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SHANNON Airport should be separated from Dublin Airport Authority control and placed under the management of a new company drawn from public bodies like Clare County Council and Shannon Development.

This is the chief recommendation given to Transport Minister, Leo Varadkar by Booz and Company – the team on international consultants hired by the Government to come up with a workable blueprint for the three state airports.

This landmark recommendation follows on from a month-long consultation process when interest groups and individuals were invited to make submissions to the consultants ahead of a November 30 deadline.

Now, The Clare People has learned that the report submitted by Booz and Company to Minister Varadkar in the past week has backed the biggest change in the airport’s 75-year history, ahead of a formal government decision that will be made at Cabinet level early in the new year.

Booz and Company have told Minister Varadkar that Shannon Airport, which has run up accumulated losses of € 24m over the past three years, is unsustainable in the current model.

The consultants warned that Shannon’s high cost base, plummeting passenger numbers that are expected to dip below 1.5m in 2011 meant that it might not have “a viable future” if the current model was maintained.

As a result the recommendation is that Shannon will be separated from the DAA, with responsibility transferred to a new public holding company, with business interests coming in to take over the management of the airport, with local public bodies like Clare County Council and Shannon Airport also having an “ownership” stake in the former hub of the aviation world.

According to Booz and Company, Shannon should maintain its international airport status, but that it that extra business ventures would have to be developed to boost traffic numbers and activity at the airport that last year saw passenger numbers decline by 37 per cent.

The consultants have highlighted the development of cargo traffic as key, a prospect that has been brought closer by Lynxs Cargo decision to establish a hub in Shannon.

Other suggestions that have been identified in the report tabled with Minister Varadakar include developing aeronautical businesses at the Shannon Free Zone and private plane traffic through the airport.

The current status at Shannon has been in place since 2004 – a half-way house whereby Cork and Shannon have their own boards but have limited autonomy from the DAA.

When he launched the consultation process on Shannon’s future in October, Minister Varadkar said the current status quo at the airport “cannot continue indefinitely”.

A MAN and a woman bravely fought of a hatchet-wielding raider who broke into a business on the Kilrush Road in Ennis last week.

The incident occurred between 6pm and 6.15pm at Coote’s Shop last Thursday (December 15) when two men wearing balaclavas entered the premises. One of the men was brandishing a hatchet and the other was carrying a blue bag.

A woman working behind the counter was threatened and told to hand over money from the till.

The woman used a sweeping brush to fight off the intruders who caused damage to a number of items in the shop including the cash register and credit card payment machine.

An elderly shop employee, who was in the rear of the premises, came to the assistance of the woman and together they managed to force the intruders from the shop empty handed. The woman did suffer bruising to her arm during the incident.

A Garda spokesman explained, “The commotion was heard by an employee in the back and he entered the shop to see what was happening. The raiders were very aggressive and assaulted both employees who were injured as a result.”

He continued, “The man with the hatchet kept banging it off the counter and damaged the till and some charity boxes. The culprits fled empty handed running out the backdoor towards Eire Óg hurling pitch”.

Gardaí have released a picture of blue bag left by the raiders at the scene. They are appealing with anybody who might recognise the item or have information about the break in to contact Ennis Garda Station at 065 6848183.

Gardaí are also investigating a robbery that took place at Lakeview Stores in Ballyalla on Friday (December 16).

At around 9.35pm three men entered the premises. One man was carrying a knife. They knocked the owner to the ground while two of them stole the till and then fled on foot out the door. The owner was not injured. The raiders are described as follows (1) Wearing a balaclava, 5’ 8”, strong build, carrying a knife; (2) Tall slim build, late teens; (3) Very small, around 14 years-old. Slim build, wearing a blue jacket.

A car was parked about 200 yards away facing out at the housing estate of Radharc na Lacha with the inside light on. Gardaí believe the raiders left the scene in this car.

A FORMER Fine Gael Senator and former running mate of Taoiseach Enda Kenny has been appointed the district court judge for Clare.

