Month: November 2006

THE €2 million expansion of a filling station and shop in Shannon has been put on hold because SkyCourt has refused consent for the development.

Local businessman Darragh O’Connor closed his Texaco filling station and convenience shop a month ago and had commenced its redevelopment. This was to incorporate knocking and rebuilding the site and the opening of a Spar store on the premises.

The project was to include the construction of a shop, treble the size of that which existed previously. Mr O’Connor had planned to locate the retail unit on the ground floor, with offices and store rooms upstairs.

The business has been operated by the O’Connor family for the past 30 years. Mr O’Connor was granted planning permission four years ago for this development. It is part of the SkyCourt centre complex. Texaco have leased the site from the town centre management company.

However, SkyCourt has now informed Mr O’Connor that they are “refusing consent” for the development. In response to a query from The Clare People , SkyCourt issued a brief statement on the issue, stating, “In general, SkyCourt welcomes the development of new units and the expansion of existing outlets at our shopping centre in Shannon. However, in this instance, regrettably we were obliged to refuse consent for reasons of good estate management and in the interests of overall trade at the centre.”

A spokesman said, “It is not an objection per se. It is a refusal to grant consent. The management company is refusing consent.”

Mr O’Connor, who took over the business from his parents Al and Mary 10 years ago, expressed frustration at this development taking place at such a late stage.

“I think it is a shame that somebody can come and object. I had expected to be off for five months working on this project and had intended to open in March or April next year, but it is gone back at least two months now,” he said. Mr O’Connor said he may now have no option but to go to arbitration in an effort to sort out the issue.Local councillor Tony Mulcahy (FG) said SkyCourt’s refusal to consent was a shame.

“This family have been in business in the town for many years. It is disgraceful that anyone would object to someone growing their business.”

ANGER is growing among Clare farmers over the implementation of the nitrates regulations. A full IFA ban on unannounced Department of Agriculture inspections took effect yesterday, November 27.

There was a heated public meeting hosted by delegates of the Department of Agriculture and Teagasc and attended by more than 200 farmers in Ennis last Thursday.

The meeting was designed to inform Clare farmers on how best to conform to the controversial new regulations, but instead it prompted widespread confusion and anger among the farmers in attendance.

“There are so many areas and it is so complicated that a lot of farmers don’t have a grasp of it. Even some of the people on the stand at the meeting, well, we were not happy with some of the explanations that they gave. They were not able to explain it 100 per cent,” said Clare IFA President, Seamus Murphy.

“You can’t expect farmers to be up to date on something like this when it comes at them from out of the blue. Every farm is different and these rules apply differently from farm to farm. The department should put in a lot more effort to getting the information across to farmers on how this will work.”

Should farmers run into difficulty and fail sections of these on-the-spot tests, they stand to lose on a portion of the Single Farm Payment, which is the lifeblood of many Clare farms.

“This is quite a big deal,” continued Mr Murphy. “This is the only income on a lot of farms. We also feel that when inspectors leave, that farmer should be given a signed receipt on how the inspection went.

“At the moment, you don’t even know how the inspection went or even what areas of your farm have been checked until you receive the letter in the post.

“We don’t know what they are looking for and we don’t like these on-the-spot inspections.”

Last week, the IFA urged its members to refuse access to the farms to nitrate and cross-compliance inspectors who fail to give farmers any notice of inspections.

“We wouldn’t have a problem if they gave us 48 hours’ notice before inspections,” continued Mr Murphy. “There is a lot of concern and fear of the unknown.”

STAFF at the Cliffs of Moher visitor centre are to receive specialist firstaid training to operate the room provided by a US couple who lost their first-born baby at the Cliffs of Moher last July.

A County Council spokesman confirmed that all staff at the new €31.5 million Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience will receive first-aid training with two to four personnel receiving advanced training.

Last Friday, Delia and Kelly Stokes travelled to the Cliffs from their home in Phoenix, Arizona to thank all the staff who came to their aid last July when they lost their baby, Nicholas, at the site.

The couple pledged $86,000 towards the provision of a first-aid facility in memory of their prematurely born son. Clare County Council confirmed that it would be naming the new first-aid room the ‘Nicholas Room’ as part of its new visitor centre.

During the visit, Kelly recalled how the women working at the Cliffs centre showed no fear when he told them that his wife needed help.

“When I approached them at the desk and told them what was happening, they just did what they had to do. They were very compassionate, very comforting, told us everything was going to be okay, not to panic and that was the biggest blessing of all.”

