Tidy Towns Competition

Home › Forums › Ireland › Tidy Towns Competition

Viewing 8 reply threads
  • Author
    Posts
    • May 1, 2003 at 3:23 pm #706175
      d_d_dallas
      Participant

      What are the opinions of this competition?

      Is it a case that we are experiencing a homogenisation of rural towns with their faux victoriana and hanging flower baskets all around the country?

      I read recently that even An Taisce are getting a little concerned that the actual character of some of these towns is being lost to this competition, as there is a recognised formula to win.

    • May 1, 2003 at 3:25 pm #726582
      Paul Clerkin
      Keymaster

      Where did you read it?

    • May 1, 2003 at 3:33 pm #726583
      J. Seerski
      Participant

      Couldn’t agree more – they are all becoming submerged in a sea of PVC, ridiculous stone walls, fake wells, super valu adverts that make you wanna puke….

    • May 1, 2003 at 3:33 pm #726584
      d_d_dallas
      Participant

      Eh – If I had to guess I’d say Irish Examiner

    • May 1, 2003 at 3:52 pm #726585
      Niall
      Participant

      I don’t agree with all that twee nonsense and hanging baskets.. The important thing is to keep the filthy litter off the streets and shopkeeepers to clean outside their premises. The Council also HAVE a responsibility… the village I live in has not ONE litter bin!!!!!!!!!!!!

    • May 1, 2003 at 4:00 pm #726586
      d_d_dallas
      Participant

      Yeah – exactly… let the natural character of the village shine out (i.e. let it be “tidy” as the name goes!).

    • May 1, 2003 at 4:09 pm #726587
      urbanisto
      Participant

      Still you cannot deny the Competition has been a great motivator in getting people to look after and improve their communities..even if the results have sometimes been a bit lacking in imagination and individuality. Keeping the street tidy is of the highest importance but remember also that so many Irish villages and towns are dull and grey (espcially in our beloved maritime climate) and hence all those flowerboxes and hanging baskets can sometimes be a much needed boost to the visual appeal of the places. Also most small towns have very limited resources to implement any grandiose plans.

    • May 1, 2003 at 4:20 pm #726588
      d_d_dallas
      Participant

      Yeah – some flowers on the roundabout do add a touch of glamour on the one day it’s sunny in the summer.

    • May 1, 2003 at 5:30 pm #726589
      roskav
      Participant

      I had to photograph Castletown Laois, which was last year’s winner for Super Valu.
      I’m not sure of the criteria but it was an odd choice. There was one main st. with a green – a convent and cemetary off this street – and a bit of grass with a mill beside the river which was at a remove from the village.
      It was a nice place and the people were really friendly but I couldn’t see what the deal was.
      A couple of things were apparent after a while though –

      A well motivated group of people pushed the tidy towns agenda in the village –
      They had entrance “markers” to the village – one a “failte” flowerbed – the other some monoliths with the town’s name… It had recently been bypassed and I suppose it’s interesting how they handled that.
      It is a village whose attributes are quite removed from whatever physical fabric it has – the main thing that struck me was a cohesiveness within the locals – but that was probably due to the fact that their hurling team was in the county final that weekend!

  • Author
    Posts
Viewing 8 reply threads
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.