Eyeries eyes are smiling
Hugh O’Neill, chairman of the Eyeries Tidy Towns Committee in Co Cork said he was “flabbergasted” after Eyeries was named overall winner of Ireland’s Best Kept Towns at a ceremony in Belfast yesterday.
“We never thought in our wildest dreams that we’d get both the best kept village award and overall award.
“We just can’t believe it, even though we’ve put a lot of effort in over the last 30 years.”
Locals have a rota system in place to keep the village spotless, and grass verges on the approaches to Eyeries are cut every week.
The village is also known as one of the most brightly-painted in the country and has been the setting for a number of films and dramas, including Falling for a Dancer.
Mr O’Neill said the €5,000 first prize would “come in very handy”.
“It’s manna from heaven. We didn’t know where we were going to get the money to build a small footbridge over the river and a picnic area which we had planned. “
Local county councillor Jerry Sullivan said great credit was due to the small community.
“All ages are involved and they make sure they pick up litter every day. They have done well in Tidy Towns competitions before winning several medals, but this is a fantastic achievement.
“I hope it will attract more tourists to the village and even more film-makers. We are also hoping to get green flag recognition for our local strand, which would be another boost.”
Broughshane, Co Antrim, won the Best Kept Small Town category, Westport, Co Mayo was the Best Kept Large Town, while Coleraine, Co Derry, won the Best Kept Large Urban Centre category.
The competition was sponsored by Supervalu.
