Boston is a friendthat insists onNW investment

The Mayor of Derry, Councillor Brenda Stevenson hosting a civic reception for the Mayor Marty Walsh, City of Boston, Massachusetts, USA, earleir this year. Included are Sharon OConnor, Town Clerk & City Council Chief Executive, Colm Eastwood, MLA, The Deputy Mayor Alderman Gary Middleton, Cllr. Martin Reilly, Cllr. John Boyle, Cllr. Brian Tierney, Cllr. Eric McGinley, Mark Durkan, MP, Cllr. Kevin Campbell, Cllr. Shauna Cusack, Cllr. Paul Fleming & Cllr. Angela Dobbins.

That’s according to Mayor Brenda Stevenson upon her return from a six-day trip to Massachusetts, where she was developing positive business, educational and political linkages.

“There is so much positivity and awareness of Derry in Boston. Everywhere we went people were hugely excited about us and what we are doing and how we are making huge steps forward in terms of creating new opportunities for our communities.

“They were particularly interested in our successes since City of Culture and our ongoing legacy work and how we are working to develop our economy and cultural offering,” said the Mayor.

She added that one of the learning curves from the trip was emphasis placed on investing in education and the digital economy.

“If we are to be successful in developing our economy we need to be investing in our university and our digital economy, that is key to our continued success,” she said.

During the trip she attended the Golden Bridges Conference and held meetings at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, MA; the M2D2 Project and the Centre for Irish Partnerships.

They met with the Mayor of Boston Marty Walsh and met with the Chancellor Marty Meehan and the State Senate President Therese Murray.

Mayor Stevenson said a key element of the visit was the partnership arrangement between Londonderry and Donegal.

“It was a fantastic opportunity for us not only to showcase Derry but to sell the entire North West region and promoting the fact that we have Donegal on our doorstep. “We worked very closely with our counterparts from Donegal during this trip to look at how we can link up with Boston to benefit both regions. It was hugely important for us to be represented at the conference and the business meetings to tell our story and promote what we have to offer in terms of leisure and business tourism opportunities,” she said.

Following on from the trip, Mayor Stevenson said she will be re-engaging with the contacts made in the US to see if she can further explore those discussions.

“We will be actively following up with all the people we met during the visit to see how we can move those discussions further. We will be continuing to work with Donegal to build on this positive partnership to ensure that we can continue with this important links that will hopefully lead to economic and tourism benefits for the region.”