News
Killarney Looking Good Competition winners revealed
The award winners in this year’s Killarney Looking Good Competition have been announced.
The prizes will be presented at a reception in the Great Southern Hotel, Killarney on Monday, October 14 where the special guest will be All-Ireland winning star and 2023 Footballer of the Year Louise Ni Mhuircheartaigh.
There are 26 individual category awards in addition to six highly commended awards with the winner of the coveted overall prize will be revealed on the night.
Over three decades after it was first initiated, the Killarney Looking Good Competition was revived last year with a new committee, new categories, new sponsors and a great sense of purpose.
When the project was first launched in 1991 it was a community flower power event but it grew in importance with each passing year, culminating in some style when Killarney won the prestigious overall award in the national tidy towns competition in 2011.
It was no coincidence that when the competition was relaunched last year, it led to Killarney being crowned the tidiest large town in the country, finishing just one point behind the overall tidy towns winner Abbeyleix in Co Laois.
This year the awards again feature special categories in memory of two remarkable people who played massive roles in keeping Killarney looking its best down through the years.
The late Yvonne Quill was the driving force behind the Killarney tidy towns campaign for several years and she was at the helm when the sought-after overall award was secured 13 years ago.
The Yvonne Quill Memorial Award is presented to the volunteer of the year – a person who the adjudicators consider to be a standout contributor in the overall effort to keep Killarney tidy.
Up to the time of his death in January 2020, Fr Michael Murphy was the public face of tidy towns and he played a huge part in Killarney, Kenmare and Sneem winning the overall national award in 2011, 2000 and 1987 respectively. The Killarney Looking Good Competition honours his memory with a special Pride of Place award.
In the business community, there are awards for the best large and small commercial premises, best newly painted premises, best signage and the best retail award with prizes also for the most impressive hotel, public house, restaurant, café, guesthouse and best public building as well as the most improved premises.
In the residential categories awards will be presented to the best large and small estates, best private residence, best roadside garden, best floral display and best friendly planting award.
Other categories include a green hospitality award, a corporate special responsibility award, a restoration award, best school and a special biodiversity award.
The Killarney Looking Good Competition is organised by Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce and Killarney Municipal District Council. MD O’Shea & Sons are the overall sponsors of the competition and O’Mahony Media Ltd is the media sponsor.
The competition runs throughout the tourist season and businesses and residential areas are monitored on an ongoing basis.
Killarney Looking Good Competition Winners 2024
Best Large Commercial Premises: Arbutus Hotel, College Street
Best Small Commercial Premises: Mr McGuire’s Olde Sweet Shop, College Square
Best Newly Painted Premises: The Dungeon, College Street
Best Public House: Charlie Foley’s Bar, New Street
Best Hotel: Cahernane House Hotel, Muckross Road
Best Restaurant: Foley’s Townhouse and Restaurant, High Street
Best Café: Deenagh Lodge, Knockreer
Best Retail: Kilkenny Design/Christy’s Gift Store, Main Street
Green Hospitality Award: Killarney Coffee Cup Project
Corporate Social Responsibility Award: Sisk
Restoration Award: Tigh Mary Donal’s, Muckross Road
Best Signage: Killarney Golf and Fishing Club
Best Guesthouse: Killarney Lodge Guesthouse, Countess Road
Best Private Residence: Fr Simon Twomey, Dromhale
Best Large Estate: Castle Falls
Best Small Estate: Monastery Gardens
Best Roadside Garden: 47 St Brendan’s Place
Best Floral Display: Hussey’s Bar, High Street
Best Primary School: The Monastery, New Road
Best Secondary School: Killarney Community College, New Road
Most improved Premises: Quill’s Irish Jewellery, Main Street/New Street
Biodiversity Award: Niall Keogh, Mill Road
Best Public Building: Killarney Railway Station
Best Friendly Planting: BeBé Crèche and Montessori
Fr Michael Murphy Memorial Pride of Place Award: Pinewood Estate
Yvonne Quill Memorial Volunteer of the Year Award: Paud O’Donoghue, Ross Road
Highly Commended Awards:
3 Torc Terrace
7 Ard na Be, Aghadoe
21 Park Drive
20 Dromhall Park
Silver Birch, Ballycasheen
Alverna, Park Road
KWD Recycling shortlisted for national environmental awards
Killarney-based KWD Recycling has been announced as a finalist in the 2026 Repak Resource Awards, securing a spot on the national shortlist for environmental achievement.
The local waste management company has been nominated in the Best Recovery Operator Innovation category, sponsored by DNV, for its state-of-the-art residual waste recovery system.
The Killarney facility utilizes optical sorting, screening, and mechanical processing to extract recyclable plastics and organic material from municipal waste. In its first year of operation, the technology recovered more than 10 per cent of plastic packaging from residual waste for recycling and diverted almost 50 per cent of organic material toward composting.
KWD Recycling will compete alongside Dublin operators Panda and Thorntons Recycling for the category title.
Repak CEO Zoe Kavanagh commended the Kerry firm for demonstrating environmental leadership and bringing local ambition to the national awards.
Category winners will be announced at a black-tie ceremony at the Mansion House in Dublin on Friday, October 23, where each winner will also compete for the Overall Repak Resource Award.
Local businesses have a strong track record at the national event, with Killarney town venue The Killarney Park and The Ross previously taking home the overall title in 2023.
Drivers warned as deer rutting season begins
Motorists in Killarney are being urged to exercise extreme caution as the annual deer rutting season gets underway, causing animals to stray far beyond their usual habitats inside Killarney National Park.
The autumn mating season sees deer becoming highly active and unpredictable, leading to increased sightings and collisions on local roads outside traditional park boundaries.
Two separate incidents highlighted the growing hazard on local routes this week. A reader contacted the Killarney Advertiser to warn drivers after spotting a deer roaming near Tiernaboul towards the school on Sunday afternoon around 7.30pm.
Later that same night, in the early hours of Monday morning, a local driver collided with a deer near Kerry Airport around 1am while returning home from an event.
Despite attempting evasive action, the motorist struck the animal, which died at the scene and temporarily blocked the road before local Gardaí were alerted to clear the obstruction.
The driver sustained substantial vehicle damage, requiring repairs to the bumper, headlamp, and internal components, leaving her facing significant garage costs and time off the road.
Gardaí and road safety advocates advise motorists travelLing during early morning and late evening and remain vigilant along tree-lined routes.
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