ELECTRIC CAR CHARGING STATION

ELECTRIC CAR CHARGING STATION

Thomastown is a new recipient of an ESB electric car charging station, located in the Quay car park. ESB is responsible for the roll out of electric car charge points in Ireland. In March 2010, ESB installed the first on-street charge points in Dublin and they are now being deployed in other locations across the country. With three charging options available and an extensive nationwide charging network, electric car drivers will never be far from a charge point. For more information, you can go to:

www.esb.ie/electric-cars/index.jsp

CHRISTMAS WINDOW DISPLAY COMPETITION 2012

Thomastown Tidy Towns Committee invites all retailers, businesses and organizations to help spruce up the town for Christmas by decorating doors, windows and facades. Judging will take place by a discerning group of students from St. Mary's NS the week before Christmas, exact date to be determined. Here are a few of the Christmas windows so far (more will follow).

Thomastown Tidy Towns is happy to announce our NEW PROJECT!

UPPER PADDOCK AREA PROJECT:
This is a community project led by Thomastown Tidy Towns, for the purpose of restoring, conserving and developing a scenic biodiversity area, funded by voluntary contributions.

Some of you may have seen works being carried out near the rock wall of the Quay parking area (to the right of the CYMSI building). These works are to facilitate access to the gate leading up to the “Upper Paddock”.

We are there on Saturday mornings from 9AM. If you would like to volunteer a bit of time to help out or would just like to have a look, please come on by. We'd love to see you.

Tidytown Competition 2012 Results

The Tidytown Competition 2012 results are in. Thomastown scored 7 points higher than last year! You can read the results below. Well done to everyone!! Keep up the great work.

http://tidytowns.ie/u_reports/2012/2012%20County%20Kilkenny%20Thomastown%20908.pdf

Thomastown Tidytowns would like to wish all Thomastown artists a great Arts Week (10-19 of August). Thank you for making Thomastown even more beautiful.

Tidy Towns at Thomastown Regatta

Come visit us at the Thomastown Regatta Sunday July 1st from 1:00 - 6:00.  We'll have information on composting, the 'Gum Litter Taskforce' colouring for kids and more!










For more information go to: http://www.heritagecouncil.ie/fileadmin/user_upload/External_2012/Thomastown_Regatta.pdf

Competition Adjudication

The Thomastown Tidy Towns Committee wishes to thank individual helpers, various organisations and the Resident Associations for the hard work during our preparations for the annual TidyTowns Competition that starts on 1 June 2012. We anticipate that the Adjudicator will be here from about 6 June at the earliest and, of course, anytime from then on until the end of July.

So here we go into a period of regular sweeping and cleaning of our property facades, walls, pathways and pavements. For property owners who are planning to freshen up or repaint, there is still time to do it so please don’t wait. We hope that everyone will make a special effort during this period to keep litter off our streets, to keep weeds from the pavements, remove your own dog litter, bin your cigarette butts and for chewers of gum, Bin it Your Way, but bin it.

We hope to improve again this year but we need your co-operation during these critical weeks of the adjudication.

We wish to say a special word thanks the businesses who have responded positively to our recent appeal for funds to meet the cost of grass cutting, mowing and equipment repair. Our appeal is still valid and we hope others may still be able to help in some small way. Thank you all.

Kilkenny County Development Plan Review

Kilkenny Borough Council and Kilkenny County Council have commenced the review of the Kilkenny County Development Plan and Kilkenny City & Environs Development Plan.  

What is a Development Plan?                                                                    

The development plan is a blueprint for the planning and development of your area.  The plan states the authority's policies for land use and development management and promotion.  For example, it sets out where roads, water supplies, sewerage are to be provided and it zones land for particular purposes (housing, shopping, schools, factories etc.). This will affect what type of buildings can be constructed and the use to which land can be put. It affects many facets of daily economic and social life: where you can live, what services are available and where developments with job opportunities are to be sited. A new plan must be made every 6 years; the current plan is from 2008-2014. 

