Galway’s good showing in the Tidy Towns competition, which found the city “very well presented and spotlessly clean”, is a positive start and something to build on.
This is the reaction of both City Hall and Labour councillor Niall McNelis to the results which were announced on Monday.
After many years absence from the competition, Galway City Centre entered the 2011 Tidy Towns and gained seven out of 10 marks for ‘general impression’. Overall, the city achieved 263 marks out of a possible 400.
The landscaping in Eyre Square and along the river by the Cathedral were also commented on by the Tidy Town’s adjudicator, with the report noting the “many planters and hanging baskets around the city”.
The adjudicator also noted the city’s “continuous struggle” against graffiti and congratulated the Galway City Tidy Towns Committee for making “great attempts” to keep to a high standard in all the categories of the competition.
The Galway City Centre Tidy Towns Committee in conjunction with Galway City Council are hugely encouraged by this first adjudication and will look to build on the first year’s work to progress further in the Tidy Towns Competition in coming years.
Cllr McNelis has also welcomed the results. “We know that the work we are doing is in the right direction,” he said. “I would like to thank all the volunteers that have helped to date and the city council staff who work very hard every day starting early in the morning in keeping in control of litter.”
Schemes will be launched to encourage businesses to keep their outside premises litter free as well as signage calling on the public to play their part in keeping Galway tidy by becoming involved through volunteering.
