Upkeep of the estate – Page 6

Littering and signage

Unfortunately, there has been an increase in the number of cases of illegal dumping in Ashefield recently. If you spot someone leaving rubbish bags or other litter in the estate, please contact Westmeath County Council’s litter control and report it either by email to environment@westmeathcoco.ie or using the low cost number 1890 320 005 . Don’t assume someone else will. It’s not fair on the local residents who do spend the time and money on clearing up after the illegal dumpers.

From Westmeath County Council: The emails will be checked daily by environment staff and all reports will be investigated. Alternatively incidences of littering/llegal dumping can be reported to Lo-call 1890 320 005 It is hoped that members of the public will be prepared to give evidence which will lead to conviction in the courts.

The road numbering signs have also been vandalised recently. Thanks to another local resident, repairs are being made. If you spot any vandalism or other anti-social behavour, please do inform Mullingar Gardaí at 044 934 8915. Sometimes all it takes is the presence of a Garda car to deter the vandals.

Short back and sides

Some time back we asked Westmeath County Council about trimming trees near street lights in the estate. This was in response to safety concerns raised by some residents where Summer foliage was blocking the light. The problem was most apparent in the vicinity of houses #190-210.

After contacting them again last week, Council staff carried out this work almost immediately afterwards. Thanks again for your prompt action!

I’m sure you’ll agree that the trimmed trees are looking a lot better now:
Ashefield

Keeping drains clear and streetlamps lit

Westmeath Co. Co. was notified about a blocked gulley outside #130 and a non-functioning street light beside the pedestrian walkway into Abbeylands. Regarding the gulley, the request was passed on to the General Services Supervisor to have it unblocked as soon as possible. As for the streetlight, Westmeath Co. Co. notified the ESB to carry out the necessary repairs. Hopefully both issues will be resolved shortly.

streetlamp

If you notice any problems regarding blocked gulleys, broken streetlights, or some other issue that needs council attention, the easiest thing to do is to send an email to:

mullingararea [at] westmeathcoco.ie (replace ‘[at]’ with @)

It only takes a couple of minutes and you should get a response within a day or so.

Make sure to include the nearest house number(s) to help them locate the problem area. For streetlight problems, each light has a number located on the pole about 10ft off the ground and it’s useful to include this number too.

Contributing to the upkeep of the estate

Over the last few weeks, contributions for the voluntary upkeep of the estate by the residents are being collected from houses towards the end of the estate. The bulk of the contributions goes towards the maintenance of the four green areas. However these contributions also help with buying petrol, weedkiller, bin bags & tags, and replacement capstones for public boundary walls where they are missing. We are planning a clean-up afternoon for the near future where all these items will be put to good use.

Sincere thanks to all those who have contributed so far. For those unable to contribute the yearly contribution of €30, all amounts and multiple installments are most appreciated. In addition to monetary contributions, offers to lend a hand and borrow tools are just as important.

Please do say Hi to two of your neighbours, Martin and Keith who will be dropping by. They are also collecting email addresses to help keep everyone updated too. Bearing in mind that not everyone has the same block of spare time to help with this, a quick email may be a faster way to assemble a cleanup team willing to help at possibly short notice.