Concerns that Wexford’s ambitious €120m Trinity Wharf project has become outdated – ‘The world has moved on’

By Simon Bourke, Wexford People

With works to develop a new waterfront district in the heart of Wexford town taking so long to commence that there are fears the original plans have become outdated.

Upon completion the Trinity Wharf project is expected to deliver a mix of modern office space with 200,000 sq ft commercial office space, hotel accommodation, restaurants and retail units, a 64 berth marina, a new boardwalk, and an urban greenway.

However, the “glacial pace” at which the project is moving has led one politician to ask whether Wexford County Council (WCC) needs to go back to the drawing board and start from scratch.

First announced in 2016, the Trinity Wharf project received planning permission in 2020 and, to date, €20 million has been allocated for the work sunder the Urban Regeneration Fund. Speaking at the March meetng of WCC, Councillor Leonard Kelly asked for an update on how the project was progressing.

“Are we at the point where we’re going to have to reimagine what’s on that site?” he asked. “Wexford town has a lot of challenges at the moment, there’s a lot vacancy on our streets, we need to improve our public realm, a small theatre, and there are costs associated with the development at Trinity Whraf. There’s a sense that this plan is of a different age, the world has moved on in the meantime, and this is moving at a glacial pace.”

In response, director of planning Liz Hore said the project was receiving tenders from interested bidders at the moment and that process will conclude at the end of March,

“This will give us a better insight as to what proposals investors are going to come back with,” she added.

In January 2024, Wexford County Council announced the appointment of a design team for the next phase of the Trinity Wharf project.

Ayesa were appointed as the Design and Construction Services provider for the next phase of the council’s flagship urban regeneration project.

The project is being funded under ‘call 2’ of the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) which has been established to part-fund projects aimed at enhancing urban areas to make them more attractive places to live, work, visit and invest.

The URDF aims to facilitate a greater proportion of residential and commercial development, supported by infrastructure, services and amenities, within the existing built-up areas of larger urban settlements.

The overall project investment for the 10 acre Trinity Wharf is estimated at €120 million, including more than €24 million of public investment and it's described by the council as “central to the long-term regeneration and enhancement of Wexford town and environs".

The site was first acquired in 2016 and a masterplan and preliminary designs have been prepared for a mixed-use development of modern office space, hotel accommodation, multi-storey car parking, a landmark cultural and events multi-use building, along with dozens of residential units, a new marina and a boardwalk linking Trinity Wharf to Paul Quay and the Crescent.