Cleanup of North Main Street to counteract dereliction problem

Cork Business Association Launches First ‘Cleaning and Greening’ Street Initiative on North Main Street – Improving one street at a time in Cork City

Cork Business Association (CBA), in partnership with Cork City Council, will host the first Cleaning and Greening morning on Tuesday, April 29th, kicking off a new initiative to refresh and revitalise Cork city streets — starting with North Main Street.

Working closely with local businesses on the street and CBA volunteers, the initiative will focus on deep cleaning, power washing, removing algae, planting, painting, with a drive to improving the overall streetscape. CBA will provide cleaning supplies, gloves, litter pickers, brushes, and paint to support the works.  Painting and cleaning contractors will also be on site to assist.

This initiative follows a visual “Clutter and Quality Audit” of the street, undertaken by CBA and Cork City Council, identifying short, medium, and long-term actions to enhance the area. The audit identified a range of short, medium, and long-term actions to improve the area —   from clearing dirt and debris, to addressing unsightly wiring, redundant poles, outdated signage, redundant phone boxes, broken lights, and anything in need of repair or replacement.

In preparation for April 29th CBA is calling out for volunteers on the street. Cork City Council have already completed a deep clean of the pavements. On the morning itself, volunteers and business owners will join forces to clean litter and weeds, install new plant baskets, paint poles and gates, wash windows and facades, and bring new life to 14 electricity boxes through a creative street mural project led by artist Alan Hurley.

The initiative is proudly supported by McKechnie Cleaning Services and Pat McDonnell Paint.

Sign up here – https://mailchi.mp/corkbusiness/cleaning-greening-sign-up

The morning will begin with a light breakfast at St. Peter’s, kindly provided by Centra, with Fast Al’s Pizza ensuring volunteers are well fed throughout the morning.

“This is about the business community taking real ownership and pride in our city and making it as attractive as possible to shoppers, visitors and residents,” said Dave O’Brien, President of the Cork Business Association.

Kate Neville Culhane of Neville Jewellers and Chair of the CBA’s Safe & Clean Committee, added “It’s our collective responsibility to keep our streets looking great, in partnership with Cork City Council. We want to encourage civic pride, one street at a time.”

North Main Street marks the first in a series of Cleaning and Greening mornings planned by the CBA. The initiative will be rolled out across the city annually, with the CBA also offering support to other business districts by sharing learnings, conducting audits, and advising on available grants and supports.

“The ambition is clear: to create the cleanest, safest city in Ireland to visit, work, live, and do business in.”

For more information or to get involved as a sponsor, contact info@corkbusiness.ie.