State of town

extra gravy

Is it just me or is it filthier than it's ever been? Smell of p*ss when you walk up Shop St. Bird shït and rubbish all over the streets. Place needs a good power-washing. I'm embarrassed that this is what's greeting the tourists.

ingalway

Totally agree. Was in town yesterday and really noticed how filthy the streets are. Shop Street often stinks of drains, especially around Eason and McDonalds. There was a drain/sewer overflowing into the street further up the town. Bins full. The Council street cleaning lorries should be out every morning - there is no way they had been out and bins need emptying way more often. I can't imagine tourists are impressed.

AuldDaysul

Was up there recently with foreign in laws and couldn't believe how dirty and rundown it was, embarrassing stuff. Very rough element about at night time too. Won't be bringing any foreigners to Galway again unfortunately, not the city center anyway.

zell12

But who is causing all this? Oh yeah, us.

ben.schlomo

Shop St, High St and Cross St could all do with a blast of a powerwasher for sure. Noticed Shop St being particularly filthy yesterday as I walked up. The grime in and around some of the shop fronts is also disgusting, coming from the pissing, puking and God knows what else you'd assume.

Galwayguy35

We keep our village clean ourselves, no council to do it for us.

Townies can do the same, clean around the area where you live, if everyone chipped in and did their bit its amazing the difference it makes.

ThePentagon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119136629#Comment_119136629

"Shop Street often stinks of drains, especially around Eason and McDonalds."

There was a horrible sewage-type smell lingering outside Boots for years. I imagine it was a ruptured pipe or something just below street level. Don't know if it's still there but rotten smells are not a recent phenomenon on our main shopping street.

ThePentagon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119136730#Comment_119136730

I was in Innsbruck, Austria a few years ago with my sister. It was nice pleasant quiet Sunday afternoon and we were sitting on a bench on the main shopping street in the town (Maria-Theresien Strasse it's called according to Google maps) when a handful of youths walked our way.

Just before they passed us one of them broke from the group, stepped onto the middle of the road, and picked up a sweet wrapper or some other piece of litter that someone had discarded. He then dropped it in the nearest bin and the group moved along on their way.

Bear in mind this lad was about 15 or 16 and it wasn't even his rubbish. It underlined to us why towns in that part of Europe are so damn impeccable. I have no doubt that they have well-funded and highly organised civic services but I couldn't help but conclude at the time that they also have a sense of pride and collective responsibility that Irish folk don't have (or at least those living in cities).

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119136730#Comment_119136730

Your village doesn't have hoardes of people from every other village in the county, plus lots of overseas places, coming to play, piss and puke in the street every day. But you still expect the few of us who live here to go out and clean up after you. Every single day. Fcuk off.

Businesses pay rates to the council, who use them to clean up the damage inflicted by their customers.

Town is no grottier now than ever. The council lads ARE out every single morning, and there are rubbish bin crews doing bin-emptying multiple times during the day, on Shop/High/Quay Streets at least.

We've not had as many days of heavy rainfall lately, so there is a level of built up grime which will disappear once rainy season starts (generally just after the leaving cert exams end :) )

Paddico

Not to mention some of the fighting that emerged on video over the weekend

gifted

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119136730#Comment_119136730

What a dumb post.

?Cee?view

This is the town people want. When areas are pedestrianised, it's predictable that they are in a state of filth. If you let people roam all around drunk at night what's to be expected?

Galwayguy35

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119137705#Comment_119137705

You would want to learn some manners, I don't like being told to f off.

Don't bother replying because I have no interest in any further discussion with you.

Galwayguy35

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119140621#Comment_119140621

Is it.

Still stihl waters 3

Is it only now people are realising how dirty Galway is, it's like that since I was in college over 20 years ago, the Council are next to useless

?Cee?view

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119141426#Comment_119141426

Council workers on the frontline (the actual cleaners), are doing as much as they can. There are only so many cleaners to go around. Yet, Woodquay and down the West is again pedestrianised which only serves to draw people who would be inside pubs and restaurants out onto the street, bringing their rubbish with them. Great for the business owners who don't have to clean up after the mess their customers leave. Crap for residents and everyone else who isn't making the mess, yet have to live with the pissing, puking, noise etc.

I just can't understand why anyone thinks that Galway's centre is better than it was before it was pedestrianised. It used to be a commercial centre. Now it's a place to wander, have a coffee and buy a phone or a book during the day; that's it. During the evening, it's just a party venue for self-centred idiots.

Straight Talker

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119136730#Comment_119136730

With all due respects, there's a large difference between a village with a couple of hundred people in it, and the fourth biggest city in the country!

Wompa1

It has been this way for a few years. Usually gets worse in May and June and then miraculously a bit cleaner before the Galway Races then goes to shite again.

Galwayguy35

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119145409#Comment_119145409

Was I saying a few people would be doing the whole city?!

What I did say was everyone keeping an eye on the area where they live.

And out here we also have to deal with illegal dumping especially this time of year, the county council doesn't want to know about that either so it also falls on us to get rid of it.

2ndcoming

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119146103#Comment_119146103

How many people live on Shop St?

Galwayguy35

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119146119#Comment_119146119

You know what, just forget it, keep whinging do nothing and leave it looking like a tip.

