Visitors to Carrick frequently comment on what a pretty town and beautiful setting we have here on the banks of the Shannon in Co. Leitrim, but now it’s official - Carrick-on-Shannon is Ireland’s Best Kept Town!
Tuesday 20th June was a special day in our local history as the town was announced the overall winner of the Ireland’s Best Kept Town competition at an awards ceremony hosted at Farmleigh House.
Ireland’s Best Kept Town is an all-island competition, initiated in 1995, in which some of the best towns in the annual SuperValu TidyTowns competition compete against their counterparts from Northern Ireland’s Best Kept competition.
Entrants are marked on strict criteria that including cleanliness, the outward appearance of buildings, presentation of roads and public facilities and the natural environment.
This year, of the 14 towns and villages that made it through the nomination process - an achievement in itself - Carrick-on-Shannon was voted the overall winner of the competition, as well as the winner of the Best Kept Small Town category.
This was an incredible achievement and a much-deserved reward for the hard work of our good friends in the Carrick-on-Shannon Tidy Towns organisation. This collective of civic minded volunteers, many of whom have been giving their free time over many years, put in a huge amount of work all year round to keep the town in tip-top shape. All of us at the Landmark appreciate all they do and we were thrilled to see their efforts recognised with such a prestigious award.
TD Heather Humphreys, Ireland's Minister for Rural and Community, said: “I want to congratulate all of the winners and nominees in the all-island Best Kept Town competition, and in particular Carrick-On-Shannon, Co Leitrim for winning the overall title along with the title of Best Kept Small Town.
The Minister continued: “The all-island Best Kept Town Competition recognizes the great pride people have in their own communities, both in Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is testament to how local volunteers take ownership of their local area and work to improve them, for both now and into the future.
We now proudly invite people from near and far to visit Carrick, to enjoy our beautiful riverside town for themselves.