All About Cork: Ballincollig set their sights on retaining Tidy Towns honours

Volunteers from Ballincollig Tidy Towns (BTT) were out in their high-vis jackets on Sunday morning just the same as they are every weekend, but perhaps they got a little more notice than usual.

“There are a lot of people beeping their car horns and coming over to congratulate us,” volunteer Mary Meaney said.

“It’s very nice to see that bit of appreciation for all our hard work.”

Last Friday, at a ceremony in Croke Park, Ballincollig was awarded Ireland’s Tidiest Town 2024 in the TidyTowns awards, and was also named Ireland’s Tidiest Large Urban Centre, earning its 12th gold medal in the competition. The Village has twice finished in second place in the competition, in 2018 and again last year.

Ms Meaney, who founded Pat’s Little Free Library in Ballincollig’s Regional Park in memory of her late husband, Pat, said several people had approached her on Sunday morning to say well done.

As she spoke to The Echo, former councillor Derry Canty called over for a chat. He recalled that he had been at the earliest meetings with BTT chairman Tom Butler: “We thought, the two of us, the only two to turn up, were we going off our game trying to organise it?

“But look, it’s paid off, and fair play to everyone, ‘tis a great achievement, because morning, noon and night they’re out,” Mr Canty said.

More than two dozen volunteers worked in several estates, along the pavements, and in the Regional Park until just after midday, and then they repaired for refreshments, as they do every weekend, to The Plaza Bistro, where a literal red carpet - on loan from Scoil Barra - had been rolled out for them.

Mary Tekinkus, proprietor of The Plaza, said the volunteers had been working “for 25 years, 52 weeks of the year, that’s 1,300 weeks.

“You have Jacqueline Cullinane, who recently celebrated her 90th birthday, Maureen Holden, Kitty O’Callaghan, they’re such an inspiring group.” BTT committee member and volunteer, Fine Gael councillor and election candidate Garret Kelleher said it had been a very poignant coincidence that Ballincollig had won its award on the second anniversary of the passing of BTT stalwart Tony Whelan.

“We’ve all been thinking, especially over the past few days, of Tony and his enormous contribution,” Mr Kelleher said.

Tom Butler, who has been BTT chairman for the past 25 years, said it had been a rollercoaster since the win on Friday, and the full meaning of the win was only starting to sink in.

“To win the All-Ireland in Croke Park, to win the county, the regional, the large urban centre, plus our 12th gold medal, it’s just incredible, and over the weekend we can see what it actually means to the community, from the feedback and the comments and the beautiful remarks from people,” Mr Butler said.

“There’s great pride in our community and we’re just honoured to have the All-Ireland in Ballincollig.”

Joining the volunteers for refreshments were several Transition Year students from Gael Choláiste Choilm, Coláiste Choilm, and Ballincollig Community School.

“We’re so lucky to have these fantastic young people onboard, and everybody who is helping out,” Mr Butler said.

“We’re planning for 2025 already.”

Have Ballincollig news to share? Contact Donal.okeeffe@theecho.ie