“A country which prefers guns to flowers will live the beauty of the flowers only in its graveyards!” – Quote by Turkish author Mehmet Murat ildan.
Tipperary County Council under the leadership of Mr Joe MacGrath (Chief Executive), through its Community and Economic Development Section, maintain they continually strive to provide a place where its people can enjoy a ‘great quality of life’, ‘Fairness’, ‘Co-Operation’, ‘Communication’, ‘Teamwork’, ‘Partnership’ and ‘Collaboration’.
Health & Safety Ignored
But, when the local residents sought a little financial funding to improve a set of steps leading up into the Moyne Road / Bellevue Housing Estate on a long established ‘right of way’, District Director Mr Matt Shortt(Director of Services, Director of Roads, Transportation and Health and Safety, for the Templemore / Thurles Municipal Council.) had other notions and made a decision to block all future access via this right of way, proving, not for the first time, that ‘verbal agreements are not worth the paper they are written on‘.
Fearful for pedestrians rushing out onto the nearby roadway, Mr Shortt sanctioned the building of a wall across the residents right of way, ignoring the fact that briar’s and uncontrolled, hanging, ivy (see Video) currently remain, forcing pedestrians unto a nearby stretch of road with no footpath. So much for Health & Safety.
Fifty-Eight Years Crying Out For A Coat Of Paint.
The costs of a double grave site in St. Patrick’s cemetery, together with the opening of a grave, especially on weekends, and later the granting of a ‘planning permit’ to erect your headstone (latter permit currently costing €90.00), sees little change out of €2,000.00, when loved one’s finish tidying their grave site.
Most especially in Spring, Summer and Autumn, you will find more footfall in St. Patrick’s cemetery of an evening, than in Liberty Square, Thurles. Grave sites are meticulously maintained by family and friends, through the introduction of floral arrangements, shrubs and planted containers.
So, the very least one would expect to see, is a can of paint being splashed about on entry gates and on existing seating, courtesy of Tipperary Co. Council, to justify their annual revenues collected. Here again is ample evidence of money wasting by Tipperary County Council. Several thousand Euro in payments for new gates will now have to be found, purely because rusty iron work has not been painted since 1961, well over half a century ago (58 Years).
Of course, this will result in grave prices increasing in the future and as usual in their annual accounts a JCB will be claimed in full, showing financial losses of €120,000. Note, Tipperary County Council’s digger works daily everywhere in the Templemore / Thurles Municipal District and is not any more solely for use in St. Patrick’s Cemetery, or indeed was it ever.
This also begs the question; how can they use a digger in the centre of the graveyard? Most grave kerbs are less than 5cm (2ins – See Video) apart, with no access to transport any digger between the gravestones.
Note also, the last person to sweep outside of St. Patrick’s Cemetery gates, in the last 58 years, was the wind.
Currently, weather is eroding earthen banks unto walkways. Wreaths from graves are being dumped in the open, as are the mounds of loose earth, rocks and abandoned path edging kerb stones.
Here is where we should be planting vast swathes of wild flowers, on vast vacant land, instead of wasting money in weekly grass cutting.
It remains a source of great wonder, that politicians and elected councillors, all who have attended funerals in St Patrick’s Cemetery, over the past 40 years; have failed to notice this unforgivable neglect by Tipperary environmental officialdom, turning our graveyard into a place for the disposal of waste; turning it into no better than a common dump.
So, it’s a certainty; An Post is moving to the shopping centre for definite; that’s despite the intervention from the most powerful in our community; namely the politicians, local councillors, those who would like to be local councillors and politicians and a disorientated, dying, Chamber of Commerce, all intent on riding a dead horse.
Together, however, they did have some success; mainly driving home a wedge; dividing Thurles town into two sections, instead of working to improve Liberty Square and Thurles Town as a single unit.
