Month: February 2010

DESPITE difficult trading condi- tions, one of the county’s best known hotels still managed to report an op- erating profit of €282,076 last year.

According to accounts recently re- turned to the companies’ office for the year to the end of June 2009, the Falls Hotel in Ennistymon recorded a pre-tax profit of €14,003.While this represents a 40 per cent drop on the €23,437 pre-tax profits recorded in 2008, the significant difference between operating and pre-tax profit was a €268,073 bank loan interest charge last year.

The hotel’s gross profit last year dropped by 3 per cent from €3.7m to €3.6m with its cost base dropping by 2 per cent from €3.4m to €3.3m The pre-tax profit recorded last year resulted in the company having ac- cumulated profits of €960,595.

The accounts show that the com- pany has fixed assets valued at €7.8 pebdeeLOee

The directors are listed as Daniel McCarthy and Eileen McCarthy and the accounts show that the company had a €5.2m loan from the Bank of Scotland.

The McCarthys purchased the busi- ness in 1986 when it comprised of a small 20 bedroom hotel. Now, after a significant expansion programme, the hotel has 150 bedrooms and nine duplex apartments; weddings and

banqueting facilities for up to 350 people; conference facilities for 350 people; an aqua and fitness club and a river spa which incorporates 12 treatment rooms and a thermal suite.

More recently, the Falls Hotel se- cured planning permission for a hy- dro scheme in a bid to reduce energy costs at the hotel.

The second generation of the Mc- Carthy’s are now working in The Falls Hotel. Eldest son Michael Mc- Carthy is the General Manager and his brother John is the Deputy Man-

ager.

The hotel has arich history. Towards to end of the 1930’s, it was leased for five years to the late Brendan O’Regan, who later pioneered cater- ing and sales services at Shannon International Airport. O’Regan ran the hotel during the years of World War Two, and one of his innovations was to supply hot meals in hayboxes to the golfers in Lahinch.

The next owner was a retired Welshman Gerard Henry Williams- Owen who operated the business

during the summer months only.

In 1955 John F. Wood and his wife Bridget acquired the hotel. They added the hydro-electric plant which for many years provided power to the building and the ‘plant’ can still be seen a short distance upstream, just below the cascades.

FOLLOWING last week’s revelation that almost 400 Clare farmers are yet to receive their payment for 2009 under the Rural Environmental Pro- tection Scheme (REPS), the Depart- ment of Agriculture has highlighted the €5 million which has been is- sued to 356 Clare farmers under the Farm Waste Management Scheme to date this year.

The scheme, which was set up to part fund farmers to construct the necessary infrastructure to comply with the EU directive on nitrates, has resulted in more than €45 million

being issued to Clare farmers in the last five years.

According to Clare TD and Junior Agriculture Minister, Tony Killeen (FF), a total of 2,092 Clare farm- ers have benefited under the scheme since 2006.

“The substantial payment of grant- aid under the scheme represents a vote of confidence in a vital indig- enous industry with a huge export presence,” he said.

“Successive Fianna Fail-led Gov- ernments have provided funding of over €1.2 billion to some 34,000 farmers nationwide, which is a clear indication of our commitment to Irish

agriculture and the rural economy.

“The scheme represents essential infrastructural investment in the Irish rural economy and ensures the protection of the single farm payment and other EU funding worth 1.6 bil- lion euro annually to Irish farmers.

‘Following the payment this month of €190 million in respect of the second tranche of grant payments of 40 per cent, over €1 billion has now been paid out since the scheme’s in- ception in 2006. This represents 90 per cent of the total funding of the scheme.

“When the final tranche of 20 per cent is paid out under the Farm

Waste Management Scheme in Jan- uary 2011, total expenditure will exceed €1.2 billion, all of which will have come from exchequer an etebnetcaue

Minister Killeen also reminded Clare farmers seeking payments un- der the Suckler Welfare Scheme to complete and return their applica- tions without delay.

Applicants for the scheme must continue to complete and return their forms as quickly as possible and within 12 months of the birth of the animals at the very latest. Farmers seeking clarification regarding this should ring 1890 252707.

IF the names of Brid and Roger Fahy are familiar to you it’s probably be- cause youve heard them _ before. Located on the Flaggy Shore of Fin- varra, at the very northern tip of the Burren, the pair set up Linnalla Ice Cream back in 2006.

