Sir - In the press release from the National Millennium's Committee on the May 16th, 1999, it said the "Liffey Boardwalk" would "provide an attractive amenity for walking, strolling, relaxing with refreshments and a new venue for weekend markets". Indeed it is a welcome amenity to the city and as a Dubliner who passes there frequently a very welcome asset that transforms the walk to my bus in the evening.
It was to my great surprise though that last Monday (June 11th), I found myself walking along the boardwalk between O'Connell Bridge and the Ha'penny Bridge with litter everywhere! There were three or four homeless people/drunkards sleeping along the benches, with open beer cans, whiskey bottles and empty food cartons scattered around them. Beside one particular individual there was vomit below his bench.
Along with these people's mess there was litter left along the benches where people had lunch or snacks earlier. There is a complete lack of bins along the boardwalk which surely is part of the problem. Why is this so? What are tourists to think - Liffey litterwalk? Would it not be in the interests of the city (especially for tourism reasons) to have a clean boardwalk and some sort of policing to make the drunks move on from lying there and drinking all day?
Also in the press release it states that there will be "a number of refreshment kiosks and craft stalls of the lock-up variety", which clearly have been built. Have they ever been opened? Why are these not being used? - Yours, etc.,
Patrick Kehoe, Lucan, Co Dublin.