Rural Tipperary communities ‘left to carry the can’ as investment focuses on bigger towns
There is a “two tier” system in Tipperary when it comes to urban versus rural areas, according to one local councillor.
Speaking at the January meeting of the Nenagh Municipal District, independent councillor Michael O’Meara said that in their district, a lot of investment goes into Nenagh, but that rural towns and villages have to carry a lot themselves.
"I know Nenagh is our central town and we have to support Nenagh by all means, but let’s not forget, when funding comes, it usually comes for Nenagh, whether it’s Urban Regeneration and Development Funding (URDF) or Rural Regeneration and Development Funding (RRDF), and that’s very welcomed,” he said.
"But we built an interpretative centre in Lorrha, it cost the guts of €500,000, it was done by people who had no experience starting out, we made all the mistakes, we fell through all the loopholes, and it was a big job that was very difficult to be done.
"If that was to be done in Nenagh, it would be carried by the local authority, and rightly so, but in some ways, rural communities, it’s like a two tier society,” Cllr O’Meara said.
“Rural communities have to carry the can for all these themselves,” he added.
Saying that support for the bigger towns like Nenagh is very welcome, the independent councillor explained that even when it comes to Christmas lights, rural communities are left to organise these on their own.
"Even down to the Christmas lights, and it’s very welcome in places like Borrisokane, Cloughjordan, and Newport, but people have to go out themselves in those towns and do the work, whereas in Nenagh, it’s supplied by an electrician or whatever,” he said.
"We need to give more recognition to the volunteer people out in those rural areas that does all this work,” Cllr O’Meara said.
Agreeing with Cllr O’Meara, district Cathaoirleach Cllr Phyll Bugler said that in her area of Ballina, volunteers do an awful lot of work.
"I couldn’t agree with you more, the volunteers in Tidy Towns in Ballina and Newport, we put up our own Tidy Towns lights, we do our own Tidy Towns application, we sweep the footpaths, we pick all the litter, and it’s volunteers who have been there for the last 22 years,” she said.
"They certainly need recognition for the work that they do,” Cllr Bugler added.
In response, Nenagh’s district administrator Rosemary Joyce said that the local authority is well aware of the work of volunteers in towns and villages across the district.
“There are volunteers in every committee everywhere, there are people who are involved in committees for years, if you want something done, you give it to a busy person, someone who’s involved in four or five different committees,” she said.
“We are very conscious of the other areas, the towns like Borrisokane, Cloughjordan, Lorrha, and we’ve had conversations about how we can do something about the monastic settlement in Lorrha and build a package around that,” Ms Joyce said.
"We are always willing to meet with community groups in any of these areas,” she added.