2024 Adjudication Report Mark 48 out of 60
Murroe looked lovely when we visited on a sunny June evening. The centre of the village is particularly attractive with its distinctive triangular space with mature trees, trimmed grass, and striking Celtic cross structure. There are some lovely heritage buildings in the village such as the Garda Station, the lovely natural stone Church of the Holy Rosary, the Forge and the Assizes building. We would like to commend your committee for adding small signs with QR codes to these structures (and which link to information sources on the tidy towns website) - as they provide a wonderful resource for residents and visitors. Have you considered producing an overall map for display in the village that highlights the existence of the heritage trail (and the QR codes)? Please let us know next year. We were also impressed by the appearance of commercial buildings such as the Sean English’s Shop, the Valley Inn, Munchies, Murroe Pharmacy, the Spar, Reale Butchers, the Post Office, the Murroe Kitchen and Daydreams (in the Meadow estate). Community buildings also looked great with the upgraded Muintir na Tire hall looking very well and Scoil Mhuire (with green flag proudly flying) also looked smart in its fresh coat of paint. The murals on this building are particularly eye-catching. Well done to your committee for sprucing up the old Butcher Shop and the (old) Post Office Building – as they looked nice. However, it is disappointing to hear that there are vacant commercial premises and apartments in Murroe. If these vacancies are persisting, we recommend that you raise the matter with Limerick City and County Council as it is a current government priority to ensure the restoration, refurbishment and reuse of properties in all of our towns and villages as a means of addressing the national accommodation shortage. The Council have a range of measures to deal with persistent vacancy so they should be made aware of the problem and asked to take urgent action on it. We note from your entry form that the hall has enjoyed an upgrade over the past year with new windows and external doors being fitted and a new fire detection, fire alarm and emergency lighting system installed. We'd like to thank you for the update on Murroe Wood Park and it is hoped that the works to the building and entrance can be completed soon. It was only possible to view the site from a distance during our visit as access was restricted due to the presence of construction fencing.
2023 Adjudication Report Mark 46 out of 60
Murroe is fortunate to have so many historical buildings within its environs, residential, commercial & community. As has been referenced in many reports over the years, the replica Celtic Cross “The Monument” has quite the visual impact on the arriving visitor especially as there are no distractions. The spectacular copper beech trees located close by lends it gravitas. Your adjudicator has a grá for the old agricultural buildings & the old forge with its horseshoe profiled door & sandstone walls is a delight although it was not possible to locate the plaque. As it is a working yard, machinery was parked close by & perhaps it was located there. There was a Heritage Council GLAS Traditional Farm Buildings grant scheme last year for the conservation of old buildings that served agricultural purposes in the past. The owner may be interested if funding could be ring fenced for a restoration. The Muintir na Tire Hall was looking resplendent on adjudication day with its newly painted façade – the three colour combination is very attractive. A coordinated colour palette with the building & bollards will in time complete a picture perfect vista. The old Butcher’s Shop with its facelift & window mural is a delight. Whoever makes the decision on colour palettes has a great artistic eye.
The old Post office was looking very smart with its lovely Kelly green windows & lovely to see the old post box sparkling in green & gold. Are there future plans for this building? The seating at the grotto in the Church grounds creates a lovely oasis of calm for those who wish to enjoy some tranquility.
Rua Restaurant was very well presented with an arresting colour combination. The Credit Union & Spar buildings were smart in their appearance. The National School is quite striking with its wall featuring murals of local scenes. With regard to derelict buildings, it was heartening to see planning sought for the vacant Daybreak premises to reuse it as a childcare facility. Now that Limerick City & County Council are actively involved in tackling dereliction it may encourage property owners to upgrade the buildings or dispose of them. The other option left to them of compulsory acquisition may be less palatable. Next year, do include an update on buildings that are vacant or 47 37 57 17 37 33 Tidy Towns Competition 2023 Adjudication Report Centre: County: Category: Ref: Mark: Date(s): 320 Maximum Mark Community – Your Planning and Involvement Streetscape & Public Places Green Spaces and Landscaping Nature and Biodiversity in your Locality Sustainability – Doing more with less Tidiness and Litter Control Residential Streets & Housing Areas Approach Roads, Streets & Lanes 80 80 80 55 55 90 55 55 45 45 46 35 16 56 36 32 311 Mark Awarded 2022 TOTAL MARK 550 320 Community – Your Planning and Involvement / An Pobal - Pleanáil agus Rannpháirtíocht: Streetscape & Public Places / Sráid-Dreach & Áiteanna Poiblí: Mark Awarded 2023 03/06/2023 were smart in their appearance. The National School is quite striking with its wall featuring murals of local scenes. With regard to derelict buildings, it was heartening to see planning sought for the vacant Daybreak premises to reuse it as a childcare facility. Now that Limerick City & County Council are actively involved in tackling dereliction it may encourage property owners to upgrade the buildings or dispose of them. The other option left to them of compulsory acquisition may be less palatable. Next year, do include an update on buildings that are vacant or derelict.
Murroe is very fortunate to have lovely old stonewalls through the village. It is then quite obvious when block walls break the seamless vista & it does detract from the streetscape.
The Murroe Wood Park is quite the achievement for the whole community & what an amazing selection of activities to avail of when visiting. The completion of the Hub this year & hopefully the landscaping of the entrance will impact in a positive way on the streetscape. Your adjudicator could not locate signposting for the Park within the village & it took quite some time to locate the entrance. It would be interesting to see if this is the experience of other new visitors. Perhaps your adjudicator is location challenged.