Westport native Patrick Durcan, who was appointed to the Seanad in 1983, ran unsuccessfully for the Dáil on four occasions – 1981, twice in 1982 and 1987 – and served a term on Westport Town Council from 1999 to 2004.

Mr Durcan, who was recently appointed a district court judge, will replace Judge Joseph Mangan who retired in October.

He has practised as a solicitor in Westport for several years, prior to his recent judicial appointment.

He studied at University College Dublin and the Law Society and qualified as a solicitor in 1973.

Mr Durcan is not likely to take up the role as district court judge in Clare until March as he will spend the next few months in judicial training in Dublin. In the meantime, the county’s district courts will be presided over by judges from a panel. Since Judge Mangan’s retirement, Judge Aeneas McCarthy has presided over most of the district courts in the county.

A spokesman for the Courts Service told The Clare People that a decision to locate a newly-appointed judge in a district court area “is unusual but it’s not unheard of”.

The President of the Clare Law Association, solicitor Mairéad Doyle said the new judge will be most welcome to the county.

“We are delighted at the appointment this week of Judge Patrick Durcan to the District Court in Clare as successor to Judge Joseph Mangan,” said Ms Doyle.

“Judge Durcan had a long and distinguished career in the district court in Mayo and as a native of the West of Ireland he will be familiar with the type of cases that will be coming before him during the course of his work here in Clare. We welcome Judge Durcan to Clare and look forward to working with him,” she added.

Meanwhile, changes to court sittings across Clare have been rubberstamped and will come into effect in January, as part of a centralisation process.

Under the changes, there will be specific dates for crime hearings, separate dates for civil hearings and other listed dates for hearings related to traffic offences. Crime sittings will take place on Wednesdays, with road traffic matters and civil cases heard on Fridays. Also, most of the hearings will be centralised to Ennis. Kilrush cases will continue to be heard in the west Clare town, while cases from north Clare are to be moved to Ennis. Shannon cases are already heard in Ennis.

East Clare district court sittings will return to Killaloe in January, for a trial period of three months. O’Donovan’s bar and restaurant, Derg Court, Ballina, Killaloe, will host the sittings from January 3.

The court will sit on the first Tuesday of every month and will also sit on extra days – on the six second Tuesdays (January, March, May, July, October and December).

It will sit at O’Donovan’s for three months initially, with the option of extending the lease on a monthly basis.

TWO women found in possession of a petrol bomb in an Ennis pub last year have been placed on probation.

Evelyn McNamara (34) with an address at 19 Ros an Oir, Ennis and Jacinta McNamara (39) with an address at 45 Oak Park, Ennis, both appeared at Ennis District Court on Friday.

Each woman was charged with having in their custody, a petrol bomb, at the Lifford Bar, Newbridge Road, Ennis on May 31 (2010) contrary to Section 4 of the Criminal Damage Act.

Judge Aeneas McCarthy described the possession of a petrol bomb as a “very serious charge”.

In the case of Evelyn McNamara, Judge McCarthy placed her on probation for a period of 12 months, on condition that she attend all appointments as directed by the probation and welfare services.

He said this would include attending a day hospital and AA meetings. He granted the State and the probation and welfare services liberty to re-enter the case if there is non-compliance with the order.

Judge McCarthy said, “She seems to be doing well at the moment and I hope that continues”. In the case of Jacinta McNamara, Judge McCarthy said she too had been charged with possession of a petrol bomb.

Solicitor for Jacinta McNamara, Tara Godfrey, told the court that her client is attending adult education.

She urged Judge McCarthy to take the course of action recommended by the probation services.

Judge McCarthy ordered that Jacinta McNamara be placed on probation for 12 months. He ordered that she attend all appointments as directed by the probation and welfare services. He granted the State and the probation services liberty to re-enter the matter if there is non-compliance.

Judge McCarthy said he made the order with “reservations” but that it had been the recommendation of the probation and welfare services.

A TAXI driver in Shannon sustained multiple injuries in an assault after a dispute arose over a fare, a court has been told.

