Village moves step closer to winning top award

THE chances of a small Co Cork village winning a prestigious European competition took a giant step closer last weekend when the head of an 11-man adjudicating panel said he and his colleagues were “very impressed” with what they saw.

Coolagown, near Fermoy, was in pristine condition last Saturday when a jury from European Entente Florale dropped in to see its colourful and imaginative display of flowers and sculptures, including a magnificent “Green Dragon” made out of 1,000 recycled cans.

Clive Addison, the chairwoman of the European Entente Florale, spent four hours touring the village, which is proud of its eco-friendly credentials.

Mr Addison said: “We could see straight away this is a village well-loved by the community. We were very impressed with the community spirit and could see this was a year-round effort in making it look beautiful.”

The jury is made up of 11 members from the other European states taking part and Coolagown is the Irish entrant in the small villages section.

The visit commenced with the raising of the European Entente Florale flag by Mr Addison, followed by an audio-visual presentation on Coolagown and its environs.

The jury then spent the remainder of the day viewing the village and the many landscaping projects implemented by the Coolagown Development Group over the last 20 years. They also saw extensive planting of both perennials and seasonal shrubs and flowers.

John Feeney, chairman of the local development group, said it was an honour to represent Ireland in the village category in this year’s competition.

“Many months of planning and hard work have been put in by members of the development group, we have also received great support from the local community,” Mr Feeney said.

He also recognised the valuable contribution of the local Community Services Fás Group, under the leadership of supervisor Breeda McCarthy and Assumpta Mangan.

The children of Kilmagner National School, which was recently awarded Green Flag status, were keen to play their part in ensuring the village looked tidy. They were also involved in the design of the village’s Green Dragon, adjacent to the village’s 21st-century underground recycling facility.

The village is no stranger to success having won three gold medals in the National Tidy Towns Competition in 2008, 2009, 2010, and the prestigious Green Community Award for 2011 for its Waste Minimisation Project.

The winner of the European Entente Florale award will be announced in Slovenia in mid- September.