Category: News

CLARE County Council has said it is constantly monitoring the situation regarding outstanding rent payments.

It follows concerns raised at yesterday’s monthly council meeting over the level of rent arrears in local authority housing.

Commenting on the council’s annual report for 2010, Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said he was concerned that “certain sections” of local authority tenants are not paying rent.

He told the meeting that from his own analysis, the council was in arrears of around € 1.2 million.

He said this was not down to the performance of the council but rather to, “certain sections of society that just don’t want to pay”. He added that rent arrears are having an impact on the council’s cash flow and ability to provide services.

Cllr Gerry Flynn (Ind) said there was a problem for the council when tenants start accruing debts that run into thousands of euros. He urged the council to take a more pro-active approach and to start meeting with tenants as soon as arrears start to become an issue.

“Once its gone over the edge to € 4,000 or € 5,000, the horse has bolted,” he added.

Bernadette Kinsella of the council’s housing section said that the council has a policy of meeting and, if needs be, re-adjusting rent agreements with tenants if payment problems arise. Ms Kinsella agreed that the council needed to move as quickly as possible to communicate with local authority housing tenants that are finding it difficult to pay rent.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said the issue of homeowners seeking to have unfinished housing estates taken over by the council was a growing one in Clare.

Figures released in September 2010 showed that Ennis Town Council had taken over the running of two housing estates, while a further nine had applied to be taken in charge by the council. Cllr Flynn estimated that development bonds for estates in Ennis alone totalled around € 5 million. “This is an area of huge concern for many people,” he explained.

FRESH from becoming the biggest party in Clare General Election politics for the first time in the party’s near 80-year history in the county, Fine Gael are on the cusp of more electoral success in the coming week.

That’s the battlecry from the local organisation this week as Fine Gael’s 24-strong team of county and town councillors prepare to cast their votes in the Seanad Éireann election this coming Monday.

“We have two TDs and we have three candidates in the Seanad elections and can win three seats to give five Oireachtas members for the party in Clare,” Cllr Joe Arkins, the leader of Fine Gael group of councillors for the elections to the Upper House of the Oireachtas.

“That’s what we’re aiming for,” added Cllr Arkins, “and it’s a realistic goal because Fine Gael have enough votes around the country to get 23 or 24 Seanad seats. Having five Fine Gael Oireachtas members in Clare would be unprecedented.”

Councillor Martin Conway flies the Clare flag in the Administrative Panel, in which there are seven seats up for grabs. Cllr John Crowe contests the Industrial and Commercial Panel, in which there are 11 seats, while Cllr Tony Mulcahy is in the running for the Labour Panel that also has 11seats.

“Cllr Conway’s panel is a difficult one,” admitted Cllr Arkins, “because there are only seven seats, but there are still three Fine Gael seats to be won.

Clare Fine Gael has never had more than two members of Seanad Éireann at the same time. The last time they had two members was between 1993 and 1997 with Madeleine Taylor-Quinn, who was elected on the Labour Pane,l and Michael Howard, who was returned on the Industrial and Commericial Panel for the sixth successive Seanad election.

ILLEGAL parking on cycleways is forcing cyclists onto the carriageway and blocking visibility at junctions.

That’s according to Shannon Town Council, in response to concerns over public parking and traffic congestion in the vicinity of Bothar Linn in Shannon.

At a meeting of Shannon Town Council last week, Independent Councillor Gerry Flynn asked for the issue to be debated.

In a written response from senior executive engineer Eugene O’Shea, it was stated, “Traffic congestion in this area is not an issue. However, illegal parking of vehicles on cycleways is forcing cyclists onto the carriageway and blocking visibility at junctions.

“Much of this illegal parking oc- curs during school drop-off and pickup as well as patrons of the leisure centre puling up on the cycleway.

“The solution to this problem is for motorists to utilise the drop-off area at the school, the parking facilities provided at the leisure centre or those beside the Gaelscoil as appropriate,” added the council’s statement.