As we all know farming is a tough gig. Besides the hard work and unso- cial hours – dairy farmers also have to live with the prospect of selling milk to Co-Ops for less than it costs to produce it.

Brid and Roger may just have found a solution to this problem. There new idea, a milk vending machine, could soon allow farmers to sell their milk directly to the customers in a hygi- enic, safe and ultimately profitable EN

By cutting out the middlemen and constructing a machine which allows farmers to sell directly to consumers, the pair might just have cracked one of the biggest problems facing dairy farmers today.

Although largely unknown in Ire- land, the Latteria of milk dispenser has become popular in mainland Eu-

rope and in Italy, where it 1s made.

Besides providing consumers with the freshest possible product, the Latteria also gives farmers a chance of getting a fair price for their milk and cut down in transport costs and emissions and cuts down drastically on packaging.

The local shop owner would receive a “fair” price for hosting the Latteria but the overheads of unnecessary transport and other cost associated with the large Co-Op would be re- moved.

The Fahy’s have received €3,000, sponsored by Clare Ireland recycling, for taking first prize in the Clare Farm Idea Awards Competition and will now go forward to represent the county at the national competition.

Linnalla ice cream started produc- tion in 2006 and the specialty ice- cream is now available in shops and restaurants in the Clare and Galway eer he

In 2005 they met Pat Shannon from the Clare Enterprise Board who en- couraged them to develop their idea.

Over the next two years they had planning approved, secured LEAD- ER funds, worked with officials from the Department of Agriculture and soon were on the way to starting a new and innovative business.

EVEN at knock down prices, Clare County Council is unable to sell its affordable housing stock as numbers on the housing list exceed 2,400. New figures provided by the coun- cil show numbers on the housing list have increased by 40 per cent from 1,716 to 2,408. However, that figure includes those on rent allowance, who in order to qualify for the allow- ance must go on the housing list. Excluding those who are on the list to secure rent allowances, there were 1,594 on the list on January | — an in- crease of 30 per cent on the 1,218 that were on the list at the start of 2009. Special Policy Committee Chair- woman, Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) said the increased numbers were “extremely worrying and a cause of

concern’.

‘There are real people behind these statistics. There is no way that the council can keep up with the de- mand, but we are managing as best we can. The numbers on the list are high and will continue to get higher,” she said.

The council completed 87 social houses in 2009 and 91 in 2008. A further ten affordable houses were provided through agreement with de- velopers but with the collapse in the housing market, the number of af- fordable homes completed under this scheme dropped to just two.

The council expects to complete 16 affordable homes in 2010 in Shan- non, where there is a strong demand for affordable homes.

However, uncertainty surrounds the number of new house starts for

2010 as local authorities are await- ing a capital allocation for 2010 from the Department of the Environment in relation to the social housing con- struction programme’.

The council has also confirmed that it has 15 unsold affordable homes for sale dispersed over eight locations.

A council spokeswoman – said: ‘These have been for sale for an av- erage of one year. The council has responded to changing market cond1- tions by reducing the purchase price of affordable homes. The reduction in price varies but averages at 15 per cent to 20 per cent below the market price,’ she said.

THE parents of a young Clare school- boy have hailed as “incredible” the impact a special training programme for people with disabilities has had on their son’s life.

Nine-year-old Jack Caldwell and his new best friend, a two-year-old gold- en retriever named Aggie, officially

teamed up at a ceremony in Dublin last week.

Up until a month ago, Jack, who suf- fers from Ataxic Cerebral Palsy, had to use a walking frame to help him move around. The pair were brought together under a scheme operated by Irish Dogs for the Disabled.

Over a period of six to eight months, the charity trains dogs to meet the

needs of its clients.

Aggie has been trained as a stability dog meaning Ennis boy Jack can walk holding her harness on one side and a stick on the other.

In a letter, Jack’s parents John Cald- well and Emer Sherry expressed their delight at the positive impact Aggie has made on their son’s life.

“When we heard that Irish Dogs for the Disabled had identified a suitable dog for him, Jack was motivated to start practicing to walk using tripod walking sticks. Within four weeks, he was confident enough to leave the walking frame at home and just bring his walking sticks to Cork. This was an incredible achievement for a nine- year-old with balance problems and low muscle tone,” they said.

They say that the difference made to Jack’s life as a result of teaming up with Aggie has been “incredible”.

