Call for council to cut grass

People are refusing to pay for grass-cutting in estates where Tipperary Co Council has bought houses, a recent meeting of the council's Nenagh Municipal District heard.

Cllr Séamie Morris said residents living in estates that the council has taken charge of, and who have paid the Local Property Tax, feel the green areas should be maintained by the council. He said residents associations are giving up on collecting money for grass-cutting as many houses have been acquired by the council, the residents of which are not paying. Cllr Morris said Nenagh's Hawthorns estate is an example of where this is happening.

Cllr Hughie McGrath agreed that the issue "is starting to raise its head in certain estates". People paying the LPT believe the council should take charge of grass-cutting as well as care of roads and lights.

District Administrator Rosemary Joyce said the council is paying contributions to 40 residents associations in the district. She understood the difficulties, but said taking on grass-cutting would have serious financial implications for the council and would require funding to be diverted from roads and other areas of expenditure.

Cllr Morris said voluntary residents associations are still having to collect money, but their members are being "laughed at at the door" of houses owned by the council. He made the point that Tipperary's LPT demand has been maintained at a high level every year. "It's a conversation we're going to have to have," he concluded.