In response, Cllr Flynn said, “I would have to agree with the response from the senior executive en- gineer. For people to park on a cycle lane, we have already established that is illegal.

“This is an overall problem. It is about solutions,” he said.

“There is a potential danger for health and safety,” he said.

Fine Gael Councillor Seán McLoughlin said, “I’d like to see some kind of a plan brought forward.”

Sinn Féin Councillor Cathy Mc- Cafferty said, “Public safety is paramount. This is one of the busiest roads in the town.”

Labour Councillor Greg Duff said that the best should be achieved from cycle lanes in the town, given that efforts were made to obtain them in the first place.

“Cycle lanes . . . We campaigned for them, we got them, we should monitor them in some way that people get the best out of them,” he said.

A NORTH Clare group claims that it will be prevented from celebrating Easter Sunday Dawn Mass at the Killenagh Graveyard this year because of opposition from within the local parish organisation.

Dawn Mass has been celebrated at the graveyard for the past three Easter Sundays, with more than 200 local people turning out for the celebration last year.

In previous years, the Mass has been presided over by a locally born priest, who is currently stationed outside the Diocese of Galway and Kilfenora.

However, according to the Killenagh Graveyard Committee, they are being prevented from celebrat- ing the Mass this Easter, even if they find a willing priest from outside the diocese.

“The group came together to try and fix up the cemetery and, thanks to voluntary labour and a number of FÁS Schemes, we were able to do that.

“We started these Masses as a way of celebrating the work that was done and they have been very successful community events,” said Robert Bennett of the Killenagh Graveyard Committee.

“A priest from outside the diocese has hosted the Mass for the past three years but this year, out of courtesy, we decided to contact the local parish. They said that they would not be in a position to celebrate the Mass and they would not be allowing the Mass to take place at all.” The Clare People attempted to contact local priest Fr Derek Feeney in relation to this but were unable to reach him at the time of going to press.

According to former Ennistymon priest and current PRO for the Diocese of Galway and Killaloe, Fr Sean McHugh, however, there are currently not enough priests to cover existing Masses in the area.

“I remember when I was serving in Ennistymon four years ago, I was asked about a cemetery Mass early on Easter Sunday. I disagreed on the grounds that we, the priests, were very stretched on Easter Sunday.

“Additionally, another Mass would take the congregation away from the later main Easter Sunday celebration in the nearby church,” he said.

“There are a number of other cemeteries in that area that could not all be supplied with Dawn Mass on Easter Sunday if it was requested.

“I wasn’t in favour of a priest from outside the parish coming in to cel ebrate the Mass because, with the shortage of priests, the direction being taken [by the Church] is to rationalise Masses and not to timetable extra Masses.

“In general, parish priests would prefer to celebrate cemetery Masses themselves with their own congregations whom they serve with week in and week out.

“For this reason, it was usual to celebrate mid-week Mass in each of these cemeteries in each of these parishes mid-week during the summer.”

TEENAGE drinking marred an otherwise celebratory occasion to mark St Patrick’s Day in Shannon.

The organisers of the parade were delighted with the response, which saw more than 30 floats take to the streets. However, teenagers who gathered to drink alcohol dampened spirits somewhat, according to Independent Councillor Patricia McCarthy.

“This year the colour was fantastic. Everybody puts in a big effort to dress up,” she said. However, she said there was disappointment in relation to the behaviour of a small number of youths. “A little sad note was the amount of teenagers that were drinking. We had no control over that. We brought in the by-laws. . . A lot of people were disappointed by that,” said Cllr McCarthy.

“It was a fantabulous day,” remarked the chief organiser of the parade, Councillor Mike Fleming, speaking at a meeting of Shannon Town Council last week.

“There were 30 floats last year and 35 this year. I hope we can get it up by another five floats next year,” said Mr Fleming.

Independent Councillor Gerry Flynn said, “It’s a community family day. Everybody involved in the community comes out and participates.”