“Aggie is a beautiful two-year-old golden retriever with a lovely calm disposition. Jack adored her from the minute he met her. The difference this has made to Jack 1s incredible. On his second day of training, Jack said to us, ‘I love Aggie because no-one looks at me anymore.’ In his mind, the burden of going out in public with a visible disability had been lifted.”

Irish Dogs for the Disabled aims to assist people with disabilities to enjoy a greater independence and a better quality of life through the provision of specially trained Assistance Dogs.

THE second Building of Hope team to arrive in Mombassa in Kenya have been starting work at 4am and major progress has been made on the train- ing centre for parishioners of Cranny priest, Fr Martin Keane.

‘The heat is incredible in the after- noon so the volunteers have been get- ting out and on-site extra early to get the job done,” said project organiser, Olive Halpin.

Volunteer Tony McMahon from Lissycasey said that the team effort is “amazing”’.

“From roofing to kerbing, to elec- tronics and anything else that needs to be done, everyone is pitching in. There’s a massive willingness from everyone. Everyone mucks in. And the weather is absolutely roasting.”

Electrician Sean Hull, also from Lissycasey, said that “nearly every- one helped with the roof for the first days and now that that’s done, we’ve split into different groups and started some inside work and putting down pavements. It’s all go.”

The roofing is now finished and some of the rooms have been plas- tered with an amount of kerbing and paving also laid.

Volunteers have also been meeting the people of Fr Martin’s parish and learning how their efforts will change lives of the people of Migombani.

Olive said the Cranny priest is “de- lighted with the work and the people

here are amazed that so many people would make this journey to better their lives. It’s such an amazing ex- perience. The volunteers will never forget it and the people of Migom- bani certainly won’t.”

With one of the most difficult parts of the job now behind them – roof- ing in the blazing sun – the next two groups of volunteers will still have plenty to do, with plumbing tiling more electrics, painting, decorating

and a massive clean-up all to come still.

Many of the volunteers brought specialist tools with them but some of the most ordinary items are the most impossible to get in Mombas- sa, said Olive.

“We’re making a special appeal to anyone coming in the fourth group to try to bring paint rollers and paint trays – we just can’t get them here and the painting will be so much slower

and harder if we don’t have them. Please, please bring some out.”

On February 14, in Ballybeg Com- munity Centre there will be a post- poned “Turkey Trot’ to raise money for volunteer Rob O’Neill. It starts at lpm and everyone is welcome.

RECENTLY I drove a cream version of the new Mini First. It’s very like the Mini One, only cheaper.

It was lovely, but at this stage of my life I’m probably too old for a Mini. The cream colour, did attract many envious glances. But then the curios onlookers could have been saying to themselves ‘what’s that auld fella do- ing driving his daughter’s car?’

However, it’s said that you are never too old for anything in life. The Mini has always been a bit pricey, but this Mini First is very affordable, with starting prices now reduced to at €18,180. And if you want to take ‘to- tal loving care’ of your new Mini, for a once-off payment of €250 you can buy a service and maintenance pack- age called “TLC’ covering the car for five years.

Since taking over Mini nine years ago BMW has retained all the old features and added a few new ones. Now they have introduced their auto stop/start technology where the car cuts out if stopped at traffic lights. You simply start it again by press- ing the clutch. BMW say it definitely saves fuel and C02 emissions are only 128, which equates to €104 road tax.

Those front headlamps seem to be smiling at you as you approach the car. Inside the seating is natu- rally a bit lower than your normal family car. Once seated you cannot but notice the massive speedometer

which dominates the dash. And if the speedometer is not big enough you also get a digital speed counter just above the steering wheel. So no excuse for breaking the speed limit.

The dash is very busy and at first the area could seem like the cockpit of a small airplane, there are so many toggle switches. The controls for the windows are included on the dash, which takes a bit of getting used to. The radio on/off and volume is con- trolled by one simple button and it’s easy enough to scroll up and down the wavelengths.

In the back there is room for two small adults, or maybe three chil-

dren. The leg room for the back seat passengers will depend on the size of the people in the front and how far back the front seats are pushed. The boot is naturally small and no spare wheel, just a repair kit.

You probably remember the old tel- evision ads where they crammed sev- eral people into a Mini. I think the world record is 21 and it was set in Malaysia a few years back.

According to independent UK ex- perts the Mini First should retain 50% of its value after three years or 30,000 miles. Also I think people are always on the look out for a good second hand Mini.

