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CONTENTIOUS plans for a €15 million park and ride facility for the Cliffs of Moher at Liscannor have been withdrawn by the developers.

A decision was due by Clare Coun- ty Council last Friday. However, 24 hours prior to the anticipated deci- sion, Mermaid Partnership wrote to the council requesting that the appli- cation be withdrawn.

Applications are usually withdrawn at the last minute when developers are told informally that the applica-

tion 1s set to be refused.

The proposal was facing wide- spread opposition across the village of Liscannor.

The area has suffered a population loss, according to the most recent census.

The developers had also made ef- forts to allay the concerns of locals by reducing the size of the plan.

Last year, the Mermaid Partnership lodged plans for the park and ride fa- cility that also included a major re- tail component with a total of 6,322 Square metres.

However, Clare County Council declared that it had ‘a number of serious concerns’ in relation to the proposal.

In revised plans lodged with the council, the applicants scaled back the retail component by almost two- thirds.

The original plan envisaged retail space of 6,322 sq metres; the revised plan scaled back the proposal to 2,361 sq metres.

According to the developers, “the overall scale and design of the pro- posed development has been signifi-

cantly reduced”.

However, a wave of fresh objec- tions were lodged against the revised plan in the last 14 days.

A number of residents stated, “If the development goes ahead, it will irreparably damage the sustainable retail and commercial element in Liscannor which has evolved over many years.”

They stated that “the residents of Liscannor have for too long been subjected to the gradual and sadden- ing deterioration in the fabric of the community”’.

CLARE County Council is to write to the Department of the Environ- ment, Heritage and Local Govern- ment to amend planning guidelines sO necessary upgrades can be carried out on waste water services.

County Manag- er, Alec Fleming agreed that there was general con- sensus to write to the department after the issue was raised in a motion put for- ward by Councillor Madeleine ‘Taylor Quinn (FG).

Speaking after the debate, Mr Flem- ing said, “The only other thing I would say is that unless we get the sanitary services into various towns and vil- lages, then not a whole lot is going to happen.”

Cllr Taylor Quinn called for the county manager to outline the ef- fect of recently announced housing planning guidelines with specific reference to rural villages and those still awaiting waste water treatment services. She said, “Rural villages have been handicapped by a lack of infrastructure. To impose these

guidelines on towns and villages still waiting for services would be, in my opinion, penal. I propose an amend- ment to these guidelines that, until these places are up to critical mass, then they not be enforced.”

Cllr PJ Kelly (FF) said communi- ties in Clare were paying for the mis-

takes made in hous- ing plans in urban areas. “These were first called regula- tions and when it emerged that peo- ple weren’t entirely happy with them, they were changed and it suddenly be- came a consultative process. If mistakes are made in plan- ning in places like Moyross, then it shouldn’t be places like Scariff and Cooraclare that have to suffer.”

Cllr Martin Lafferty (Ind) said recent focus on the impact on plan- ning in urban areas had ignored the problems facing rural towns and vil- lages. He said, “There was nothing in these articles about regulation and the impact they had in rural areas. I don’t know what kind of spin doctor- ing this is.”

THE positive response to the pur- chase of a defibrillator for Newmar- ket-on-Fergus has opened up the possibility of a second one being PYOe LUNN KSxOE

The village’s first defibrillator – which provides assistance to those who collapse due to cardiac arrest – was bought last September and a team of 15 people have been avail- able to operate it, on a rota basis.

While it has not yet been called

into use, the organising committee is delighted to have acquired it and are now looking at possibly buying a second one.

In conjunction with the purchase of the defibrillator, a local branch of the Irish Red Cross was set up in the village, through which those on the rota were trained. Chairwoman of the committee Mary Woods said the current system is working well.

“It has been so far so good. The person who is on duty holds it in his/ her home and is ready to go imme-

diately if a call comes in,” said Ms Woods.

“People are very positive about it being there and people realise the value of it. Its success depends on people knowing about it. If they don’t know it’s there, it is not going to be able to access the service.

