Greystones

History

Greystones is located south of the site of an ancient castle of the Barony of Rathdown. There was a hamlet which, like the castle, was known as Rathdown, and which appeared on a 1712 map. This site occupied an area now known as the Grove, north of Greystones harbour, but only the ruins of a chapel, St. Crispin's Cell, survive. Greystones is a much more recent settlement and is first mentioned in Topographia Hibernica, a 1795 publication. Here it is described as a "noted fishing place four miles beyond Bray."

In the early 19th century, there were some families scattered around the harbour, Blacklion, Windgates, Killincarrig and Rathdown. Delgany was a more substantial and longer established village. However, Greystones was put on the map with the coming of the railway in 1855, a difficult undertaking which was performed in consultation with Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the famous engineer. The railway station was built on the line dividing the properties of two landowners: the La Touche family of Bellevue House (now in ruins, near Delgany), and the Hawkins-Whitshed family of Killincarrig House (which is now Greystones Golf Club). It provided links with Bray and Dublin, and left room for development on the adjoining estates.

In the latter half of the 19th century, under the ownership of William Robert La Touche, Greystones' development gathered momentum. To the north of the station, Church Road, Victoria Road and Trafalgar Road were laid out, and many houses were built in the years following the arrival of the railway. Following her father's death, Elizabeth Hawkins-Whitshed was the sole inheritor of his property. In 1879, she married Frederick Gustavus Burnaby; a soldier, politician and traveller. Burnaby died in battle in 1885 and Elizabeth remarried twice, but the property continued to be known as the Burnaby Estate. In the early 20th century, the Burnabys began to expand the town on their side of the station, and the roads and houses of the Burnaby were developed and the population grew considerably. The names of these two families remain well known today, with many roads and housing estates bearing their names.

Between 1885 and 1897, the people of Greystones campaigned for a harbour to aid the fishing industry and imports such as coal. The pier, dock, sea wall and boat-slip remain but have endured substantial damage. In the early 20th century, the town felt the effects of coastal erosion (which is still a major problem); the loss of fields and most of the houses on the North Beach Road, and the costly inland relocation of the railway have all resulted. In 1968, the old Kish lighthouse foundation was added to the end of the pier.

At the end of World War II, cars and petrol became widely available, allowing Greystones to gradually expand, filling in the space between itself and outlying areas such as Blacklion, Killincarrig and Delgany. However, the popularity of the railway declined; its very existence being in jeopardy during the 1980s, as government cutbacks reduced the service to just a few trains per day. The 1990s brought a revival with the arrival of the electrified DART from Bray, and a much more frequent schedule.

Population and development

Greystones has experienced a huge increase in its population since the 1970s with the construction of several large housing estates. A new development at Charlesland, just south of the town, includes over 1,000 dwelling units. As of the 2006 census the population of Greystones, including town and environs, stands at 14,569 making it the second largest town in the county after Bray.

Along with the housing developments, road networks and facilities have been improved to cater for the growth. The road between Greystones and Bray has been widened and realigned. A new dual carriageway link road (R774) connecting Greystones to the N11 has been completed. Construction of a full interchange with the N11 has also been completed.

According to the 2006 census, Greystones has the largest Church of Ireland presence as a proportion of the population (9.77%).

Road

Greystones is accessible from the N11 Dublin-Wexford road; a new interchange (Junction 11 on the N11) constructed near Charlesland connects with the town via a dual carriageway.

Rail

Greystones railway station, which opened on 30 October 1855, is the southern terminus of the DART railway line, a service which connects thirty stations along Dublin's east coast. Iarnród Éireann diesel Commuter and InterCity trains also serve Greystones, linking the town with Wicklow, Arklow, Gorey, Wexford, and Rosslare Europort to the south, and Dublin's Connolly Station to the north.

Bus

Greystones is served by the 84, 184 and 84X Dublin Bus routes whilst route 702 Aircoach service starting at Charlesland links the area with Dublin Airport.

Walking

Bray and Greystones are linked by a Cliff Walk, which follows the route of the railway line around Bray Head. The walk is 6 km long and takes approximately two hours.

Politics

Greystones is part of the South European Parliament constituency and the Wicklow Dáil Éireann constituency. In local government Greystones has six councillors on Wicklow County Council, representing the Greystones Municipal District.

The following elected representatives are based in and around Greystones and the Greystones Municipal District:

T.D.'s:

County Councillors:

Marina

This was to be a €300 million redevelopment scheme for the harbour, to be built by the Sispar consortium (Sispar is a joint venture consortium of Sisk and Michael Cotter's Park Developments) in a public-private partnership with Wicklow County Council. This has been and remains a major topical issue in the town. Objections revolved around the privatisation of public beach front land without broad public agreement, but work started. The development was to include a new harbour, 341 apartments, a 230 berth marina, a new public plaza and facilities for local sporting clubs.

On the granting of planning permission, 6,210 submissions were received by An Bord Pleanála on initial plans, of which more than 6,200 were objections. Many of the objections came from outside County Wicklow, according to a spokesman for Wicklow County Council. Many objected to specifics of the plan while approving the general idea. An oral hearing was held and the board requested the developers to make certain changes which resulted in the plans being scaled down by approximately 10%. Some 3,700 objections were made on these updated plans. On 9 August 2007, the board approved the final plans, while imposing 13 conditions on construction works, including the retention of public access to the Cliff Walk during the development period, strict guidelines in relation to dust suppression, the re-use of demolition materials, and limitations on the hours of operation and noise levels. The board also over-ruled an earlier inspector's report, instead permitting an old unlicensed landfill to remain beside the new apartments.