Labour Councillor Tony McMahon agreed, saying, “It has become established as a great community day and a great family day. It went very well. We were without a parade for so long. It is great to see it being so well supported.” Fine Gael’s Mary Brennan said, “I think it’s a day that adults can dress up like children. There is no inhibitions.” She said the parade injected “income and life” into the town centre for the day.

A NORTH Clare woman has set her sights at bringing the coveted Rose of Tralee title back to the Banner County for the first time in the history of the competition.

Rineen woman Claire Keane was last week selected as the Galway Rose for the 2011 edition of the competition. Despite togging out in the colours of her neighbouring county Claire says that she will do her utmost to bring success to Clare and Galway in this year’s competition.

“Obviously you would love to represent where you are from but in a way it is even nicer to have been chosen to represent Galway. The fact that I was chosen to represent Galway, even though I’m not originally from Galway, shows that they really must believe in me. I’m very humbled and very happy to have been chosen,” said Claire, who has been living in Galway for the past eight years.

“Of course I’d love to be representing Clare and in a way a part of me will be representing Clare but I am very happy to be going forward as the Galway Rose. Galway is a great spot and it is joined onto Clare so hopefully I can do well for both counties in the competition.”

Clare was chosen out of a field of 27 girls to become the Galway Rose. Her entry into this year’s competition was sponsored by the Central Park Night Club, who supported her on the night along with her brothers Damien and Brian.

“I grew up watching it but I never dreamed that I would be taking part myself. I always loved watching the competition but I never thought I’d enter and a never thought I’d have a chance of winning,” she continued.

“The competition itself isn’t anything like what people would see on TV. What people see on TV is just the final part of it – before that there is a whole series of interviews with the judges, both individual and in groups. It has been quite a long proc- ess already.”

Claire attended Rineen National School and Scoil Mhuire in Ennistymon before completing a business studies degree at the Galway Mayo Institute of Technology. She also completed a marketing post graduate at NUI, Galway, and now works for American software company Brightwork and the Central Park Nightclub.

AN ACCIDENT blackspot in Shannon must be tackled urgently, in an effort to make it more safe.

That’s according to Sinn Fein Councillor Cathy McCafferty, who has called for immediate works to be carried out at the roundabout adjacent to St Patrick’s Comprehensive School.

At a meeting of Shannon Town Council last week, she asked for an update on the measures to be taken to improve safety at the location and she also sought details of a timescale for completion of the works.

In a written response, senior executive engineer Eugene O’Shea stated, “While I am aware of two accidents at this location in recent times, it is not, in my opinion, an accident blackspot.”

He stated that he has requested the council’s design office to look at the junction with a view to examining possible improvements, adding, “Due to resource issues, it has not been possible to-date to progress this matter.”

Cllr McCafferty said she was not happy with the response and said that this issue must be addressed as a matter of urgency.

“The reply to me is not adequate at all. I brought this motion forward in September 2009. There is an accident there nearly every week. It is too important. I would like the senior executive engineer to have another look at it,” she said.

Labour Councillor Greg Duff said, “It is a safety issue. There is a repeat of accidents.”

Labour Councillor Tony McMahon said, “It should be ensured that an engineer or a design team should look at it and see can anything be done.”

A CLARE auctioneer has said that property websites like Daft are “way off the mark” when it comes to how much property prices have dropped. He is calling for a national register of sale prices to get a real handle on the situation.

According to the latest Daft figures, property in Clare has dropped in price by more than 38 per cent since the boom years.

But Diarmuid McMahon of Sherry Fitzgerald McMahon says the shocking truth is that prices have dropped by up to 60 per cent.

“These websites don’t reflect the situation on the ground, the prices that property is actually changing hands for. We see it all the time and we track it and the truth is that, depending on the type of property and the condition and location, prices have actually gone down by between 40 and 60 per cent.”

Diarmuid said that second homes and apartments have been worst hit.

