“Youghal’s star is certainly in the rising” were the words of the adjudicating panel in the 2019 Super Valu Tidy Towns Competition when evaluating Youghal’s entry in the annual competition. Scoring a hugely impressive 333 points, the town was once again a gold medal recipient. Glaslough, Co. Monaghan was today named as Ireland’s Tidiest Town for 2019.
Speaking about the result, Helen Mulcahy, Senior Staff Officer with Cork County Council’s East Cork Municipal District expressed her delight at the result: “We are absolutely delighted to once again be awarded a gold medal in the National Tidy Towns Competition – it was very much deserved. Youghal is very fortunate to have an army of volunteers with many different organisations who work tirelessly to keep our Town looking so beautiful. This gold medal has been achieved by the hard work and dedication of groups such as Youghal Tidy Towns, Youghal Scout Group, Youghal Clean Coats Group, Youghal4All and the many, many residents’ associations. The staff of Cork County Council also play a vital role in all of these efforts also. Said Helen.
A record number of 918 applicants entered this year’s Tidy Towns competitions, where the main awards include Ireland’s tidiest town, tidiest village and tidiest large urban centre. Minister Michael Ring made the presentations to the winners in the Helix Stadium, Dublin. The Minister also announced a special allocation of €1.4 million to support the work of individual Tidy Towns Committees around the country to assist them in their continued efforts to enhance their towns and villages. This is the third year in a row that Minister Ring has allocated this funding to support the work of the Tidy Towns Committees.
A comprehensive adjudication report is issued to every entrant. This year the panel paid particular mention to Youghal’s success in hosting the first full Ironman event in June 2019. The judges visited during the week after the event and noticed the extra effort made for visiting athletes and their supporters. The recent approval of the Midleton to Youghal Greenway was also noted by the judges prompting some words of positivity on Youghal’s future. “We hope that the town reaps well-deserved economic prosperity and other benefits from these exciting opportunities” said the report.
Helen Mulcahy also referenced the impact of Ironman on the town stating: “2019 has been a very exciting year for Youghal and Ironman brought a renewed sense of pride in our Town – the Community came together in a way we have never seen before and the Town has never looked so well. Youghal goes from strength and has gained 8 points on last year’s result – becoming National winners is no longer a dream but could become a reality in a few years.”
We can only but agree.
For full details of all adjudicators reports log onto: https://www.tidytowns.ie/