Waterford City and County Council appoints Sean McKeown as new Chief Executive

Mr McKeown was appointed following a recruitment process conducted by the Public Appointments Service and will take up the role on 21 August. The role was previously held by Michael Walsh.

Mr McKeown is originally from Armagh and has a distinguished career in local government, most recently as Director of Planning, Economics and Environment at Kilkenny County Council.

He previously served as Interim Chief Executive of Kilkenny County Council for just over 15 months following the retirement of Colette Byrne. He also served as Director of the South East Action Plan for Jobs and Head of Enterprise and Economic Development at Kilkenny County Council.

Speaking about his appointment, Mr McKeown said: “I am honoured and privileged to have been approved as Chief Executive by the Elected Members of Waterford City and County Council. I look forward to working with them and the staff across the Council’s service areas to make Waterford the best place in Ireland to live, work and invest.”

Mr McKeown also paid tribute to interim chief executive Ivan Grimes and his predecessor Michael Walsh for their “significant contribution to Waterford”.

Mr Walsh retired as Chief Executive in May this year, having been appointed Chief Executive of the newly combined Waterford City and County Council in 2014 to oversee the merger of the former city and county councils as part of local government reforms.

Some of his key projects include securing almost €200 million of investment in the North Quays Strategic Development Zone (SDZ), leading Waterford City and County Council’s efforts to realise all property rights and address vacancy and dereliction, the regeneration of towns and villages under the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF), the creation of the Waterford Greenway, consolidating Waterford’s rich history and heritage and playing a key role in the establishment of the South East Technological University.

“Waterford is on a path to growth with many ambitious projects and plans in the pipeline and I am delighted to be at the heart of delivering them,” said Mr McKeown.

“I am committed to developing close working relationships and collaboration with the local community, academic stakeholders and business groups, as well as Council staff, to ensure Waterford continues on this path.”

Some of the key projects Mr McKeown expects to deliver include: making Waterford the first carbon neutral city in Ireland, strengthening Waterford with copper and the economic resilience of the South East, developing tourism, continuing Waterford’s leadership in addressing vacancy and dereliction, and further investing in Waterford’s physical and digital infrastructure.