“Holiday homes have really felt the brunt. Houses in Kilkee that would have had a € 250,000 price tag a few years ago are on the market now for € 99,000. Apartments have also gone down considerably. Apartments in town that were selling for € 200,000 are selling now at € 80,000 to € 85,000.”

The Ennis auctioneer said that there are problems with property sites such as Daft and My Home. ie. “There are a lot of poperties sitting on those sites which have not been revalued in two years or more. Those are asking prices not market value and they are pushing the average prices up.”

Sherry Fitgerald have been campaigning to have a register which would record how much is paid for every property sold, similar to the one in the UK.

‘We’ve had the biggest property crash in the western world in Ireland, but we have no real record of it and no recorded information. Instead we have conflicting information from a number of sources and much of it does not reflect reality,” said Diarmuid.

According to the quarterly Daft report, prices for homes in Clare fell a further 3.6 since the beginning of the year.

Since the start of the slide, the price of an average one-bedroom home fell by € 70,000, a two-bedroom is down by € 120,00 and three-bedroom family homes have dropped by € 158,000, according to Daft’s calculations.

However, like the overall calculation of a drop in price, Mr McMahon said these figures are not based on reality.

A NEW Clare group which aims to support and give a voice to people who choose not to eat meat is growing in numbers with every meeting.

The Clare Veg Group is a meet-up group offering a space for vegetarians, vegans and aspiring vegetarians. “Our primary aim is to enrich the lives of vegetarians by providing knowledge, inspiration and support. We’re innovative folk and we’re developing programmes to make alternative lifestyles easier, fairer and more fun” said one of the foundermembers, Julie Hyde.

Julie and her friend Audrey Shanala, both vegetarians, formed the group last November and attendances have grown bigger with each meeting.

“We welcome vegetarians, vegans and people who want to know more about vegetarianism,” said Julie.

The group has different activities each month, and have had talks from various speakers, gone out to dinner and organised ‘pot luck’ evenings where everyone brings food to share.

“We felt there was a lack of support and awareness about vegetarians in Clare. We exchange information, talk about where’s good to eat vegetarian food, exchange information, talk about animal rights issue, food production – things we’re concerned about and generally socialize,” Julie explained.

The group also provides a voice for vegetarians who often get a raw deal in restaurants.

“A lot of restaurants are very cooperative if you ring ahead, but then again, vegetarians are often left with a choice of one token dish. The point is that vegetarians should speak up and not just accept that their only choice for a night out is the dish of pasta. A lot of people who are not vegetarians would order vegetarian food if it’s good.”

Julie turned vegetarian after a spell of health difficulties and studying Aruvedic therapies.

The Clare Veg Group meets every first Thursday of the month at 7pm. For more information email clareveggroup@gmail.com or visit them online at www.clareveggroup. blogspot.com

IRISH Rail is planning a clampdown on passengers who buy discount offpeak tickets to travel from Clare to Dublin and other destinations.

With the train service between Ennis, Sixmilebridge and Limerick becoming an increasingly popular way for people to head for the capital for sporting and music events, or just for a weekend away, passengers are also taking advantage of the off-peak bargains available in rail travel.

But those who try to cheat the system by booking off-peak on-line and then travelling on peak-service trains on those tickets are facing fines of € 100 as well as having to cough up for the ticket they were supposed to buy.

Fares to Dublin are available online at discount rates on the Friday 5.30am, 10am, 11am and 20.55pm services. But with those fares costing either € 10 or € 15, many passengers are trying to pay the minimum while hitching a ride on the busiest trains.

A spokeswoman for Irish Rail said that when a passenger “reserves a ticket on a particular train it’s not transferable to another service. If you want to use that ticket on another train then you are obliged to pay a surcharge of € 20.”

Irish Rail have placed ticket checkers on trains and passengers found trying to use their discount tickets on full-fare routes face having to pay a fine of € 100 as well as the full cost of the ticket they need to travel on that service.

“Revenue protection and fare evasion is something we take very seriously and we have invested a lot in that area to ensure that it is effective,” the spokeswoman said.