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OVERALL DEVELOPMENTAL APPROACH
Following its welcome return to the competition last year, this year
Clonroche has made dramatic strides in projecting itself as a
pleasant and worthwhile stopping-place on the busy route from
Enniscorthy to New Ross. There are indications of widespread
community involvement, from enhanced litter management to your
success in creating the Millennium Park. This is a very tangible and
significant manifestation of collective, community support and involvement.
Because of its situation, on a busy roadway, it is highly desirable
to create a clear-cut division between the surrounding, rural area
and the village itself. On the Enniscorthy side, this is provided by
the positioning of the speed limit signs, the town nameplate and the
manner in which the road verge widens at the Glanbia plant. A similar
clear-cut division should be worked towards at the New Ross entrance.
THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT
The centre does not have an obvious focal point but is equipped with
a number of attractive houses and a significantly sized and located
mercantile premises. Tectors House and Clochean are both visually
important, as is the sizeable Wexford Trading Centre which features
pleasant trees in its cobblelock foreground. The sizeable Community
Centre is very well set off by the new Millennium Park opposite.
LANDSCAPING
Pride of place must go to the delightful and spectacularly successful
Millennium Park. In terms of layout, design, selection of plants and
even the pagoda-like gateway it is a triumph. The seating, the
meandering pathway, the very well presented grass and the wide
selection of shrubs all contribute to a delightful and worthwhile
millennium project. The timber planter at the Recycle for Life
installation was appropriate, but would benefit from even more full
planting. Throughout the centre hedgerows were neat and well
presented, with substantial numbers of trees contributing to an
overall greening of the village.
WILDLIFE AND NATURAL AMENITIES
The school grounds, the new Millennium Park and the Canon Murphy
housing estate offer ample opportunities for the development of
suitable wildlife habitats. This element of tidy towns activity can
best be advanced by seeking the services of a local enthusiast or by
speaking with the Wildlife Ranger attached to Dflchas - The Heritage
Service. A programme of activities designed to heighten awareness and
appreciation of birds and wildlife generally has been found to be
materially beneficial in a social context also.
LITTER CONTROL
Litter management continues at a high order and all are applauded for
the standard achieved. The school grounds were free of litter while
sensible sized and designed litterbins were much in evidence in the
Millennium Park. Litterbins were also noted in the Post Office area.
Some litter was observed along the street in some locations, so
continued vigilance is called for.
TIDINESS
Because of the volume of through traffic and the tendency to park
cars in a fairly random fashion, it is perhaps more difficult to
project a sense of order and neatness. Some spoil has been allowed to
accumulate between the road and pavement although generally roads
were well swept. The Recycle for Life installation opposite the
Community Centre seemed well used and respected. A number of tired
and in some cases obsolete - plastic signs need attention.
Their owners should be encouraged to upgrade or remove as
appropriate. The large premises of Sean Flood would benefit from a
repainting of the gates and a general tidy-up of the frontage facing
the road.
RESIDENTIAL AREAS
Individual houses, in many cases, featured delightful gardens where a
high standard was achieved. Canon Murphy Park was very well presented
with individual houses achieving a very high standard. The nameplate
was well presented and work was in progress on the grassed areas on
the day of adjudication. A large container seemed to be very much out
of position and a more appropriate site for it might be found. More
robust and sizeable shrubs might be considered more appropriate for
the foreground to the estate. Planters which are small and sparsely
filled are best avoided in these locations and whenever possible,
ground planting is to be preferred.
ROADS, STREETS AND BACK AREAS
Roads generally were well presented, recently swept and neat. At
times there was not a clear division between the road as such and the
foreground of commercial premises, which in some cases, contributed
to an absence of a sense of order. Moving towards New Ross, behind
the pleasant tree planting a small number of horizontal concrete
railings need replacement. In the absence of speedy replacement,
there is an accelerating tendency for others to suffer a similar fate.
GENERAL IMPRESSION
Clonroche, in only its second year in the competition, has made
dramatic and worthwhile strides. Some individual difficulties remain,
but with a continuation of the same level of community involvement
and co-operation the centre can continue to thrive and improve, to
the overall betterment of its citizens.
OVERALL COUNTY WEXFORD
Category 'B'
|
Town |
1999 Mark |
Percentage |
|
Ballymurn |
222 |
74.0 |
|
Blackwater |
220 |
73.3 |
|
Kilmore Quay |
214 |
72.3 |
|
Ballycanew |
208 |
69.3 |
|
Rosslare |
193 |
64.3 |
|
Clonroche |
186 |
62.0 |
|
Camolin |
185 |
61.7 |
|
Oylgate |
179 |
59.7 |
|
Taghmon |
174 |
58.0 |
|
Duncannon |
170 |
56.7 |
1998 Report
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