One wonders if the current 127 workers plus business proprietors / owners in the Thurles Shopping Centre, will now be rushing out to an upcoming local election, to vote for party’s like Fianna Fáil or the ‘Party of Protest’ (The Bully Party) and certain Independent representatives, all who attempted to directly affect very limited, local, yet available employment.
The Dead Horse Theory
The efforts undertaken by the “Save Our Square”[S.O.S.] committee had all the hallmarks of the “Dead Horse Theory”, so often attempted by Government TD’s and Local Councillors. Indeed, the tribal wisdom of the Dakota Indians, which has been passed down from generation to generation, clearly states, “When you discover that you are riding a dead horse the best strategy is to immediately dismount”.
Ignoring the fact that Tipperary County Council, of which many of the S.O.S. committee are card carriers; same are solely responsible for the decline of Thurles town centre and other towns in Co. Tipperary, through the introduction of Parking Charges. Again, ignoring this logical, simple fact the “Save Our Square” committee choose to attempt a new strategy in their dealings with An Post, the now dead horse:-
(1) They bought a stronger whip. (2) Changed Riders. (3) Threatened the dead horse with termination. (4) Appointed a committee to study the horse. (5) Discussed the feasibility of sending councillors to foreign countries to see how other riders rode their dead horses. (6) Provided further additional funding to improve the dead horse’s performance through the introduction of a dodgy “Dead Horse acquisition and refurbishment fund”.
Now, with election votes dangerously reduced, this dead horse is most likely to be promoted to a supervisory post, enabling it to hire a replacement horse.
The solution to the Thurles town centre decline, which will correct this imbalance, is simple; call a halt to the payment of parking charges, before yet more businesses are forced out of our town centre.
Tipperary Co. Council built six social houses at Cabragh, Thurles, at a cost of some €370 thousand Euro each. We saw recently the Peter McVerry Trust acquiring 25 social houses for €5million through a generous donation made by the Dublin Capuchin Day Centre. Do your arithmetic folks; €5 million divided by 25 = €2 hundred thousand Euro. These units were purchased in Dublin and Kildare (the most expensive accommodation areas in Ireland). It is my opinion that Tipperary Co. Council are simply burning taxpayer’s money and frankly do not need parking charges to fund local government.
“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” – St. Mark Chapter 4. Verse 9.
More advice for ailing Local Councillors and Politicians in our next news bulletin.
Ground works at S.T.G.H., showing the positioning of the new, welcome 40 Bed Modular Unit; as it looked back in early February of this year.
Mr Lowry stated, “I am pleased to confirm that work on the new 40 Bed Modular Unit at S.T.G.H. is running to schedule.
The new building is now fully erected on site. The works are ongoing. The contractors require another 14 weeks to install floors, fixtures, fittings and ancillary works; including the completion of forecourt paving and landscaping around the building. Internally each room has to be partitioned and fitted with a toilet, basin and shower. Heating and lighting has also to be fixed.”
We understand this two storey building which will have 40 ensuite single rooms will be ready for handover to the HSE in August. In the meantime, the capital funds, already allocated, will be used to source and purchase the equipment and medical devices to service this new unit.
Deputy Lowry continued, “Last Friday I walked through the new building. It is really very impressive. I am delighted with progress. It is a new concept, the first of its kind in Ireland. On my visit to the site on Friday, I met with the Chief Executive of the H.S.E. South/South East and with the Hospital Manager. Both are totally committed and eagerly anticipating the opening of this exceptional new facility.
The H.S.E. has also confirmed to me and the Hospital Manager that the necessary funds to staff and open the Unit, are available.
The Director of Human Resources, with the approval of the H.S.E. has already commenced a campaign at home and abroad for additional personnel. Interviews for some employment positions have already been held and panels now established. The New Unit will be open and available to patients towards the end of this year.
This fantastic, state of the art facility is well on the way to delivery. I am determined to see it through to conclusion”, Deputy Lowry concluded.
Tipperary Independent TD Mr Michael Lowry has confirmed that he has had discussions with Minister Richard Bruton yesterday, with regard to the decision by An Post, to re-locate Thurles Post Office.
