Council Praises Limerick’s Tidy Towns Participants

The Cathaoirleach of Limerick County Council has congratulated Adare on receiving a Silver Medal in Category C of the 50th National Tidy Towns Competition.

Adare picked up the accolade at the National Awards Ceremony in Dublin on Monday evening, just 12 months after it was awarded a Bronze Medal and the Limerick County Award in the National Tidy Towns Competition 2007. The latest award success for Adare comes less than 2 months after it was named winner of the ‘Best Kept Small Town’ category in Ireland’s Best Kept Towns 2008 competition.

Adare also won the Limerick County Award this year while Galbally and Ardpatrick came second and third place respectively. Meanwhile, Kilbehenny received the County Endeavour Award and Moore's Pub in Doon won the Regional Shopfront Award. Most notably, Adare received 9 more points than it did last year while Galbally increased its 2007 tally by five points.

Commenting on Adare’s success, Mr. Mike Brennan, Chairperson of Adare Tidy Towns Committee, ‘I would like to sincerely thank the local community for their cooperation and the team effort involved over the past year. The awarding of a Silver Medal to Adare is evidence of the strong community spirit that exists among businesses and residents of the town and is also symbolic of the ongoing efforts being made within County Limerick to compete and succeed at national level.’ Mr. Brennan added, ‘To celebrate winning a Silver Medal, a function has been organised for the people involved in the Tidy Towns effort at the Woodlands House Hotel this evening in Adare at 8 o’clock.’

According to Councillor John Gallahue, Cathaoirleach of Limerick County Council, ‘I am delighted to see that Adare, with the support of Limerick County Council, has won a silver medal and once again lead the way for County Limerick in this year’s competition’.

Complimenting the efforts of Tidy Towns volunteers across County Limerick, the Cathaoirleach said, ‘I have personally worked for many years with Voluntary Organisations and, therefore, I recognise the huge effort required by community groups to participate in and achieve success in such competitions. I believe that the Tidy Towns Competition is truly a celebration of community spirit, teamwork and an awareness of the natural environment. I also wish to commend the staff of Limerick County Council, along with the elected representatives for the invaluable support they have provided Tidy Towns committees throughout the year’.

Commenting on the achievements of Limerick’s Tidy Towns participants, Councillor Francis Foley, Chair of the Community & Cultural SPC, stated, ‘I would like to congratulate all 36 participants from Limerick who have done their county proud in this year’s National Tidy Towns Competition and, indeed, throughout the past 50 years. I would particularly like to acknowledge the efforts made by new entrants to the competition and urge each new committee to retain the motivation to keep going and recruit more volunteers.”

Mr. Ned Gleeson, Limerick County Manager said that the achievements of County Limerick’s Tidy Towns participants was especially pleasing as Limerick County Council had this year launched two new environmental initiatives aimed at enhancing the appearance of towns and villages across County Limerick. He continued, ‘Not only did Limerick County Council assist the Tidy Towns Committees in increasing their overall marks this year, we also introduced two new environmental schemes that have helped participants prepare better for this year’s competition. The Council remains committed to providing support to community and voluntary organisations in this regard.’

‘The concept of promoting community involvement in the improvement and enhancement of the local environment has been developed and strengthened over the years by Limerick County Council. This has further been enhanced through the considerable involvement of community groups, tidy towns committees, residents associations and local businesses in the Priming Grants Scheme and Limerick in Bloom Competition’, concluded Mr. Gleeson.

The Tidy Towns competition is organised by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. SuperValu, and its 180 plus storeowners around the country, have sponsored the competition since 1992. The Tourism Division of Shannon Development administers and promotes the competition in the Shannon Region. Judging of entries takes place in June, July and August each year.

Lissanalta House Shortlisted For Excellence In Local Government Award

Lissanalta House in Dooradoyle has been shortlisted for an award in Chamber Ireland's Excellence in Local Government Awards 2008.

The Chambers of Commerce of Ireland (CCI) established the awards in 2004 to acknowledge and encourage best practice and constructive initiatives by local authorities and also to enhance the positive relationships that already exist between chambers, businesses and their respective local authorities. Limerick County Council’s newest administrative building and office complex has been singled out in the ‘Outstanding Customer Service’ category, the winner of which will be announced at the Awards Gala Dinner on 6 November in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, County Dublin.

The state of the art building, which was officially opened last March, accommodates six key local authority services that were previously based at separate locations throughout County Limerick. They include the Mid West National Road Design Office, Motor Taxation Office, Regional Waste Management Office, Environment Laboratory and new Limerick County Library Headquarters, which is complemented by one of Ireland’s most comprehensive local studies centres.

Congratulating the Local Authority on being shortlisted, Councillor John Gallahue, Cathaoirleach of Limerick County Council, stated, ‘With the opening of Lissanalta House, Limerick County Council has provided a one-stop shop facility to its public on a convenient, accessible site making available an integrated range of quality services.’

He continued, “The development of Lissanalta House has most notably resulted in the provision of what must be one of the most modern and technically best-equipped library headquarters in the country. This 45,000 sq ft development is not only a significant moment for the Council, but a milestone in the delivery of public services in this county.”

Mr. Gerry Behan, Director of Services, Limerick County Council, said the development of Lissanalta House formed part of Limerick County Council’s strong emphasis on providing accessible and convenient services to members of the public. Mr. Behan pointed out that the provision of quality customer service is a touchstone of the local government modernisation programme. He explained, ‘The delivery of high quality services, tailored to meet the needs of all our customers, is one of Limerick County Council's core objectives and is included in our Corporate Plan 2004-09. This quality service includes not only the level and quality of service given to our customers, but also the quality of our decision-making processes, the efficiency and effectiveness of our operations, standard of our facilities and our ability to adapt in an ever-changing environment.’

Mr. Behan stated that Limerick County Council would continue to further enhance the delivery of customer services throughout County Limerick. ‘Work recently commenced on an integrated project with the Courts Services, the Library Service and an Area Office on a single site in Kilmallock, and will open to the public in 2009’, he added.

Lissanalta House has been shortlisted for Chamber Ireland's Excellence in Local Government Award based on its delivery of accessible and convenient services for the public. Convenient Access is provided to six services located at a central site in close proximity to a range of key local Government agencies, including Limerick County Hall, Limerick VEC, and Teagasc’s Headquarters. It is accessible by public transport or private car via the new South Ring Road. Free parking for customers is available. Also, cycle lanes serve the building from Dooradoyle shopping centre. A Single Reception Area is provided to serve all six departments affording a central point of contact for the customer. Private Meeting Rooms: are provided for the public to allow the customer to meet with Council staff regarding confidential business needs. A public coffee dock is available for customer convenience, which is especially beneficial for people who have travelled distances for meetings or to carry out full-day research.

One of the outstanding features of the building, which was designed by local architects Healy & Partners, is the promotion of modern energy design solutions. Numerous environmentally friendly installations have been incorporated including solar panels that provide 70% of domestic hot water to the building, high levels of fabric insulation that reduce energy consumption and natural ventilation to all offices. Already, the building has won a National Award from Gypsum Industries for the innovative use of plasterboard in ceiling design. Meanwhile, the Council has confirmed that up to 15% of the buildings’ total electricity needs will be generated by a Photovoltaic (PV) solar electric power system.