for residents throughout December.
“We need to find out from a community perspective if we are going to make this happen in December, or if we are going to switch the lights off,” Cllr Flynn added.
Mr Langan asked Cllr Flynn to chair a public meeting at Westport Town Hall to explore solutions and help ensure the Christmas Lights Programme can go ahead in 2026, to which he agreed.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.