Campaigners are to launch a new film that they say shows how Drogheda's rapid expansion over the past three years means it should now be classed as Ireland's newest city.
Drogheda City Status Group (DCSG) will this evening launch the new short film, which was shot using a drone over recent weeks and shows the expansion of the area.
The film includes aerial footage of new residential developments that the group has said have "pushed Drogheda's population to city levels, and that are resulting in Drogheda being the fastest-growing urban area in the Republic of Ireland."
The group said the film, along with new figures it has calculated using CSO data, demonstrate that Drogheda's population has expanded by 6,000 inhabitants since the 2022 census, meaning that it has now surpassed the 50,000 mark.
This number, the group says, is the benchmark used by the European Union to define a city.
The DCSG adds that the film will also highlight that the population predictions for Drogheda by Government and local authorities have been surpassed years ahead of time.
The group has said the Regional Spatial Economic Strategy and the current Louth County Development Plan predicted that Drogheda's population will reach 50,000 by 2031.
However, DCSG Chairperson, Anna McKenna has said the figures show that Drogheda's population has already surpassed predictions.
Ms McKenna said: "By 2031, the city's population will be well on the way to 60,000.
"The 50,000 population figure is for Drogheda's urban area only, and does not include outlying areas. When those are included, the population of the Greater Drogheda Area is around 75,000.
"Drogheda is a city, and it's high time it was recognised as such by the State," she said.
DCSG has said it sent details about a proposed high-level task force that could be set up for Drogheda to the Taoiseach over a year ago but it has yet to receive a response.
Ms McKenna added that Drogheda is fast outgrowing the facilities and structures that are needed by its residents.
She said: "As our city grows at an enormous rate, we are seeing many new housing developments, but little else in terms of infrastructure, job creation, education and sports and leisure facilities, and sustainability.
"Our new video will demonstrate conclusively that Drogheda is not only ballooning, but is in fact the fastest-growing area in the State."
Ms McKenna said: "It [the film] will support, visually, what our figures are showing - that Drogheda has already become a city.
"The Government of Ireland must act now to declare Drogheda a city, and create a new city administration with its own city manager and budget.
"We have had enough of political statements and promises. We've been told by senior Government leaders that Drogheda is a city. We've been promised a city manager and nothing has happened, except the creation of vast new residential areas on the fringes of our growing city."
Ms McKenna also went on to say that the DCSG believes Drogheda is being prevented from reaching its full potential.
"We have only seen new housing in the first of four phases of the Port Access Northern Cross Route (PANCR) finally under construction.
"Drogheda is a major centre on the Dublin-Belfast Economic Corridor (DBEC). There's no indication of when the planned and much-needed bus and rail transport hub will commence.
"This will facilitate the creation of much-needed local employment for the thousands of new residents as well as those already making long commutes to work.
"In the same vein, Drogheda serves a catchment of 750,000 within a 30-minute travel zone and urgently needs a university campus to serve that catchment, which the transport hub would support.
"All of this is compatible with the Government's claim that the NDP is very focused on addressing infrastructure deficits, which Drogheda clearly has suffered for decades."
Ms McKenna said: "We call on the Taoiseach, Tánaiste, the Minister for Housing and other senior figures to address these issues with utmost urgency."
"You've already acknowledged that Drogheda is a city. Now give us the power, funding and opportunity to plan our own future. Drogheda needs its own city authority with a budget to match. When we get that, the sky will be the limit," she added.
The film will be officially launched at a public screening at The Mill Enterprise Hub, Drogheda, this evening at 7.30pm.
