Trim in County Meath was named the overall winner of the coveted SuperValu Tidy Towns competition on Friday.
This year saw the third most entries in its nearly 65-year history when 882 towns and villages across the country entered.
Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys announced the winner during the first full-scale awards bash at the RDS in Dublin since the pandemic.
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She said: “This is a moment of great pride for Trim and indeed the wider county of Meath.
“Having first entered the competition in 1959, Trim today continues to showcase all that is good about community and volunteerism.
"The level of competition was extremely high this year with the third highest number of entries ever recorded.”
The Fine Gael deputy added: "I want to pay tribute to all the winners today but, above all, I want to say a huge thank you to the thousands of Tidy Towns volunteers across the country.
"The time and effort that you put in to making your town or village a better place says so much about your commitment and dedication to your community.
"Your hard work and enthusiasm is nothing short of inspiring."
While SuperValu Managing Director Ian Allen said: “On behalf of SuperValu, I would like to congratulate Trim for being named Ireland’s tidiest town for 2022, 50 years since the town first won the competition in 1972.
"It’s a wonderful achievement and a testament to the hard work and commitment of the committee and team of volunteers involved.
"It’s also important to acknowledge the extraordinary achievement and efforts of the category winners.”
He added: "This year marked another milestone year for the SuperValu Tidy Towns competition, with a record 1,000 groups engaging in the competition, and an incredible 882 entries.
"Congratulations to all the incredible committee members, who, in collaboration with our network of independent retailers, share our desire to build thriving, sustainable communities.”
Other winners include Rosscarbery in Cork which was crowned Ireland's Tidiest Village while Cahir in Tipperary was given the Young Persons in Tidy Towns Award.
Clonakilty in Cork was given named Ireland’s Tidiest Small Town while Ennis in Clare was named Ireland's Tidiest Large Urban Centre.
The competition is organised by the Department of Rural and Community Development and has been sponsored by SuperValu since 1991.
During the event, Minister Humphreys also confirmed that her department has started negotiating with the supermarket chain as the preferred bidder to support the competition for the next five years.
She added: “Following a competitive process to secure a funding partner for the competition, it gives me great pleasure to announce today that negotiations have commenced with SuperValu as the preferred bidder to partner with the Department of Rural and Community Development to administer the competition out to 2027.
"I also want to pay tribute to the team in my Department who have worked tirelessly to ensure this year's competition was a success.”
The TD also revealed a special allocation of €1.4 million in funding has been approved to support the work of more than 930 TidyTowns Groups around the country, which brings the total allocated since 2017 to more than €8 million.
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