Delia said she didn’t think there would have been a different outcome even if there was a dedicated first-aid room in place at the cliffs last July.

“I was 25 weeks pregnant and so, even if I was in a hospital, I don’t think it would have turned out any different. Our focus now is to take something positive out of our tragedy and the opening of the new visitor centre gave us the perfect opportunity to be part of something good.

“Our son is Irish. Nicholas lived for a short time, but I think he is having a greater impact than some people have in an entire lifetime. That is very powerful for us and we feel very blessed by it.”

The couple are due to return to the US today (Tuesday).

A CLARE businessman has told a conference on Radon that six out of eight houses that had been fitted with a radon barrier showed that the barrier had ruptured.

Anthony McLaughlin of the Clarecastlebased Radon Aware Group told the Galway conference that his company had developed a system to check for leaks after construction.

He was speaking just days after it was revealed that internationally, between six and 15 per cent of deaths from lung cancer could be attributed to exposure to Radon, with Ireland coming in at 13 per cent, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

“Builders kindly let us survey eight homes post construction and leaks were found in six,” said McLaughlin.

“This is not surprising as there has never been a physical system to help the builder.”

McLaughlin’s company can arrange “tests of the indoor radon level using the Landauer laboratories in the US an they can also test the membrane for leaks, using specially adapted equipment that I brought in from the UK, and undertake remediation work if necessary.”

The leak detection equipment uses a long flexible hose, which is inserted into the cavity under the house. It pumps in gas and smoke, and if smoke appears, it confirms the presence of a leak or leaks. Membranes can then be repaired.” Radon is a colourless, odourless gas which is harmless in the open air but can build up to dangerous concentrations when trapped in a house.

THE Health Service Executive expects the first phase of the renovation project at the MidWestern Regional Hospital, Ennis to cost at least double the €20.8 million approved by the Government.

Consultants who carried out the cost benefit analysis on behalf of the HSE have estimated that the long awaited Phase 1A will cost up to €40 million.

The HSE called for the analysis of the cost of the project last August after it emerged that the first phase would cost in excess of €30 million. The increase in cost was a result of changes to hygiene and other requirements in hospitals.

Phase 1A of the project was also extended, adding to the expense, to include extra medical and surgical beds.

Minister Micheál Martin announced the funding for the hospital development as far back as 2002 when he was Minister for Health.

In 2004, Minister Mary Harney approved the funding and a design team was put in place. It was hoped that the hospital project would be at planning stage by last summer. One election on and the project has finally got the approval of the HSE to go to planning stage.

Minister for State Tony Killeen said the HSE approval was an obvious indication that there will be no scaling down of services at the General Hospital.

“Clearly the fact that the project has passed this analysis is very positive and it addresses many of the concerns raised in recent months. An expenditure of this level shows there is commitment to services additional to what are currently available,” he said.

THE country’s first ‘priest-less parish’ once more has its own parish priest after a gap of eight years.

The Bishop of Killaloe, Dr Willie Walsh has appointed Fr Michael Hogan as parish priest for KillanenaFlagmount.

Fr Hogan has been parish priest at Feakle and will now operate as parish priest to both parishes.

In July 1998, Dr Walsh came under fire from a number of parishioners after he announced that the outgoing parish priest, Fr John Slattery would not be replaced.

However, the ‘priestless parish’ of Killanena-Flagmount was soon touted as a model for Catholic Church structures in the new millennium.

Now, Dr Walsh has announced the return of a parish priest for Killanena-Flagmount, though he pointed out that Fr Hogan will not be living in the parish.

“Since the departure of the resident priest, the parish council at Killanena-Flagmount effectively took control of the running of the parish and that will continue.

“Fr Hogan will take responsibility for the direct pastoral care of the parishes and the parish council will retain responsibility for finance, buildings and so on.”

On Flagmount-Killanena becoming a priest-less parish in 1998, the old parish council, whose membership had remained unchanged since 1981, was dissolved.

In response, 102, or a fifth of the parish, applied for membership to the new 16-member Council.

“I am very keen that the parish council would continue in its work. The people of the area over the past number of years have responded very generously to the challenge.”

Dr Walsh said that the re-appointment of a parish priest “should not be seen as a step-backwards” in the Church identifying a new model in parish structures.

“Rather, it should be seen as how best the needs of both parishes can be met. The model in FlagmountKillanena allows Fr Hogan to focus completely on providing direct pastoral care.”

Pastoral council member, Mary McMahon told The Clare People yesterday: “We are delighted to have a parish priest once more. Fr Hogan is most welcome.