A public consultation period will be underway between the 15^th June and the 24^th August 2012 during which the public and other interested bodies are invited to make submissions.  A number of themed public meetings will be held during this time.  All are welcome to these events, and you, or other representatives of your organisation, would be particularly welcome. 

99 bottles ...

Actually it's nearly 500 bottles and they're about to be turned into a wall.  Stay tuned on the progress of our glass bottle wall at the bottle bank in the Supervalu parking lot!

Another successful Spring Clean Campaign!

We saw a reduction in rubbish from last year which means that people are littering less and caring for their community more.  Thanks to all the volunteers that turned up including a group of Scouts.  Also thanks to the Thomastown Paddlers who conducted a river bank clean.  Lets keep Thomastown tidy!

National Spring Clean in Thomastown

You are invited to join in the Annual Spring Clean operation organised by your Tidy Towns Committee.

We will be gathering in the Car Park on the Quay at 10.30 am on 31 March and again on each of the first three Saturdays in April starting on the 7th and ending on the 21st. You are very welcome to come with your own group of friends and we will allocate an appropriate task and area in which to operate for a maximum of two hours litter picking. The clean up will finish each day at 1 pm.

A detailed briefing for participants will be given before each days work.

Cleaning kits of bibs, gloves, bags and pickers will be available but you are advised to come in working clothes and, preferably, to bring your own gloves. Our fleet of litterbuggies (converted golf carts) will also be available to help make the task much easier. A first aid kit will be available.

We plan to finish the month’s activity with a barbecue at 1.30 pm on 21^st April in the area adjacent to the children’s playground on Marsh’s Street. More details will be published on this later.

All you have to do is to pitch up on the day or days you choose. We look forward to seeing you this year and hope that we will again see some new faces.

You can phone Colin on 0872186309 at any time.

Minutes of Annual General Meeting of the Thomastown Tidy Towns Committee

held in the Concert Hall, Marsh’s Street at 19h30 on Wednesday 22 February 2012

1. Present Action by

   Carol Whelan (CW)

   Colin Castle (CC) Chairperson

   Eileen O’Mahoney (EOM)

   Joe Doyle (JD) Treasurer

   Margaret Farrrell (MF)

   Rocky Stone (RS)

   Lisa Karkut (LK) Secretary

   Teresa Slattery

   Mairead Rohan (MH) (Guest Speaker)

   Sergeant Ted Hughes (Thomastown Garda)

   Caitriona O'Dea (Thomastown Garda)

   Noel Lindy (Thomastown Garda)

   Oscar Ryan (TCRT)

   Seamus Quigley (Community Hall)

   6 members of the Public

(Constitutional requirements fulfilled as over 1/3 of the committee members in attendance and the agenda was advertised 21 days prior to the meeting.)

2. Apologies. Frank Delahunty, Tom Treacy and John Landy.

3. Guest speaker – Mairead Rohan of CKLP. Ireland has a good reputation for effectively delivering Leader projects. The current program is expected to run until the end of 2014. Leader is available to help organizations like the Tidy Towns. There is an excessive amount of paperwork however, so generally projects under €1000 would not be considered. €200 000 is the absolute maximum. Approximately half of the €11.5 million has already been used/accounted for within Kilkenny. MH suggested that we should put forward any projects in the next 3-4 months in order to take advantage of the remaining funding. Leader operates on a first come first serve basis. Alternatively there may be an opportunity at the end of the program when the nationwide unspent monies will be pooled.. Applicants will have to move quickly to avail of these funds. Leader will sponsor 75% of the capital costs of a project meaning that 25% has to be provided by the applicant as well as bridging funds. For analysis and development projects 90% funding is available. There are 10 measures that a project may fall under in order to be considered (see attached).

4. Minutes of the previous AGM. Jim Maher, seconded by RS, proposed the acceptance of the 2011 minutes. Matters Arising from the Minutes of the previous AGM - TS has begun talking with local businesses who will continue to pursue the options of a Thomastown business forum/chamber.

