This article is from page 4 of the 2006-09-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
CLARE County Council is set for an estimated €2.25 million windfall with the proposed sale of nine acres of land at Ballycasey, on the outskirts of Shannon town.
Local councillors, Patricia McCarthy (Ind) and Tony Mulcahy (FG), yesterday called for the proceeds of the sale to be channelled into projects mooted for Shannon,
The land is up for public auction on October 20 and the site is described as being a prime location at the entrance to Shannon town, the international airport and the Shannon Free Zone. It has substantial road frontage and is close to a large residential area.
The zoning of the land is also expected to increase its value as it is zoned for a mix of uses, while all services are located close to the site.
Cllr McCarthy said that the money from the sale could go towards local projects, including the proposed Arts Centre and other recreational facilities.
Fine Gael general election candidate Tony Mulcahy said he had no issue with the sale because the council would receive a good figure for the land, but the area councillors should have been briefed on the council’s intentions.
He said that the council zoned the land for mixed use only four days before it was advertised for sale.
Cllr Mulcahy said that there was a real need to invest in recreational facilities in the southern end of Shannon where, currently, there is a lot of development.
The proposed sale is the second land sale that the council has been involved in over the past 18 months.
In April of last year, the council sold a two-acre site at Ballymurtagh Cross for €500,000.
The site was purchased by Managing Director of Beaux Walk Properties, Barry Boland, in trust for the Shannon Railway Company.
Mr Boland made the purchase to secure lands reserved for the route of the €60 million rail-link into Shannon airport.
The council compulsorily purchased the site from Shannon Development as part of the N19 road improvements into Shannon.
The Compulsory Purchase Order related to 4.23 acres and the recent sale by the council concerns 1.9 acres of land left over from the road improvements.