“He is very with it and very positive in his thinking.

“We have learned an awful lot over the past eight years. The many new things that we had to do without a priest were no big deal in the end and we got on with things.”

FRUSTRATED Clare parents, who are already struggling to care for their disabled children, have been forced to take on the role of health service provider by seeking a qualified speech therapist as far away as Canada.

Amid claims that there are not enough qualified speech therapists in the country until next year’s graduates, The Clare Crusader’s charity has done what the Government has failed to do. The group has located and employed a qualified therapist.

Lorne McLash, a speech and language pathologist, will begin work in Ennis this January treating children with Cerebral Palsy.

A speech and language pathologist is “technically the same in roots” as a speech therapist, Mr McLash explained.

The difference with Mr McLash’s qualification, however, is he has a dual degree including audiology.

“As we are seeing these children, we can assess if the ears are functional as well,” he explained.

Mr McLash is not convinced that the extra graduates next year will solve the Irish problem.

He said there was no shortage in the private sector, indicating that competitive salaries and working conditions needed to be addressed in the public sector.

Early intervention is also critical according to the expert.

“If we wait until they are four, they have had those four years, and one of the things to me that is crucial is the brain is so pliable when it’s young. As they develop, the brain becomes structured and the neural connections aren’t necessarily developed. So I think we have lost a huge opportunity if we don’t get them when they are young and so we are working trying to fight against the growth and development,” he told The Clare People .

He said the children could have advanced more if they had speech therapy.

“They may not be speaking, but I think they may have been able to express their wants and needs.”

The aim of The Clare Crusader’s clinic will be to encourage communication.

“Getting children to communicate – not just with family, but with the whole community – their basic wants and needs. The children are isolated if communications are underdeveloped,” he said.

During the next two years, the Canadian plans to set the foundations of a clinic that will be sustainable.

“I don’t want this to be a two-year term and then, all of a sudden, there are no more services. I want to ensure what we are developing is a sustainable project.”

ENNIS Town Council revealed yesterday that it was met with a demand of €1.7 million to settle an access dispute before the case went to the High Court this year.

Last week, The Clare People revealed that the Kennedy family of Francis Street, Ennis was to receive €300,000 plus legal costs arising from an access dispute that stopped the council proceeding with a €1 million land-sale adjacent to Glor.

The council is to pay the family €200,000, while the developers, Ray Staunton and Kieran Flanagan are to pay €100,000. Last year, the two secured planning permission for an apartment block on the site, but could not proceed as a result of the dispute.

Last week, James Kennedy said the council was made aware of a dispute relating to the site on the morning of the auction and criticised their failure to settle the dispute.

However, a statement from the council yesterday claimed they were forced into bringing High Court proceedings in 2004 because of the “unacceptable demands” made by the Kennedy family.

The council said numerous attempts were made to reach a resolution, culminating in their solicitors sending an open letter of offer to the Kennedys’ solicitors in June, 2005.

“No response was received to that letter which contained, as part of the settlement terms, the provision of access to the Kennedy house which was ultimately accepted by the Kennedys in settlement of the proceedings.

The council stated that the eventual settlement avoided a further 10 days in court and that costs associated with the case would be funded from the €1 million land sale.

Yesterday, Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) and Cllr Donal Bearra (Green Party) raised questions over the original land sale, while Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said that it was “very serious” that there won’t be much left over from the €1 million land sale.

Town Manager, Tom Coughlan said: “The comments attributed to the three councillors seem to respond to an inaccurate and slanted article which appeared in last week’s Clare People.

“The council solicitor expressed concern to the newspaper about the article’s content.”

When contacted last night, James Kennedy said that he was declining to comment for the moment.

A SENIOR member of Clare County Council has hit out at what he called scaremongering over the council’s €31.5 million Cliffs of Moher visitor centre.

The chair of the council’s Special Policy Committee (SPC) for Economic Development, Cllr Richard Nagle (FF) said, “There has been all sorts of scaremongering over the project.”

The council is currently facing a shortfall of €3 million over the project and is seeking sponsorship for ‘naming opportunities’ at the Cliffs.

Addressing a meeting of the SPC earlier this week, Cllr Nagle said, “I have no doubt that the shortfall will be addressed. The project is on time, and on budget will open in January with an official opening in early February.”

Cllr Nagle expressed his annoyance, “at so much negative publicity” surrounding the project, in contrast to how positively the project had been received overseas.

“It has the potential to create an additional 100 jobs that should provide national headlines. It will be of huge economic benefit to the western seaboard.”

