A group of Beechmount residents have begun work to transform a piece of waste ground into new community garden.
Assisted by local young people and residents, the Beechmount Residents’ Collective (BRC) cleared the site on Beechmount Grove on Saturday.
The patch of green space had long been overgrown and had become a dumping ground for fly-tippers.
With no statutory agencies claiming responsibility for the land, BRC decided to reclaim the space for community use.
Commenting on the initiative, BRC member Dan Ó Murchú said: “We were very excited to launch this project as it's something very close to the hearts of all of us at the BRC.
“Last summer saw the sudden passing of our former Chairperson Johnny O'Dwyer. This project was something we had been planning with Johnny and something he was incredibly excited about. He loved the idea of the community coming together to build something we can all make use out of – it was something he talked about all the time.
“Finally getting a start on that has been fantastic. Seeing local residents alongside a lot of local youths from the area come out to help us get started was incredibly heart-warming and the support from residents and businesses alike has been phenomenal.
“The BRC want to build our own community hub on Grove Gardens because we don’t want to fill the pockets of landlords with overpriced property and yearly contracts. This hub would be a small community shed to store materials for food parcels, equipment for the BRC to use and a place for the community to have a point of contact.
“This will be a place for the BRC to work from and become a focal part of the community. We also want to have a children’s play area, rubber ground like a playpark for kids to be able to have free and a safe space to play. Along with this we want a community garden, allotment type space. At its heart it's about building a community hub we can all make use out of.”