5. Chairman’s Report. (See attached)

Special mention – Congratulations to EOM for her work at Castle Avenue Estate which has led to the formation of a Resident's Committee. Best of luck to Chairman Liam Burke and his team!

Congratulations to the Community Hall Management Committee and Seamus Quigley in particular, for their great work.

Thank-you - to our local litter pickers who contribute all year-round in keeping Thomastown and surrounding areas clean: Jim Maher, Catherine HIggins, Mandy Walsh and John Landy.

Thank-you - to Carmel Hynes & the FAS workers who have done a lot of hard work around town.

Comments – Sergeant Ted Hughes stated that the preparation of the cases regarding the vandalism that occurred on 1 July 2011 are nearing completion and the culprits will be brought before the Courts shortly.

Comments – JD, commenting on the unavailability of FAS workers for the Minogues Lane project, said that if FAS workers can work on the church grounds, which are private property, then they should be able to work on Minogues Lane! The Chairman agreed to follow up on this matter.

6. Treasurer’s Report. (See attached)

Comments – Due to government cut backs we will have to find about €2000 this year to cover the cost of materials needed by FAS employees to do their work. We are also aware of three other groups in Thomastown which are bidding for FAS services. This means we will have access to less of their time. We anticipate grant funding to be cut as well which means we will have to double our fundraising efforts. Jim Maher suggested that golf classic tournaments are a great way to raise money for charities. It requires a considerable amount of organization but having one major effort could be more effective than numerous small ones.

7. Election of Committee Members. Nine of ten members of the existing Committee agreed to stand for the next year. Frank Delahunty's position is open to a new committee member. Office bearers will be elected at the first meeting of the new Committee in March 2012. We are also always looking for “friends of Tidy Towns.”

8. Items from the Floor.

1. Dog fouling has been raised as a major problem in Thomastown. CC has been in contact with the

Kilkenny Environment Awareness Officer who has stated that it has become a widespread problem throughout the entire county and beyond. The council is about to launch a new campaign to encourage dog owners to clean up after their pets. Part of the problem is that there are only two dog wardens for all of Kilkenny and Carlow. CC suggests that the wardens do a licence sweep and inform dog owners of their responsibilities at the same time. Comments from the floor – New Ross has just put up new dog foul bins around town so this may be something for Thomastown to look into. Could we put up more signs?

2. Community Alert/Neighbourhood Watch - Sergeant Ted Hughes explained a new program that is currently underway. Thomastown has been broken into areas that have/will be assigned a Garda liaison. This Garda Officer will introduce him/herself to every resident in their given area and be made available to discuss any concerns. Sergeant Hughes is also happy to support anyone who decides to set up a neighbourhood watch. Comment from the floor that the most reassuring thing to see is Garda on the beat. Sergeant Hughes replied that there are insufficient resources to have Garda on the beat all the time but they do try to have a Garda presence on the weekends which has shown to be successful. There are four Garda reserve members (volunteers) which is as many as they can currently handle. Sergeant Hughes commended the work completed by the Tidy Towns and stated the Gardai's support for their efforts.

9. Next Meeting – February 2013.

CHAIRMANS REPORT FOR AGM 2012

FORMATION 27 Nov 2007

Committee – Started the year with 9 and gained one.

13 Meetings in 2011

3YP – Short, Medium and Long term plans for ourselves that are updated annually. It identifies

projects and their priorities. Anyone wishing to see the 3YP is very welcome. Mention four possibles, ie painting the toilets, landscaping the bottle bank at SuperValu, re-instating the walls on both sides of Minogues Lane in the area adjacent to St Marys School and the Upper Paddock..

Funding – Contributions from Residents - Church Gate Collection and Bag Packing

- Direct Donations

Contributions from Businesses - Collection Boxes

Happy Valley Festival - Proceeds from raffle ticket sales

KCC - Amenity Grant €1200

KCC - Litter Grant €602

KCC - Bottle Bank Grant €400

Government Cutbacks – A reduction in the number of Community Workers available has restricted our activities. The reduction in funds available this coming year will mean that in order to maintain the cleanliness and tidiness of the town we will have to find another €2000! There is also likely to be a reduction in some of the grants on which we have become dependent. Explain refuse bags and disposal of the litter collected viz-a-vis the Litter Grant, ie we pay for removal.