Cllr Nagle said that with 700,000 visitors per annum and projections of 1 million visitors each year, “I have no doubt that the project will be financially sustainable,” the councillor said.

Separately, the project leader of the scheme, Ger Dollard said this week that, “While there are some issues which require to be addressed and understandably so in a project of this scale, profile and complexity, the council is absolutely convinced that the Cliffs of Moher New Visitor Experience will be a development that will have far reaching benefits for the north Clare area and indeed for tourism at a national and international level.

“The project is now at a stage where the physical structure has been completed and the building covered back to blend into the landscape.

“The development looks exceptionally well on site and fulfils perfectly the original architects concept for the site.

“The concentration now is on fit out of the various elements within the building, particularly the Atlantic Edge exhibition, and the completion of the external works.

“The charges proposed for the development are exceptionally reasonable and I have no doubt will prove to be so when visitors see for themselves the finished product and the new and improved visitor facilities and management within the overall site,” he said.

A MASSIVE rescue operation was launched last Friday for a group of surfers who got into difficulty while surfing the elusive Aill na Searracht wave underneath the Cliffs of Moher.

The operation, involving 100 people, was launched after a group of surfers got into difficulty during “tow-in” of the 30-foot-high monster wave.

Five surfers, including two with jet-skis, set out from Doolin on Friday afternoon.

The alarm was raised after 2.20pm when the Irish Coastguard helicopter and local rescue services, including the Doolin Coastguard, were launched.

Three surfers got into difficulty and were nearly smashed into the cliff underneath O’Briens Tower. They took refuge on the flaggy shore underneath the cliff.

As rescuers prepared to descend the steep cliff to reach the surfers, they saw two of the men swimming back out to sea to try and catch another wave.

When a coastguard helicopter flew over the men to airlift them to safety, they refused to be rescued.

It later emerged that the men were unwilling to leave their surfboards and be airlifted to safety.

A short time later, a rescue boat from Doolin reached the two men and took them on board. The third man was later picked up by another member of the group on a jetski and brought to safety.

“This is a very dangerous place and someone is going to be killed here before long,” said a member of the rescue services from the scene on Friday.

“It is very easy to get smashed onto the rocks and killed. The famous Aill na Searracht wave is becoming better known around the world now and we are afraid that someone will be killed here.”

The rescue operation involved the Doolin Coastguard, a search team from Kilkee, the Aran Islands Lifeboat and the Shannon-based Irish Coastguard helicopter.

“There were up to 100 people involved in this rescue,” said a member of the Coastguard.

“The staff at Valentia Coastguard Radio were also tied up with this rescue for some time.

“It was a huge waste of resources and the greatest insult is that two people refused to be rescued by the helicopter.

“At the end of the day, they were safe and that is the main thing, but anything could have happened during the rescue to one of our people.” COASTGUARD warnings are unlikely to stop surfers from taking on the Aill na Searracht wave under the Cliffs of Moher even after this weekend’s near disaster.

Two surfers who refused to be winched to safety by the Irish Coastguard helicopter when they were told they would have to leave their boards behind were described as “very foolish” by a prominent member of the Doolin Coastguard yesterday.

“The crew of the helicopter and the winch-man were risking their own lives in manoeuvering to rescue the three,” said Mattie Shannon of the Doolin Coastguard.

“It was an extreme measure to go in there and has been tried only once before. It was a life-threatening situation and the surfers refused a helping hand.

“They were very foolish to refuse and it shows an extreme view of the value placed on a surfboard.”

According to the Doolin Coastguard, the three surfers had only two boards between them. They were rescued only when another surfer left from the shore with two boards and battled the surf, with the boardless surfer, as far as the Doolin Coastguard rescue boat.

“It was very brave of the man to go out and come back for his friend, but it was very foolish – they could have been winched to safety earlier,” continued Mr Shannon. “I’ve no doubt that they are strong swimmers, but they must recognise when they are in danger and not put their own lives and the lives of others at risk.”

However, according to one prominent Lahinch-based surfer, last Friday’s near accident is unlikely to deter people from surfing the Aill na Searracht wave.

“It is dangerous, there are no two ways about that, but it is also one of the very best waves anywhere in the world and people are not going to stop surfing it,” said the local surfer, who asked not to be identified.

“It is certainly one of the best waves Ireland. The people who go out and surf that wave are all on top of their game. It is at the very extreme end of the scale and the only people who go out there are surfers who are 100 per cent fit and have been surfing big waves for many years.”

Mr Shannon said that one of the three men was showing the early signs of hypothermia when rescued.