The Tidy Towns organisers were nothing if not punctual.
With just minutes to go before the 1pm deadline, Tipperary man and Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly named Kilkenny city as Ireland’s Tidiest Town in 2014 and the crowd thundered its approval.
“It’s the last piece of silver they are getting this year,” Mr Kelly said in a jocular reference to the impending replay of Sunday’s hurling final between Kilkenny and Tipperary.
But, he said all credit must go to the winners. “It is much more than picking up litter now – it is an all-year thing.”
Indeed, hard work was a common theme among category winners, including Clonegal, Co Carlow, which was named Ireland’s tidiest village; Kilrush, Co Clare, which was named Ireland’s tidiest small town, and Westport, Co Mayo, which received the award for Ireland’s tidiest large town.
Kilkenny city also won the award for Ireland’s tidiest large urban centre.
With 320 points out of a possible 450, the Kilkenny Tidy Towns Committee brought home a trophy and a cheque for €10,000. In their report, the adjudicators noted Kilkenny had won the Fáilte Ireland Top Tourism Town award last year and was voted the Condé Nast ninth-friendliest city in the world. The judges said, "Nowhere on this island does the ancient streetscape still impact so definitely on the contemporary city."
Talbot’s Tower
Aspects of Kilkenny which impressed the judges were the “Medieval Mile” project, the reordering of St Mary’s church and its “forgotten” monuments and the Talbot’s Tower renovation, among others.
The judges were particularly impressed that a blackspot criticised in last year’s report – a derelict ruin and two petrol pumps on the Kilcrene Road – had been transformed into a “star” site.
Speaking after the award, Kilkenny Tidy Towns Committee secretary Elaine Bradshaw said the former ruin had been adopted as a special project, with the façade restored and a feature made of the old pumps.
“Hard work – morning, noon and night” was Ms Bradshaw’s recipe for success. She was not deterred by the controversy regarding a new bridge over the Nore and praised the county council, notably chief executive John Mulholland, who, she said, “comes out with us on our work”.
Mr Mulholland agreed the construction of the new bridge was not an obstacle. “You work with what you have,” he said.
Just one point behind Kilkenny, at 319, was Ireland’s tidiest village, Clonegal, Co Carlow. In their citation, the adjudicators praised the committee’s attitude: the village was “a heritage village, but not a museum to be admired first and lived in secondly”.
Kilrush, Co Clare, claimed the title Ireland’s tidiest small town with 316 points. The judges said the visit to Kilrush was “one of the highlights in our experience of adjudication over the years”. They singled out the “excellence of the built environment and streetscape” and said they were impressed to find a town so engaged with its architectural character.
Ireland’s tidiest large town and previous winner Westport, scored 318 points. The judges said Westport was “marvellously endowed with the unique heritage of its planned town centre”.
Formal grandeur
They said the historic malls benefited enormously from their riverside aspects “blending formal grandeur with easygoing charm”. Committee member Bridie Moran said the town had won the overall competition three times in the last 10 years and did not mind terribly missing the top prize on this occasion. “Everybody should have a chance,” she said.
