McManus offers cash incentive in clean-up campaign

TWELVE neighbourhoods in Limerick City which have entered the Tidy Towns 2011 competition have been given a huge incentive from a charitable foundation.

Philanthropist JP McManus has joined forces with Limerick City Council in promoting a cleaner city through special cash prizes.

Some of the money will also be given to areas which have not entered the Tidy Towns to help them clean up their neighbourhoods.

The clean-up campaign resulted from talks between Limerick City Council and the JP McManus charitable foundation.

Mr McManus said: “We want to start small, and work up. This is about tidying up the neighbourhoods and the city generally and giving people a bit of help and encouragement to make good things happen.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day, but I hope we’ll get there with this over time,” he added.

“Have a look again in 12 months time and tell us if things are better. There are great communities out there and all they want is to do good. They never get much praise but they have huge pride in our city.

“There is already a lot being done at the moment. I’ve only started to realise that.

“But, hopefully, this will help to get the message out even more. Let’s get Limerick back to where we’d like it to be. The people of Limerick want to see a clean, thriving city.”

Mayor Jim Long welcomed the foundation’s support.

“It is bound to be a further incentive for people to take greater pride in their own areas through helping keep their neighbourhoods clear of litter and eyesores,” he said.

Dermot Nestor, who is involved in community activities in Caherdavin, said the initiative was one of the best things that ever happened in the city.

“It’s going to help bring the city back to the way it was when I first arrived. It’s going to come back to full bloom now.”