This article is from page 12 of the 2014-10-28 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
ONE OF Lahinch’s oldest buildings, Sluagh Hall, is set to be demolished later this year according to plans lodged with Clare County Council.
According to documents lodged with the local authority by the Lahinch Golf Club, the 80-year-old hall will be completely demolished with all inert materials from the building set to be crushed and then used to raise the group level of part of the old army barracks.
Sluagh Hall, which was built in 1939, was originally the main dining hall for the Irish Army when they came to train in Lahinch but has been used for a number of activities by the local community over the years.
It was transformed into a dancehall during the Irish show band era of the 1950’s and ‘60’s and was the home of Irish League basketball in Clare during the 1980’s and early 1990. In more recent years the hall has hosted a number of productions by the Ennistymon Choral Society and other community organisations.
Sluagh and the Army Barracks, which lie on a prime stretch of land between the Old Course and Championship Course in Lahinch, was purchased from the Irish Defense Forces by Lahinch Golf Course for € 560,000 earlier this year.
At the time a last ditch attempt was made by members of local community to raise enough money to purchase the property on behalf of the local community, but the attempt was unsuccessful.
Local campaigners had hoped that the land, which borders the Lahinch Community Field, could be retained in community ownership and developed as a community centre and amenity park.
The Lahinch Army Barracks was f rst earmarked for sale by the Mc Carthy Report in 2009, but was not one of the 10 military properties put forward for immediate sale. At the time it was described as a “multi-million euro” property.
Plans to demolish the hall were lodged with Clare County Council last week and a planning decision is not expected to be made until early December.
The application does not give any indication of future plans for the barracks.