RESIDENTS of New Road, Thomondgate, are at their wit’s end as vandalism of cars and property continues to occur outside their front doors. The vandals have been branded ‘The Friday Night Club’ by locals, as residents often wake up on Saturday mornings to find their property damaged. One home owner who has lived there for 50 years told the Limerick Post that car wing mirrors are kicked off and twisted on a regular basis, while front doors and other property is also damaged.
“My own car wing mirror was pulled off over the weekend, as were a number of other motorists and we are sick of it,” said the resident.
“Incidents have been reported to the gardaí and they have called out, but nothing is being done to stop the vandalism. There are elderly people in the area who are frightened.
“It has been going on for as long as I can remember, and myself and Cllr Quinlivan have been promoting the issue to the council.
“The council have promised us some road frontage, walls and railings, and lighting so that we have some sense of security but we have got zilch.
“I have a letter from about five or six years ago from the council saying we are getting railings and still nothing. They are full of empty promises”.
Cllr Tom Shortt claimed that the New Road area has been neglected by the council.
“The road is a busy thoroughfare for traffic and pedestrians and is very exposed with many of the houses right on the street.
“Along with other councillors I have been campaigning on behalf of the residents and we had an agreement from the council that railings would be acquired for the front of the houses, but the project has suffered significant delays.
“This is random, wanton violence that’s going on and the people are getting no real commitment from the council that they will do anything to help them. They want the residents to look after it themselves but this needs the involvement of engineers”.
Cllr Shortt, who lives in Thomondgate, said there were a number of factors impacting negatively on the area.
“The street certainly needs attention. There is an undeveloped site that is bringing down the overall tone of the area. There is an element of dereliction there and it seems to be a struggle to get the council to commit to working on it”.
He added that the area needs policing and appealed to residents to continue to report any incidents of crime.
“I understand how stressful and frustrating this is for the people who feel they are living on the front-line of neglect. I’m frustrated myself, but I will continue to pursue the issue”.