2ndcoming

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119145409#Comment_119145409

6th...

extra gravy

https://galwaybayfm.ie/galway-bay-fm-news-desk/concern-ball-has-been-dropped-in-galway-city-centres-appearance-as-tourism-season-begins/

"A local guesthouse owner has raised concerns over the appearance of the city centre as the hospitality sector prepares to welcome hundreds of visitors over the summer season.

Liam O’Reilly, a guest house owner in Merlin Park, says he is now receiving regular feedback from guests on the dirty appearance of the city centre at popular streets for tourism."

And there we go. Embarrassing. And waiting for the rain to wash away the dirt and grime sounds like a very Irish solution.

Jammyd

Looks like the tribune have been following this thread

https://connachttribune.ie/galway-city-in-danger-of-getting-dirty-old-town-reputation/

zell12

Someone is being most undiplomatic

Beer and urine-stained footpaths; overflowing and stinking bins; and unkempt local authority-owned equipment were all colliding to create ‘a very bad look’, “The fact is the city is absolutely filthy – even the bins are manky. The Council has dropped the ball and as a result, the overall look of the place is grubby,”

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119152434#Comment_119152434

You can add in the army of Roma beggers covering every corner of the city centre and beyond, draining money out of the country and making the place look like a medieval kip... But they won't do anything about that or it would be racist in this social media driven agenda age.

buzz11

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119158399#Comment_119158399

The Roma beggars are only there because so many 'fools' give them money.

zell12

Garda moving Roma beggars today, making them get up and leave

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119169834#Comment_119169834

Laws would need to be changed to deal with it fully.

Make it illegal again and just enforce it on them to make them leave the city. Arrest and seizing their money would go a long way to making them move off.

How anyone gives them money is beyond me.. the saying "A fool and his money are easily parted" has never been more apt.

As much as I hate local beggers at least the money isn't drained out of the economy or the added dimension of them making the town look like a kip to tourists.

zell12

Galway Beo - Galway turning into city of 'trash, traffic and loitering tramps' blasts businessman

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119172779#Comment_119172779

People should refrain from linking Galway Beo, it's the lowest common denominator when it comes to 'news'. Absolute tabloid waffle. The stuff in that "article" was woeful.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119172779#Comment_119172779

An ironic headline from Galway's newest purveyor of trash "journalism"

zell12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119173213#Comment_119173213

Am aware, but it was someone listening to equal tabloid bleating 'Galway Talks with Keith Finnegan', and I won't be transcribing the broadcast!

zell12

Anti-social activity was bad as ever last October, so how could it be worse now?

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/anti-social-behaviour-in-galway-it-has-never-been-as-bad-1.4715560

zell12

Is it just me or has it gotten worse in recent months? It appears to have become a mini version of Dublin centre.

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119898153#Comment_119898153

Wanna give some examples there?

zell12

Buses have put up 'anti-social' warning notices, More gardaí visible in Woodquay/Eyre Sq, Local Chief Supt says he is going to crack down on drugs

There was a few letters to local newspapers about a 'dangerous vibe' in town particularly at night,

Rosie D

It’s not unique to Galway, the character of many other formerly appealing cities, New York, Paris amongst others, has totally changed for the worst post pandemic. Big cities in general just aren’t appealing anymore.

Glad I moved out of Galway last year and into my own lovely home which I could never afford in Galway. I felt that Galway had turned a corner at that point and was coming very closely to resemble Dublin, where I had lived for several years previously. The quality of life for me in a place seriously deteriorates when it becomes affordable to buy a home there.

smurf492

``Glad I moved out of Galway last year and into my own lovely home which I could never afford in Galway. I felt that Galway had turned a corner at that point and was coming very closely to resemble Dublin, where I had lived for several years previously. The quality of life for me in a place seriously deteriorates when it becomes affordable to buy a home there''

This makes no sense. You said you moved out of galway for being unaffordable and then say life quality deteriorates when it becomes affordable. I think many would disagree that galway is an affordable place to live at the moment but as far as quality of life in galway I do think we have a lot of upsides

Rosie D

Thank you so much for noticing my typing error!! I meant to write on ´unaffordable’.

I lived in Dublin for a good few years, and moved to Galway for a better quality of life. When Galway became almost identical to Dublin for me in regard to housing affordable and traffic problems I decided to move on. Best decision I ever made.

buzz11

In the last 2 weeks the Guards have been actively moving on the beggars and pan handlers -- there now very few to be seen during the day.

I've also noticed a real increase in the frequency of seeing guards walking around the city centre -- the change is very noticeable.

Stevolende

couldn't we level the place and rewild

WillmaDickfit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119901231#Comment_119901231

that letter has to be a piss take surley.

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119943846#Comment_119943846

Surly letters aren't necessary really, are they.

WillmaDickfit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119945326#Comment_119945326

not many people write into newspapers anymore, same as ringing up a TV station giving out about being offended by something.

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119945333#Comment_119945333

Why must the letter be surly though.

WillmaDickfit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119945379#Comment_119945379

no idea, you'd have to ask the people writing it and sending it in. I don't see appeal of it to be honest

Squeeonline

We'd prefer the use of Pee pee soaked heck hole.

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119948103#Comment_119948103

2 days and the penny still hasn't dropped.

WillmaDickfit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119948397#Comment_119948397

oh it dropped the first time, I just have very little time for cnuts that try to be the billy big balls correcting grammar and spelling mistakes on a keyboard

ben.schlomo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119948455#Comment_119948455

Oh now, now Willma. You're probably too busy inexplicably disliking people bro!