Galway set for 800 new jobs as US company targets city

ExclusiveBY ENDA CUNNINGHAM

Galway is set for a massive jobs boost in the coming months, with a US-based company ‘eyeing up’ the city as a potential location for a new European call centre with up to 800 workers, the Sentinel has learned.

The company – which is involved in internet sales – is actively assessing Galway as a potential location for the call centre, and it is expected a final decision will be made in the coming months.The news could mean a massive employment boost for the city, where the most recent figures show there are 13,500 people on the Live Register.

The Parkmore Industrial Estate off the Tuam Road is seen as the only suitable location in Galway for such a business, because of a shortage in buildings specifically designed to accommodate large-scale companies.

However, Mayor of Galway Michael Crowe said the city would “move the Earth” to attract companies which create jobs.

Galway is believed to be one of between 8 and 10 locations in Ireland and Europe which the US company is looking at. If it chooses Galway, it will become one of the biggest employers in the city.

The Sentinel understands that the company’s requirements involve around 60,000 square feet to 80,000 sq.ft. in space for a call centre, where up to 800 people would be employed.

Aidan Gavin, of commercial property agents DTZ Sherry Fitzgerald said: “There are companies very much targeting Galway, and there is a shortfall in purpose-built office space with a large footprint. Galway will quickly lose its attractiveness to foreign industry if we cannot provide suitable office space.

“There is plenty of space for smaller offices with 30, 40 and 50 employees, but when you get up to 70,000 and 80,000 sq.ft. there is little out there. If Galway wants to attract big business, we need more purpose-built office space,” said Mr Gavin.

The potential job creation would be on a similar scale to Digital – the ‘backbone’ of the city’s economy through the 1980s, until more than 800 workers were laid off in the early 1990s.

Mayor Michael Crowe, who is also an estate agent, told the Sentinel: “We will move the Earth to attract and secure big businesses. If this worked out, it would be fantastic news for Galway, and I know that I, as Mayor, along with my City Council colleagues and Enterprise Ireland and the IDA will do everything within our power to work with them,” said the Mayor.