2022 Adjudication Report Mark 45 out of 60
Projects mentioned under this heading include painting the Muintir na Tire Hall and provision of new flower\plant containers on the forecourt of the Hall. We assume that the timber bollards on each side of the pedestrian access are to prevent cars driving across. They are very prominent visually – perhaps because of their dark colour – if they were painted grey, it might help to make them less obtrusive. Another alternative would be a kerb, high enough to prevent cars getting across or an alternative would be a narrow border of perennials on each side of the pathway. The plant containers blend in well with the building, but the plants make little impact. This site needs a more permanent landscape treatment, such as a line of trees on each side that would help to frame and enhance the building. Other projects included new seating at the Grotto in the church ground; new footpaths on much of the Street by Limerick County Council; painting of the club house at GAA Harty Park; washing pathways around the church and continuing work on Murroe Wood Park. We admired the high cross monument by William Gaffney and unveiled in 1923 to commemorate local men who died in the War of Independence. It is unusual because it is placed on a mound, and we note that children and youths seem to enjoy sitting around it – perhaps they have a safe vantage point to meet and look around them. The monument is an important feature of Murroe and is well set off with two fine specimens of copper beech. 46 35 56 16 36 32 Tidy Towns Competition 2022 Adjudication Report Centre: County: Category: Ref: Mark: Date(s): 311 Maximum Mark Community – Your Planning and Involvement Streetscape & Public Places Green Spaces and Landscaping Nature and Biodiversity in your Locality Sustainability – Doing more with less Tidiness and Litter Control Residential Streets & Housing Areas Approach Roads, Streets & Lanes 80 80 80 55 55 90 55 55 44 44 45 32 16 53 36 31 301 Mark Awarded 2021 TOTAL MARK 550 311 Community – Your Planning and Involvement / An Pobal - Pleanáil agus Rannpháirtíocht: Streetscape & Public Places / Sráid-Dreach & Áiteanna Poiblí: Mark Awarded 2022 07/07/2022 point to meet and look around them. The monument is an important feature of Murroe and is well set off with two fine specimens of copper beech.
2021 Adjudication Report Mark 44 out of 60
The imposing monument which adorns the front of your Tidy Towns Plan is in memory of two local men who lost their lives during the War of Independence. You leave it ‘unadorned’ except to mow the grass and paint the black and white surrounding kerbs. We agree completely with this approach as often we see such structures smothered in flowering shrubs etc which detract from their solemnity. You have projects planned in this category which you hope to have completed in 2021 or 2022 including building work at Spar / Murroe Wood Park?, repair work to the Muintir na Tíre Hall, painting work to the Old Post Office including a gable mural, the installation of a bicycle rack made by a local metal worker and the purchase and installation of additional flower pots. Don’t forget to include these in future Application Forms along with before and after photos. The progress photos of the mural on the Post Office wall looks good … next year’s adjudicator will see the finished work. Will you add a seat as suggested by the 2019 adjudicator at the grotto in the church? It would probably be well used by members of the community who wish to sit and reflect. Don’t clutter the pump area – in addition to the pump you have two wheels, three planters and two planting beds. As Mies van der Rohe said ‘Less is More’.
2019 Adjudication Report Mark 43 out of 50
You are located in a rural area surround by great lush farmland with its well-maintained farmhouses and yards, many of which are surrounded by outbuildings. As a rural village you have a mixture of single and two storey vernacular buildings – residents and businesses sitting side by side. We were delighted to see businesses in the village as these are important both economically and socially for a rural community. The central open space with the raised mound surmounted by the Celtic style cross monument is quite imposing on the streetscape. We admired that you haven’t cluttered this area and left its simplicity to be cherished. There are some fine structures in and close to the village – Glenstal Abbey is quite magnificent along with the beautiful gate lodges and surrounding landscaping. The Romanesque Revival Holy Rosary RC church is very ornate and quite imposing on the streetscape. Muintir na Tire Hall, the forge, the garda station and the national school also add to the architectural merit and character of the village. We also admired the pair of houses built for the school teachers around 1890. The boundary wall to school wall was in need of painting – we see this is in your work schedule to be carried out. We admired the simplicity of the grotto in the church grounds – would you consider adding a seat to this area? Don’t clutter the area with free standing planters and pots.
2018 Adjudication Report Mark 43 out of 50
I admired your lovely new wall. I can understand your disappointment at the two derelict buildings. The Monument is a very historic structure and good to see so well maintained. The Catholic Church is beautiful in every way and a credit to the people of Murroe. I note your concerns about the roof of the Post Office. Spar and the Pharmacy stand out in good condition and the Garda Station was neat and tidy.There is a splendid traditional stone boundary wall of Glenstal Abbey, and it is a perfect example of how these walls should be built.The school is splendid and a credit to the teachers and local people, but the outside wall will shortly need some painting. You could consider planting a few suitable creeping shrubs that could eventually cover most of the wall. Your credit union and local bars were bright and cheerful. The Forge is a great traditional structure and it could be tidied up a bit.
2017 Adjudication Report Mark 43 out of 50
Had never been to Murroe before so you can imagine the shock I got when I arrived at the monument, and what a wonderful centrepiece. That, Glenstal Abbey and its accompanying buildings and your Church, are the proudest buildings in the village. And all are elements of the built environment that you can be proud of as a community. Your school is another gem and the adjudicator enthused over the artistic impressions of Murroe live on the walls. Beautiful. You mentioned the old Post Office but I could not distinguish which of the buildings it was from your map. But the modern Post Office has a buzz to it that I liked. That contribution from the former proprietors was generous indeed and shows the esteem in which you are regarded in your community. Both of the pubs are well presented also and must have drawing power judging by their appearance. I loved the thatch, even if I could not make head nor tail of it, but most likely a smoking room. The unusual design of the Muintir Na Tire building is eye catching, its history a major element of your local lore. The Credit Union is also admired.