Arising out of the incident, Diarmuid Devanney (22) with an address at Cúl Na Gréine, Shannon, pleaded guilty to a charge of assault causing harm. Inspector Tom Kennedy told Shannon District Court on Thursday that the taxi driver was hit from behind with a crutch by the defendant, on February 20 last.

He said that the accused, his younger brother and a friend were in a taxi in Shannon.

He said that they were brought to the town centre and didn’t have the money to pay the fare.

“The taxi driver got out of the taxi and held on to one of them,” he said.

He said that while the taxi driver held on to the accused’s brother, the accused “assaulted him with a crutch”.

He said that the taxi driver sustained several injuries including bruises to the head, hands and arms, cuts to the lips and mouth, while he had a finger broken.

“It was minor enough in the Section 3 (assault causing harm) category,” said Inspector Kennedy.

Defending solicitor Jenny Fitzgibbon said that there was a misunderstanding on the night.

She said that her client’s brother had got out of the taxi to go to the bank machine to get money to pay the fare. “They realised they didn’t have money,” she said.

“There was a bit of a misunder- standing. I’m not sure if it was cultural or language,” she said.

She said that her client’s actions were “reprehensible” and he had “gotten out of control”, adding that he was “very protective” of his younger brother.

She said that her client has “very, very serious health concerns”.

Judge Aeneas McCarthy imposed a fine of € 300.

CLARE County Council services will be seriously affected in 2012 if income levels from the collection of rates that have been in the Draft Budget are not reached.

This worry has been sounded out by Clare County Manager Tom Coughlan this week in his financial report to councillors which has proposed to leave rates for the coming year at 2011 levels.

Mr Coughlan has confirmed that despite his admission of the fact that there “is an increasing level of vacant rated properties in the county” there will be no decrease in the rate that will remain at 72.99.

The decision not to cut rates for hard-pressed business had been blamed on the Government cut-backs that has seen Clare’s share of the Local Government Fund decreased by 5.45 per cent for 2012.

And, the county manager has warned that only by projecting for a greater level of efficiency in the running of the council’s financial affairs has the local authority been able to avoid increasing rates levels in 2012.

“Due to the fact that the household charge is being paid into the Local Development Fund and in the light of the continuing reduction in local government funding and income from local services, it has not been possible to provide for a decrease in rates in this Draft Budget,” Mr Coughlan has revealed.

“It is proposed to meet the ongoing reductions in funding through achieving efficiencies, as in previous years, and consequently an increase in the level of commercial rates is not provided for.

“The issues of a reduction in rates has been considered at a number of council meetings during 2011, and the consequence of such a reduction would have made clear to the elected members at those meetings,” added Mr Coughlan.

However, in acknowledging the hardships being endured by ratepayers, the county manager has pledged a flexible approach when it comes to collections during 2012, albeit the money will have to be collected to ensure that there will be not cutbacks to council services earmarked for the year.

“Clare County Council is acutely aware of the financial difficulties which our ratepayers are experiencing,” said Mr Coughlan, “and we are committed to adopting a practical approach in terms of facilitating ratepayers.

“However, I must emphasise that if the council does not receive the income which is identified in this budget, the maintenance of the levels of services which are planned in 2012 would be impacted,” he added.

STAFF were optimistic yesterday that work on a new building for Ennis National School will start by Easter 2012. It follows confirmation from the Department of Education and Skills that the school can precede to construction next year.

The funding announcement means that the Board of Management can proceed to tender, appoint a contractor and start construction in 2012.

The tendering process has so far received 30 expressions of interest. Tendering is to be completed within six months with construction to last 12 to 18 months.

“We would like to get going with the tender process as soon as possible”, said Deputy Principal Tom Glynn yesterday.

Students were informed of the announcement at the school’s Christmas concert. Mr Glynn explained, “It was for the junior infants and it was kind of appropriate in a way given they will be the prime beneficiaries of the new building.”

