Excerpt below from The Irish Daily Mirror, Mar 11, 2010 by MARIE KIERANS

A TOWN ravaged by the recession is facing its worse crisis in living memory as businesses struggle to stay afloat.

Rocked by substantial job losses through the closure of high- profile industries such as Coca-Cola, locals in Drogheda, Co Louth, had been relying on the town's once thriving retail sector and local indigenous businesses for employment.

But now they too are in real trouble.

West Street, the main shopping thoroughfare and revered as the town's "golden quarter mile" is now littered with For Sale and For Let signs, with 31% of shops on the street now vacant.

This community though is not 53% are fewer last year going down without a fight.

At a public meeting in the town on Tuesday night up to 250 local business people came together in a stand of solidarity and determination.

In an unprecedented move by the Drogheda and District Chamber of Commerce, the chamber council convened the meeting to discuss the crisis and start a plan of action.

What emerged is that high commercial rates and water rates are crippling stores at a time when income has dropped drastically.