DUBLIN City Council has assured visitors to one of the Southside’s most popular city parks that it will take action to address homelessness issues and littering.
The council was responding to complaints made by some Southside locals who found Merrion Square Park in the south inner city to be heavily littered and with evidence of homeless people using the facilities as a place to sleep.
One local who contacted Southside People also sent in a number of photos to illustrate his point. He said he had made a complaint to the council regarding the condition of Merrion Square Park on August 18.
“My family and I went to the playground in Merrion Park on Sunday morning and were appalled by the condition of the play area,” he wrote. “Rubbish was strewn around the enclosure because the bins were overflowing with waste.
“Within the children’s slide was a sleeping bag and empty bottles of beer. What was most unfortunate was the number of tourist families using the facilities. Their disgust was evident, and many simply turned around when they saw the conditions.”
The man claimed that the park had been opened by the council’s parks department that morning, giving them “ample opportunity to address the waste issue and ensure the playground was safe for children to use that day”.
“Broken glass and drug paraphernalia (lay) within the playground, in and around structures intended to be used by children,” he added.
“This is a personal injury claim waiting to happen.”
In response to queries from Southside People, a spokeperson for Dubin City Council said the use of the playground in Merrion Square Park by rough sleepers was “a recent occurrence”.
“This is being addressed by the Homeless Services Unit and increased vigilance by the parks warden service,” the spokesperson said.
“The bins and general litter would normally have been collected by mid-morning but on the day in question this had not been done. This should not re-occur.”