You get a six-speed manual gear- box, but it takes 13.2 seconds to get from zero to 100/kmh. Still on the open road the car can certainly move with the best of them. I drove the 1.4 petrol version, but if you have extra cash to spend there are lots of extras available. The only complaints I got were from family members, who hate two-door cars and the hassle of getting out to allow other passengers enter and exit the rear seats.

So no matter what age you are, have a test drive. If you are young and fe- male you will love it. If you are older like me it might help to bring you back happy memories of your youth.

Road funding not nearly enough

THE majestic view from the Cliffs of Moher stretched all the way to Sanya in the southern Hainan Province of China last week as a delegation from the Cliffs of Moher Experience took part in a special trade mission look- ing for new tourism business.

Representatives from the cliffs, along with a number of other tour- ism partners from around Ireland, were involved in the trade mission which was organised together with Visit Britain and Tourism Ireland in China.

The trip consisted of a number of face-to-face workshops, presenta-

tions and networking events with influential Chinese travel agents, the trade mission provided an excel- lent platform for the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre and other participants to showcase their tourism product and to communicate what is unique about the island of Ireland.

Through the course of the two-day mission, face-to-face meetings were conducted with more than 60 key Chinese decision-makers, encour- aging them to include the island of Ireland in their future holiday pro- eae DOOD ENLACE

‘The majority of overseas tourists to the island of Ireland continue to come from the core markets of Brit-

ain, mainland Europe and North America and, while this will con- tinue, it is important that we expand our focus beyond these markets and look to the long-term opportunities presented by the markets in Asia like China,’ said Jim Paul, Tourism Ire- land’s Head of New and Developing Markets.

“Britain 1s a very popular desti- nation for Chinese travellers, so it makes sense for Tourism Ireland to co-operate with Visit Britain, to tar- get those Chinese visitors travelling to Great Britain and encourage them to visit the island of Ireland as part OM slo pum nul Oe

“Tourism Ireland believes that the

Asian outbound travel market is set for significant growth in the coming years. In particular, China offers sig- nificant business potential for tour- ism enterprises around the island of Ireland. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisa- tion (UNWTO), the Asia-Pacific re- gion will be one of the fastest-grow- ing outbound regions, expanding by more than 6.5 per cent on average over the next I5 years.

“Visitors from markets like China stay twice as long as the average hol- idaymaker, are more likely to travel throughout the island and make a significant economic contribution to numerous tourism sectors.”

A LITTLE taste of Italy is now be- ing cooked to order every night in Doolin following the opening of the La Strana Coppia Restaurant in the village.

The new restaurant, which is owned and managed by chef pair Carlo Sa- gnotti and Ornella Testa, opened last month and, despite the recession, it has been proving that there is always an appetite for good food in north Clare. They promise a mixture of simple and complex foods, all taken from their native region of Piedmon- te and their home town Turin.

“It’s the cuisine of the poor and the cuisine of the kings. Torino and Pied- monte, our native land, was the first capital of Italy in 1860 and the home of the Savoia royal family, crowned by the Alps high mountains where poor people lived. In the restaurant people will discover completely new dishes, with daring and unusual com- binations of ingredients you’ve never tasted in Ireland,’ said Carlo.

Carlo and Ornella moved to Ire- land last year and spent a number of months searching out the perfect lo- cation. Despite the difficult econom- ic conditions, they are hopeful their new venture will be a success.

“We were looking for a place in Ire- land that would suit all of our needs and our ideas and I think Doolin was always the place. After all we both love Doolin so we were happy to find a place here,” continued Carlo.

“We moved to Ireland back in June and since then we have been look- ing around, trying to find the perfect je e-Terer

“We think we have found it now. We have a very big menu, both dish-

es that people might know but also some more unusual recipes.

“We are optimistic about the res- taurant. We know that we are selling good authentic Italian food. We have imported it directly from Italy so we believe in what we are doing. So ina way it doesn’t matter if we are opti- mistic or not.

“But of course we are optimistic. We believe that it might be slow, but we think that we can have a good place in Doolin with this restaurant, because of the quality of our food. We won’t be an Italian takeaway serving just pizza and things like that. It’s all about the quality of the food.”

For more about La Strana Coppia

or to read a sample menu check out http://italianrestaurantdoolin.com or ring 087 7465982.