Councillors who attended the Sister Cities conference in Kansas in July told their Council colleagues at last week's Monthly meeting of Council that Ballymena will benefit greatly from next years Conference to be held in Northern Ireland, with more than 160 visitors from the US already booked.

However, Councillor Roy Gillespie questioned the cost of the recent trip and Ballymena's ongoing involvement in the initiative.

"I would like to know the costs of this event. I would like to know if there any jobs coming to Ballymena from this. Is it just a matter of tripping back and forth?"

Councillor Gillespie said he had been approached by local ratepayers concerned by the costs of the trips, and said he felt the money would be better spent on putting up fences and maintenance of local facilities.

In response, Acting Chief Executive, Ronnie McBride defended the Council's investment, saying the local economy would benefit from the initiative:

"The money spent in hotels in Ballymena by visitors is the lifeblood of the hospitality industry. If you do not set out to make connections, then you could be missing opportunities."

In a report into the trip tabled at Monday night's meeting, it was stated: "...it is anticipated many sister city members will visit and stay in the ballymena area during the 2009 conference.

"The overall consensus from the conference clearly illustrated the need to build relations and learn from other sister city projects for the benefit of economic development."

Councillors Monica Digney, Deirdre Nelson and PJ McAvoy who travelled to Kansas as part of the Ballymena delegation said many of their American counterparts were amazed by what Ballymena had to offer and were eager to visit the area during next years conference.