In February 2010, it was announced that development of the marina would be paused indefinitely due to conditions in the Irish property market.

After the development plans stalled, the loans attached to the development were transferred to NAMA. Sispar insisted that it needed funding from NAMA to finish the project. In September 2012 it was reported that NAMA had written off €50m owed for the troubled development of Greystones Harbour. It appeared that it was not the Sispar consortium but Sisk alone that controlled the loans.

People

Greystones and its environs (including Delgany) are home to several celebrities including:

Association Football

The town is home to a successful association football club, Greystones United, which is based at Woodlands near the south beach. GUFC is the largest schoolboy/girl football club in the country, and has in excess of 700 members. Perhaps the club's most famous alumnus is current Irish international Paul McShane. Another successful club, Greystones AFC, is located at 'The Arch Field' just beside the railway bridge at the harbour. Five of their players have represented Ireland at various levels. Ian Horan, Chris Mason and Stephen McCann have represented the Irish Intermediate team and Stephen Roche and Richie O'Hanlon have represented the Irish Colleges team. The Saturday and Sunday sides both play in the top division of the Leinster Senior League

Badminton

St. Kilian's Badminton Club plays in Shoreline Leisure Center on Mill Road every Thursday. Their website may be found at St. Kilian's Badminton Club

Baseball

Greystones is home to the Greystones Mariners Baseball Club, catering to all ages. The Mariners adult team compete nationally and several of the players represent Ireland on the National Baseball Team.

Bowls

A lawn bowling club is located at Burnaby Park.

Cricket

Cricket returned to Greystones in 2012 with the formation of Greystones Cricket, a vibrant and family-oriented club who currently practice (nets) at Greystones RFC and play their home matches at the Greystones United F.C. grounds. They have three senior men's teams and one ladies team playing in the Leinster Cricket Union competitions, a taverners and two junior teams.

Gaelic games

Éire Óg Greystones GAA club is located on the Mill Road, at the south end of the town. The club has recently undergone a major reconstruction which saw improvements made to the club house, pitches, lighting and parking facilities. It is now one of the most used club facilities in the Greystones area.

Golf

There are two 18-hole golf courses and a driving range within the town. Greystones Golf Club was founded in 1895 and allows fine views over the town, the countryside, and the Irish Sea. Charlesland Golf Club is newer, flatter, and located by the sea. These venues can be reached by walking from the train station. There are other courses within short driving distance (less than eight km) at Delgany, Glen of the Downs, Kilcoole, Druids Glen (just outside Kilcoole), Bray and Woodbrook.

Marine

Greystones has many marine based clubs including sailing and wind-surfing, angling, diving, rowing and Sea Scouts.

Greystones rowing club was established 1920 and still going today.

Shore angling for cod and plaice at the beaches and the harbour attracts many people, especially during the summer. Swimming is popular in warmer weather, especially on the south beach. The coast is also suitable for jogging and hiking.

Tennis

Greystones Lawn Tennis Club is a vibrant, active club with 12 outdoor floodlit courts and a large clubhouse. Located on the Mill Road, on the south end of the town near the rugby and GAA clubs, it regularly hosts regional and national competitions, has a large number of tennis activities and coaching opportunities for children and adults and runs a number of social events throughout the year.

Town twinning

Greystones has town twinning agreements with:

Religion

Greystones has variety of Christian denominations in the locality, with most divisions of mainstream Christianity represented. There is a Roman Catholic, a Presbyterian, an Anglican (Church of Ireland), an Evangelical, and an Evangelical Arminian church in Greystones. Carraig Eden Theological College is the premier Pentecostal centre for theological study and ministerial training in Ireland, offering BTh and MTh degrees in Applied Theology The majority of residents are Roman Catholic, but Greystones is the town with the highest population of Protestants in the Republic of Ireland with 9.77% of residents claiming to be Church of Ireland (according to the 2006 census).

Education and research

Greystones has seven primary schools:

The town also has a Roman Catholic secondary school:

A Church of Ireland, co-educational Secondary School has opened its doors in 2014 in Greystones; Temple Carrig School. Nevertheless, it is relatively common for local young people to attend schools in neighbouring localities.

There is a Spanish school, School SEK-Dublin, in Belvedere Hall in Windgates.

Wicklow County Council manages a Carnegie library opposite Burnaby Park on the main street (Church Road).

Entertainment

Greystones has a number of entertainment facilities; Charlesland Sports and Recreation Park which include a skate park, several all-weather football and basketball courts and a playground. A large number of gigs organised by local independent youths take place, played by mostly local bands although international punk and hardcore acts have played in the town. The Greystones Theatre, suitable for drama, dance, concerts and other events, is located in the town centre and is supplemented by Greystones Studios, which provide classes, performance space, practice rooms and AV studios.

Film and television

Economy

Greystones is the home to several local businesses that were founded in the town and are now recognised nationally. The Happy Pear organic food company, headquartered at its restaurant on the Main Street (Church Road); Goldfish.ie the telecoms firm headquartered on Church Road; and RTÉ Dragons' Den-winning company Smart Storage. Also based in Greystones is international bottle top manufacturer United Caps, which has 6 production plants and 16 sales' offices across Europe.