CAVAN COUNTY COUNCIL and Waterford City Council were named the top county and city councils last night at a special awards ceremony.

The annual Excellence in Local Government Awards recognise and encourage local authorities who “seek to do better despite tighter budgetary constraints”.

Dundalk Town Council was named town/borough council of the year at the event, which was held in association with the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government.

The awards are organised by Chambers Ireland to showcase the work that local authorities carry out.

Environment Minister Phil Hogan said the standard of projects this year was “outstanding”.

Here is a full list of winners from last night’s event:

Sustaining the Arts sponsored by Tipperary Crystal
·          South Dublin County Council – Tallaght Young Filmmakers

Supporting Active Communities sponsored by Eirgrid
·          Cavan County Council – West Cavan Peace III Engaging Men

Festival of the Year sponsored by Optic Nerve
·          Waterford City Council – Waterford Harvest Festival

Best Library Service sponsored by Eirgrid
·          Galway County Council – Galway Summer Reading Programme: Nurturing Literacy and the Imagination

Parks & Recreation sponsored by The European Recycling Platform
·          Cavan County Council – Marble Arch Caves Global Geopark

Strategic Water Initiative sponsored by AECOM
·          Kilkenny County Council – Releasing Water Quality Information

Supporting Tourism sponsored by Corrib Natural Gas
·          Waterford City Council – Destination Waterford City

Partnership with Business sponsored by Dun & Bradstreet
·          Cork City Council – Partnership Management Model for the English Market

Joint Local Authority Initiative sponsored by arvato Finance
·          South Dublin County Council working with Dublin City Council and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council – Dublin Mountains Way

Innovation in Technology sponsored by ESB Networks
·          Clare County Council – Clare Ecclesiastical Trails iPhone/iPad Application

Smarter Travel sponsored by AECOM
·          South Dublin County Council – Smarter Travel Adamstown Personalised Travel Planning

Sports Development sponsored by An Post
·          Westmeath County Council – Destination Sport Mullingar

Sustainable Environment sponsored by The European Recycling Platform – Joint Winners
·          Dundalk Town Council – Navvy Bank Biodiversity & Awareness Project
·          Dublin City Council – Green Plan, Kilbarrack Fire Station

Outstanding Customer Service sponsored by Zurich
·          South Dublin County Council – Camac Valley Caravan and Camping Park: A Unique Resource for All

Local Authority Economic Efficiencies sponsored by arvato Finance
·          Louth Local Authorities – Louth Economic Forum

County/City Development Board of the Year sponsored by CBRE – Joint Winners
·          Leitrim County Council – Goal for Peace Project
·          Waterford City Council – Waterford City Development Board ‘Doing it for Ourselves’