Meet the Tidy Towns volunteers setting high standards in Kanturk 

AT the meeting of the Allow and Dallau rivers sits the town of Kanturk in North Cork. Keeping this heritage town spotless is the willing and able local Tidy Towns group.

Secretary Mary Corbett and Chairperson Eddie Walsh showed me around. The Community Council was formed in 1986 with the tidy towns being an off shoot.

As with all the groups I have met over the summer, in recent years the group has embraced a new energy and a new sense of purpose.

Kanturk Tidy Towns has a core group of 25, with other volunteers maintaining the high standards around the town as the need arises.

From the moment you enter, you are greeted by beautiful flower baskets, hanging baskets bursting with colour, and spotless streets. There is a stunning mix of classic gardening, with roses in full bloom, and areas that are embracing the ethos of rewilding and biodiversity.

The town’s three main parks are a joy to spend time in, with the community at the core of all the endeavours.

‘Tidy Tuesdays’ are when the group meet, with the plan for the evening made in a WhatsApp discussion the evening before. Mary says there is no pressure on anyone to feel that they must always attend.

“Whether it’s one hour per week, per month, or even per year, all help is appreciated, and everyone is welcome,” she says.

The first park is Greenane Park, sponsored by Kanturk Credit Union. With its looped walkway, there are an abundance of happy bees and butterflies, with a hedge, and apple, pear and plum trees lining the route. Walnut and ash trees were this year’s addition and, with the river running alongside, it is nature in harmony.

Eddie tells me the pride they have for their town keeps them motivated. The other tidy towns members we meet along our walk agree. 

“I love seeing the place so clean,” one lady says, “and its good to give back to the community.”

Business owners have a huge appreciation for the work being done, and whether it’s the Daily Grind, O Riordan’s, café Bia or Yum café, tea and scones are regularly supplied for the Tidy Tuesday gang as they tend to the town. Last year’s Christmas party was sponsored by local Chinese restaurant, Four Seasons.

Our next stop is at the town park. Again spotlessly clean and so attractive as you walk over a metal bridge with a freshly painted Tierney Crest and the roses at the gate to greet you.

A huge green area with a corner dedicated to the memory of local Jimmy O’Keeffe is freshly painted by volunteer Kevin Howe, with a plaque that reads ‘Today is the tomorrow we worried about yesterday, and all is well’. The central flower display is full of pollinator plants and the playground, funded by the IRD, is beautifully kept. A swift box reaches high into the air, inviting birds to make this park their home.

Not a speck of litter is to be seen as we walk along the riverbank and admire the ducks and herons.

Our last port of call is the hugely impressive Unity Park on O’Brien Street, opened by then President, Mary McAleese in 1998. Here you can see how the group has honoured the achievements of local people and embraced and encouraged the new arrivals to their town. Poetry and prose from the local arts festival adorn the walls for all to read and appreciate.

A monument to local man Don O’Reilly, who won gold at the Special Olympics in 2007, has pride of place in the garden. The Unity monument in honour of the peace agreement in the North welcomes you with a piece of prose from local man John Dillon.

Across the pretty ornamental bridge, made using local stone, you are wowed by the magnificent weeping willows that offer shade over benches, so the visitor can sit, relax and reflect. Elegant stone seats are clean and inviting and the extraordinary sculptures created by two Lithuanian residents are a triumph.

These sculptures, in association with Creative Ireland, were made using old bottle tops and other recycled materials. Halloween will see displays from local children, and at Christmas this park will come alive with colour and cheer.

All over town, trees - whether it’s the walnut, silver birch, weeping willows, or the majestic American oaks - are labelled, as are the plants and fruit trees, so we can all learn a little as we use these beautiful facilities.

With the help of the local men’s shed and the council, there are big plans for a looped walk and a display in honour of their name, Ceann Toirc, the ‘boars head’, while across the road from the magnificent Kanturk Castle, repairs on the 100-year-old sandstone walls are ongoing.

The history of the town can be enjoyed as you walk about by scanning QR codes dotted on historic buildings.

Every year, the points go up in the Tidy Towns competition for the Kanturk group and it is hardly surprising. Their forward-thinking regarding sustainability and upcycling, and making the most of their beautiful surroundings is bound to impress not just judges, but visitors too.