Deputy Lowry stated, “I was adamant that it was not a sustainable position for the Chairman and Chief Executive of An Post to refuse my previous request for a direct meeting with their two most senior personnel in that company, latter who are directly responsible for the delivery of policy and implementation relating to company decisions.
I have now been advised by the Minister’s Office and An Post that the Chairman and Chief Executive, have both agreed to meet with myself and my four Oireachtas colleagues, next week.”
The Deputy concluded by saying that he welcomed this opportunity to debate fully this grossly unpopular decision, effecting Thurles town centre, introduced by An Post; while also gleaning a detailed explanation as to the reasons why this decision was taken in the first place and if at all possible, to try to find a compromise in this ongoing debacle.
“If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government, then you are doomed to live under the rule of fools.”
[From a quote attributed to the Greek philosopherPlato.
Picture (1)Erin Foods closed in June 2008. Picture (2) Thurles.ie no longer exists on line. Picture (3) Disk Parking hasn’t existed for years. Picture (4) North Tipperary Co. Council ceased to exist in 2014.
It’s a local election year. We know this because new signage shown hereunder has now been unveiled to local sitting Councillors, who met yesterday to formally give their ‘sign of approval’ to the project.
On highlighting this issue, the public realised the 11 years of sheer neglect by our Templemore / Thurles Municipal District councillors, and a brief consultation process was recently began for the redesign of new insignia for Thurles.
This announcement, some 11 year too late, was announced on Tipp FM radio yesterday, mainly driven by the need to highlight individuals and party members, all wishing to ingratiate themselves to voters, prior to the upcoming Local Elections on Friday May 24th next.
This proposed re-branding was revealed by Ms Caroline Nesbitt of “Designedly”, at a recent Municipal District Council meeting. The simple design shows leaves attached to a branch, latter a continuation of the letter T and includes pictures and text noting the different facets of life in our town, e.g. sport, theatre, education and business.
We note the picture specifically highlighting ‘Culture’, namely ‘The Source’ building, was wisely taken at night, thus hiding its ongoing ground floor shabbiness and heavily featured graffiti, not to mention the unkempt overgrown river forefront. Nice job; good exposure.
Disappointingly, we note that while Thurles is more often referred to, (with some pride I hasten to add), as the “Cathedral Town”, no Cathedral building appears to feature in anything we have viewed. [Then again is not our small nation ruled over by decidedly unchristian officialdom?]
As well as a tree branch and photographs, this new signage also includes the phrase “Fan Tamall linn” meaning “Dwell Awhile”, no mention of the failed, Tipperary –The Place – The Time.
www.thurles.ie
One small fact however, the website shown on this new signage, namely www.thurles.ie, has so far not been activated for well over 6 years, due to the failure to pay for the cost of the ‘Host Name’, (About €12.00 per annum) Now, because of this failure, it was sold; before being purchased as a Swedish Casino site, by Mardukas Technologies Limited; latter who then cybersquatted on the host name, informing all Thurles visitors and local viewers that they could “Vi guidar dig till de bästa casinobonusarna” which when translated means, “We will guide you to the best casino bonuses.”
The Real Reason for Hikes In Tipperary Property Tax
We are not aware of exactly how much tax payer’s money was wasted in any buy-back arrangement with Mardukas Technologies Limited, for the site ‘thurles.ie’. We are aware however that the site, together with the build and administration costs, over the years prior to the purchase by Mardukas, exceeded well in excess of €10,000.
Two Questions; (1) Was the site content deleted when the new purchasers took possession?(2)Was the site ever backed up by Tipp Co.Co.? If No is the answer to both questions, expect another hike in your property tax this year.
Hopefully, those resident in Thurles will also get the opportunity to formally give their ‘sign of approval’ to this new signage, in the interest of public consultation you understand; guaranteed by Tipperary Co. Council and our local elected representatives. After all councillors have confirmed that same was paid for by that recent increase in our property tax.
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