MEMBERS of Tidy Drimnagh, accompanied by the Drimnagh Residents’ Community Group, locals and some politicians got together recently to clean-up their neighbourhood after what proved to be an unsettling Halloween season.
Although locals worked in conjunction with Dublin City Council to put on a well-attended and enjoyable family fun day on Halloween itself, locals say a small group of youths instead used the festivities as an excuse for destruction.
Damage was done to public facilities at Brickfield Park and to some properties, cars and residences on adjoining roads.
Commenting on the spate of anti-social behaviour, a representative for the group, Eoin Neylon, said: "Drimnagh is a diverse and vibrant community of about 12,000 people. It's an area that has many young families as well as many elder residents that give the place a great sense of community. The actions of some 20 to 30 teenagers does not represent the area or the values the locals here hold.
“As a community, backed up by Dublin City Council, we've made huge improvements to Brickfield Park with the addition of a revamped playground, new fairy door trail, improved signage, community festivals, litter picks like these and the founding of a new Parkrun here that has been running weekly since January.
“The local community gardaí, Dublin City Council’s South Central Area office and the Sports department have been a great support to the neighbourhood which we would like to thank them for.”
On Benbulbin Road, and in Brickfield Park, community members and local representatives showed theit community spirit as they cleaned up litter and graffiti left behind after some of the Halloween antisocial behaviour which the community experienced.
Noting the isolated nature of the anti-social behaviour, the group have called on politicians, gardaí and Dublin City Council alike to make several commitments to ensure there is no repeat of the scenes witnessed last week.
The group, the neighbours and Drimnagh Residents’ Community Group are calling for better intervention and facilities for young people.
“We are seeing the culmination of years of under investment in sports, school and community facilities in the area,” Mr Neylon added.
“We are recommending early intervention and more support with children and youths locally as well as additional supports for schools.
And we are also calling for more supports for the community at large, for their local streets, for parks, and for greening and waste collection services while accessibility issues need to be addressed for residents across Drimnagh.”
