Anger as thieves dig up plants from community space

A theft with a difference took place last week in Coosan when a selection of plants which had been planted as part of a voluntary community project were dug up and taken away.

Residents living in the Churchwood development and Bloomfield Drive on the Old Coosan road were shocked to learn of the theft and have been expressing their concerns about anti-social behaviour in the area over recent weeks.

Sara Gibson, who lives in Churchwood, and was one of a large number of volunteers who worked on rehabilitating and planting a patch of waste ground in the area described the theft of the plants as “the final nail in the coffin” of what she described as “an on-going pattern of anti-social behaviour” in the Coosan area.

“I am still shell-shocked to be honest,” she said. “How could anybody stoop so low as to dig plants up out of the ground and take them away, it’s just unbelievable.”

Sara praised the “wonderful community spirit” in the Churchwood and Bloomfield Drive areas which resulted in a waste patch of ground being dug and planted by a team of volunteers, made up of both adults and children.

The area which was planted had previously been overshadowed by very tall evergreen trees, which were removed with the residents of Bloomfield Drive funding the felling of the trees.

“We approached Athlone Tidy Towns for support in planting some shrubs and they were very supportive of our project so we spent three days digging and weeding and planting,” says Sara Gibson “and then to come out and see all the plants dug up and gone, it’s devastating.”

The Lithodora Heavenly Blue shrubs were chosen by the volunteers as they cover bare spots quickly with a profusion of bright blue flowers and provide year-round evergreen foliage.

The matter has been reported to Gardai and, at the time of writing, residents were considering a very generous offer from Athlone Town FC to replace the missing shrubs.

“It is very deflating to think that the good work of local volunteers who took it upon themselves to clean up an eyesore and provide a nice planting scheme could have all their work undone overnight,” says Sara Gibson.