ICYMI: Part of Kilkenny cemetery 'totally unacceptable' - Council Highlights
The comments were made at a Kilkenny City Municipal District meeting earlier this year
Independent, Cllr Eugene McGuinness has called for a cemetery map to be introduced to St Kieran’s Cemetery in the city which would allow visitors track the location of graves in the ever-growing cemetery.
"I think it’s something that we should consider because many people come to these cemeteries now searching for ancestors and tracing where family members are buried," McGuinness told a sitting of the Kilkenny City Municipal District earlier this year.
"I think it should be in all cemeteries and I don’t think it would be that difficult to do. It’s something we should seriously consider," he added, claiming it could be rolled out across all local cemeteries.
The city councillor, who resides in St John’s Parish, also criticised the condition of the building where the toilets are housed.
"That area needs to be cleaned. The toilets are not fit for purpose and needs to be cleaned up," he claimed.
Mr McGuinness also argued that the building needs to be painted due to its withered appearance.
"It's just totally unacceptable and I know that you (the council) are in the process of looking at that but it really badly needs to be attended to," Cllr McGuinness continued.
In response, Senior Engineer with Kilkenny County Council, Stan Cullen said they would explore the possibility of upgrade works in St Kieran’s Cemetery but admitted he ‘wasn’t sure’ if the introduction of a map was possible at this time.
The local cemetery has been the topic of much discussion in recent years with a number of issues making its way into the political domain.
In June, St Kieran’s was one of a number of local cemeteries to receive new by-laws with offences resulting in fixed payment notices or court prosecution with fines up to €2,500. Drinking, drug taking and forms of intimidating behaviour from a minority of people were the catalyst for the changes.