The school has been located on the Kilrush Road near the town centre since 1971. A long running campaign for a new school building resulted in the Diocese of Killaloe donating a site at Ashline.

In addition to 32 classrooms, the new building will include rooms for our reading class, special education teachers and library. The building will have an energy rating and a level of disability access, which is ahead of current regulations.

A campaign has been underway for the past 12 months to raise money for sports facilities, which will include a full-size sports hall with dressing rooms and a playing pitch.

Mr Glynn added, “It’s been a very long campaign. We got great support over the years from parents, teachers, pupils and the various different Boards of Management. We also got great support from the Parish, Ennis Town Council, our political representatives. We’re ready to roll now that the money is there.”

The announcement was welcomed by a number of Clare TDs. Fine Gael TD, Joe Carey stated, “At present, there are 16 pre-fabricated classrooms in use to educate children at the school that has a student population of between 600 and 700. Parents and staff stuck with this issue and ensured their voices were heard over recent years and they must be congratulated for this.”

According to Fine Gael TD Pat Breen, “Teachers and pupils have had to put up with prefabs for a number of years, but today’s announcement paves the way for the construction of a new state of the art facility.”

Labour TD Michael McNamara said, “The town of Ennis has badly needed a new national school for some time and that has been reflected in the Minister’s announcement today. It will, of, also bring some employment in the short term.”

THE backers of a proposed fivehectare retail development on the outskirts of Ennis say it will have a “limited” impact on existing businesses in Ennis.

Michael Lynch Ltd are seeking planning permission for a large development on the Clare Road/Tobertascain, which it is claimed will create 300 construction jobs.

A retail impact assessment prepared by DPP on behalf of Michael lynch Ltd states that the projected retail turnover for the proposal is estimated to be of the order of € 46.4m.

It states, “In terms of convenience retail floorspace, it is likely that the proposed development will compete with existing Tesco and Aldi, both on Francis Street; Dunnes Stores on O’Connell Street; and Lidl which is located on the Gort Road.”

The report adds “There may be a small amount of diversion from other convenience outlets in the Ennis area but this would be limited. Aside from the big-name operators, most other existing provision is smallscale, local walk-in trade.”

The report was prepared as part of a response to a further information request from Ennis Town Council.

It states that the “proposed development at the Limerick Road, Ennis, consists of an urban development including a mix of retail and office use. The development represents one district centre format of which none currently exists in Ennis despite its status as; hub town….county town for Clare and a recognised need for additional floor space in Ennis in the Mid West Retail Strategy”.

Of the potential impact on town centre businesses, the authors state, “The assessment of retail impact or cumulative retail impact of the proposed development on Ennis Town Centre found that, whilst there would be a small diversion of trade to the proposed foodstore, this would be cushioned by capacity in the retail market and the retention of both Dunnes and Tesco in the town centre and limited competition with the higher-end comparison and specialist retail offer in Ennis town centre.”

The report, continues, “If permitted, the proposed development will contribute to the retail offer of the town and stem retail expenditure leakage to other urban centres.”

The report outlines the retail characteristics of the proposed development. It states that the proposal provides for a total gross retail floorspace of 7,834sqm; the hypermarket provides 3,000sqm net convenience floorspace and 2,411 sqm net comparison floorspace. The ancillary units provide for 481sqm gross retail floorspace.

The report continues, “It is envisaged that the majority of these (retail units and kiosks) would be used for services, restaurants and café and community uses as envisaged by the development plan and the RPG in light of the proposal’s district centre format. For the purposes of calculating retail impact, therefore, we are mainly concerned with the net retail figures for the proposed foodstore.

“However, in the interest of robustness, we estimate that approximately half of the additional floorspace (totaling 520m2) will be given over to small convenience and / or comparison uses and have factored in 130m2 space each to account for these potential occupiers.”

Citing figures from the 2010 retail strategy for the mid-west region, the report states, “The figures would sug- gest that there remains substantial capacity for another large foodstore in town in addition to this proposal and that the residual comparison would be more than sufficient to cater for further substantial higher order comparison floorspace in or close to the town centre on sites such as PS1.