The old granite slabs from the Church steps have been donated to us for future use, probably on the Upper Paddock entrance walkway.

Projects

Grennan Castle View Point; Final Phase of grassing and plantings

Nore River Benches; Two additional footings in front of Mullins Castle

Litterbin repositioned at Mullins Castle

Moonteen Viewing and Picnic Area; Additional fencing and a viewing platform with information panels(mention planning process)

Newtown Terrace; repair of retaining wall and soil infill

Cloghabrody; Pedestrian footpath repaired and upgraded by KCC

Soup Kitchen Memorial; Stone cleaned

Maudlin Court Entrance; minor ground works to tidy up area of sign

Dangan Terrace junction kerb laid and tarred by KCC, Flower box made and placed

Mill St/ The Mall (Dr Drynan’s side) kerb tarred by KCC

Farm Gates within the 50km/h speed zone painted oxide green by the owners

Bicycle Racks ?

Low Street Alcove mosaic panels (millstones to come)

Christmas Window Competition. Successful outcome, 1st was Gorgeous, Karen Morgen and The Blackberry Café were runners up. 15 Highly Commended Certificates were awarded.

Leasing the Upper Paddock from KCC for biodiversity purposes.

Irelands Dirty Old Towns. We have shown the organisers some of the projects we would like to undertake and great interest has been shown in the potential of the Upper Paddock. Its too early for action in this respect and it will require an enormous involvement of the local community in terms of funding and physical work.

Landscaping

Arbor Day. Tree planting along the Inistioge road. Trees donated by KCC.

Baskets, Troughs and Beds, some sponsored and some cared for by local residents

Acknowledge donations from residents and a landscaper of trees, shrubs and plants.

Mention must be made of the vandalism that took place on 1 July 2011 which involved the upturning and damage to the mosaic planter and the destruction of a wooded tub and contents in Market Street. Court case has not yet been held.

Litter

KCC Grant of €602 is for the collection and disposal of litter throughout the year. We

received bags, gloves, bibs and pickers for general use and for the April Spring Clean. We have four volunteers who litter pick on a regular basis: Catherine, Mandy, Jim and John who do a marvellous job. During Adjudication (Jun to end Jul), Litter Hot Spots are allocated to Committee Members and other helpers. Spring Clean last year we had a total of 42 volunteers who collected 62 full bags of litter from the immediate area of Thomastown. Litter levels in Thomastown have dropped noticeably. The Bottle Bank which is emptied every Friday, is still being used by some people to dump rubbish and others are just leaving their bottles and cans, but we keep the KCC Enforcement Officer informed.

We will again take part in the Annual Spring Clean in April.

Castle Avenue Residents Organisation. A Committee now exists and much work has already been done by and in conjunction with KCC including; new parking bays, new arrangements for grass cutting, cleaning up and converting the old tarmac playground into a green area which may well be a good link to the Thomple, tree planting and a name stone for the Estate. We hope such success will spread to Mallfield and The Meadows. Well done to Liam Burke and his team. We urge other residents to take responsibility for their own areas as no one else is going to do it for them

Community Involvement. We have approached nine local Clubs and Organisations with a request that they get their members involved in some specific activities. At this point only the Scouts have responded.

We appeal to any groups that feel they could contribute to the general outlook of the town to come forward. We congratulate the Community Hall Management for the tremendous work done around the community centre. If only more groups were so proactive.

Small Works

Newtown Terrace Park wall power washed and repaired

Wildlife – Owl Boxes (No occupants yet!)

Bird Boxes St Mary’s School and Moonteen VA

Bat boxes (2) have been positioned along the Nore behind Murphys and Meylers.

Schools Green Flag – St Mary’s School which was awarded their first Green Flag early last year held the official Flag Raising Ceremony in November.

