The Irish Times

Sligo may not be a city in strict legal terms, "but that doesn't prevent us from calling it a city", according to Hubert Kearns, who is both the county and borough manager. "We've got to think like a city and act like one, then make our case to the Government." That's why he welcomes plans for a 14-storey hotel and a 10-storey office block at the Carrowroe roundabout on the N4, two miles south of the town centre. What these landmark buildings would do, he says, is to "announce to people that they're coming into somewhere important". Sligo aims to establish itself as the undisputed regional capital of the north-west. And it has geography on its side, as Kearns, who is from Co Monaghan, pointed out; Derry is 85 miles to the north and Galway 85 miles to the south, while Enniskillen offers the only local competition.