“These results are not surprising when one considers the relative lack of growth in the town’s retail offer over the past 10 years and indeed the lack of any substantive pipeline development as illustrated by the MidWest Retail Strategy Review 2009.”

The authors state that they have received correspondence from Tesco Ireland that confirmed their intention to remain in the Ennis Shopping Centre.

“The letter also points out their own business view of much greater potential in the existing retail market space.”

A STOCK of 35,000 sandbags is available to Clare County Council as the county braces itself for potential flooding. Heavy rainfall and increased river levels have heightened public anxiety over floods with the memory of the 2009 flood event still fresh in the minds of many homeowners and businesses.

In that instance, thousands of euros worth of damaged was caused and dozens of homes were evacuated as families saw their homes destroyed by rapidly rising floodwaters.

Clare County Council says the experience of 2009 has led to an improvement in the effectiveness of the implementation of contingency plans.

Yesterday’s meeting of Clare County Council heard that there are people in rural parts of the county “that don’t sleep at night” because of a flood fears. The comment was made by Cllr Joe Arkins (FG) who said there is huge concern among people in Ruan over flash flooding.

Cllr John Crowe (FG), who tabled a motion on the Council’s plans for dealing with floods, said river levels around Sixmilebridge are “two foot” higher than they were in November 2009. He told the meeting that heavy floods are now a real concern. “The way the rain is falling we might not be too far away,” he said.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said the council’s capacity to deal with emergency weather events had significantly improved since 2009. “We can’t predict what’s going to happen but we can plan,” he added.

In a report to councillors, Nora Kaye, acting Director of Services, Planning, Land Use and Transport, explained, “In total, the council has a stock of approximately 35,000 sandbags all of which are located strategically in the various area depots.

“The vast majority of these sandbags are stocked in a number of de- pots in the Ennis Area because of the continuing vulnerability of so many areas within Ennis Town and environs – notwithstanding the fact that some flood relief schemes are being planned or are under construction in relation to most of these areas.”

Ms Kaye continued, “Of the above total, approximately 8,000 sandbags are distributed across the various engineering areas outside Ennis. Approximately 3,000 bags in all are filled. Well over 2,000 tonnes of sand and other material is stocked strategically and more sandbags will be filled between now and Christmas.”

Ms Kaye said that 30 pumps are readily available at various locations throughout the county. She added, “Notwithstanding the fact that it is impossible to predict the characteristics or intensity of any particular flood event, the overall level of awareness, knowledge and response capacity in respect of such situations as improved significantly in recent years and this feeds in to out present contingency plans in a very strategic and significant manner.”

BUSINESS groups are calling for people to make submissions on a proposed retail development on the Clare Road.

Ennis Town Council has re-advertised changes to a planning application from Michael Lynch Ltd who are seeking permission to develop a new district centre on the outskirts of Ennis. The developers have submitted a number of reports to the council in response to a request for further information on the proposed development.

Businesses in Ennis have previously outlined their opposition to the proposal saying it would have a damaging effect on retail activity in the town centre and lead to the creation of “ghost” shopping units.

A statement from Ennis Chamber explained, “Members of Ennis Chamber, Ennis Development Forum and Ennis Street Associations met again recently to discuss the Further Information received by Ennis Town Council in relation to the proposed development on the Clare Road in Ennis”.

“Ennis Town Council has deemed the Further Information received by the developers as significant enough for a re-advertisement of the changes to the Planning Application. Therefore anyone is entitled to make a submission to Ennis Town Council in relation to the proposed development”.

Ennis Chamber, Ennis Development Forum and Ennis Street Association will be making additional submissions to the planning process prior to the closing date for receipt of submissions, which is Friday December 16.

The spokesperson added, “The organisations are encouraging anyone with an interest in this significant proposed development for Ennis to make their views known through the planning process by making a submission to Ennis Town Council by the closing date of Friday next”.