Heritage Trail – Map and brochure compiled but not yet published. Research and estimates for information boards continue.

Underground Cabling – Research for possible sponsors continues through liaison with other Towns that have had this done. Callan and Ballyragget are two.

Blogsite – This has been updated with a variety of photos showing our completed projects.

Community Services Employees (FAS) – most of the hard work done on projects has been carried out by FAS employees. Willing help and interested involvement.

Visit to the European Parliament in Brussels. We were invited to join a number of other groups on a two-day trip to Brussels, travel and accommodation costs included. We declined in the light of the present economic and financial situation in the country. Our suggestion for the funds saved to be given to us for local use fell on deaf ears!

Tidy Towns Competition –

ENTERED THE COMPETITION IN 2008 – BEST NEW ENTRY – OUR SCORE - 217

IN 2009 - OUR SCORE - 225

IN 2010 - OUR SCORE - 237

IN 2011 - OUR SCORE - 245

ALTHOUGH THE COMPETITION IS AN INCENTIVE (IT IS A SOURCE OF FUNDS FOR WINNING ONE OR SEVERAL OF THE PRIZES ON OFFER) OUR MISSION WAS AND STILL IS MAKING THOMASTOWN ‘A TOWN OF WHICH THE RESIDENTS ARE PROUD AND WHICH OFFERS VISITORS AN ATTRACTIVE, INFORMATIVE AND ENTERTAINING STOPOVER’. WE ARE NOT ENTERTAINERS BUT IF WE CAN KEEP OUR ENVIRONS IN GOOD ORDER, ATTRACTIVE AND INVITING, VISITORS CERTAINLY WILL BE DRAWN TO OUR PLACES OF ENTERTAINMENT.

WE LIKE TO THINK THAT WE HAVE ACHIEVED THIS IS IN SOME MEASURE.

C J Castle

Chairman

Call out for empty wine bottles

The Tidy Towns committee is about to begin an exciting new landscaping feature using empty wine bottles. Anyone who would like to make a donation of wine bottles is asked to contact us at thomastowntidytowns@gmail.com.

Did you know ... Recycling one glass jar saves enough energy to light a light bulb for 4 hours!

Notice of Meeting

The Annual General Meeting of the Thomastown Tidy Towns Committee will take place in the Concert Hall, Marsh's Street, Thomastown at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, 22 February 2012.

AGENDA

1. WELCOME, INTRODUCTION OF MEMBERS AND OPENING ADDRESS

2. APOLOGIES

3. GUEST SPEAKER – Mairead Rohan of CKLP

4. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

5. CHAIRMAN’S REPORT

6. TREASURER’S REPORT

7. ELECTION OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS (NOT OFFICE BEARERS)

8. ITEMS SUBMITTED BY RESIDENTS FOR INCLUSION BY 15 FEBRUARY 2012

AGM February 22nd, 7:30pm

Thomastown Tidy Towns will be holding its Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, 22 February at 7.30pm in the Concert Hall, Marsh’s Street, Thomastown.

Residents are invited to attend this meeting at which there will be a Guest Speaker from The Kilkenny Leader Partnership who will give us a short talk on the relationship between KLP and Tidy Towns Committees in the County. The Chairpersons report for 2011 will give details of what the Committee has achieved in the past year and a display of photographs will be on view. The Committee is very anxious to hear from Residents about things that have, have not or could be done for the benefit of Thomastown. Your ideas and suggestions will be most welcome.

If you wish to have an item included on the Agenda please send details by email to Thomastowntidytowns@gmail.com before 15 February 2012.

This is an opportunity for us to communicate with you and vice versa so please do your best to leave a space in your diary for 22 February.

Christmas Window Competition winners!

Article from Kilkenny People.

Congratulations to the winners of the Christmas window competition! First place went to Gorgeous and runners up were Karen Morgan and The Blackberry Café. Fifteen Highly Commended certificates were also awarded. Thank-you to all of the local businesses who helped make our town beautifully festive for the holiday season!