‘There has been no actual require- ment for it, which is what you want in one way. Hopefully it will be suc- cessful if it’s needed,’ she added.

A churchgate collection will take place in churches in the Newmar-

ket-on-Fergus area this weekend. The proceeds of this will go towards retraining the committee members, along with possibly purchasing a second defibrillator.

While the first defibrillator was purchased by Obair and the training provided by the Red Cross, the cost of a second one would be in the re- gion of €3,000.

“The churchgate collection money will go towards funding the future development of the project,’ said Ms Woods.

BUSINESS development in Clare is being hit by a lack of internet infra- structure, with the county lying on the poor end of a new Irish ‘digital divide’.

According to new information re- leased this week, Clare is one of a number of western counties which have a low levels of businesses using Internet-based sales and payments eKeu DBL Blohy

The ecommerce index, which was produced by ebay Ireland and its sis- ter company PayPal, is Ireland’s first

ever county by county breakdown of internet sales.

The index made poor reading for Clare which lagged well behind the likes of Dublin, Wicklow, Carlow and Laois.

The index was calculated based on the total amount of shopping car- ried out on ebay.ie throughout 2007. When adjustments were made for population size, the figures showed a wide east to west gap in term of take-up.

“In the past two years, most busi- nesses have developed some sort of web presence, but in terms of actu-

ally doing business over the internet, companies in the west seem to have been more reactionary that proac- tive,’ said Paul Montwill, of Ennis- based ebusiness solution experts, Magico.

“There is a real divide. Because the traffic 1s so bad in Dublin, a lot of businesses have caught on to online selling a lot quicker.

“Broadband is a major issue. It 1s a lot better in Dublin than in Clare and the west. That has led to a lot of people in Dublin getting into online shopping quicker than those outside of it.”

The ebay survey comes just days after Shannon Development Chief Executive, Kevin ‘Thompstone, called for an urgent Government in- vestment in the communications in- Ge-FOmeCCAbNKo

Mr Thompstone singled out Shan- non town as the location for a pilot Next Generation Networking (NGN) scheme in the western region.

The ecommerce index is_ based solely on ebay Ireland purchases and does not take into account whether Irish shoppers are using other shop- ping websites for their online pur- Ont Iene

CALLS were made for a more bal- anced approach to development in north Clare at yesterdays North Clare Electoral Area meeting of Clare County Council in Ennistymon.

Commenting on a motion propos- ing the upgrading of the main Crush- een to Ballinruan road, Cllr Michael Kelly (FF), suggested that all areas of the county should be looked after in terms of funding and development.

The area meeting took place direct- ly after an in-camera meeting where the multi-million euro development of the Lahinch promenade was dis- cussed.

“We have just been talking about a significant investment in Lahinch and, while that is a welcome invest- ment, I feel that we have to acknowl- edge that a more balanced approach to development needs to be under-

taken,’ he said.

“Investment need to be made in places like Ballyvaughan and Corofin.

‘These are areas of big population and areas that are not looking for much money. If we are to have equi- table system we must look at invest- ment in these areas.”

Meanwhile, in a separate motion Cllr Kelly raised concerned that slip- pery road conditions have caused a number of car accidents on the N67 in New Quay, with one car possible even entering the nearby Turlough.

In his official response to the mo- tion, Senior Executive Engineer in the Ennistymon Area Office Hubert Newell, said that tests on the road said it was satisfactory.

“Improvement works were carried out along the section of the N67 near New Quay School in recent years,” he said.

“A high quality asphalt road sur- face with appropriate camber, lining, signing and cats-eyes were installed. The NRA carried out a recent analy- sis of skip residence of the road. The skid resistance along the section of the road in question was shown to be satisfactory.”

Details of flooding at Deerpark West, to the rear of the Ennistymon Hospital, were also released at the inalexel mu etee

Responding to a motion put for- ward by Cllr Richard Nagle (FF), council officials commented that the situation was caused by “the instal- lation of inadequately sized pipes along the frontage of the developed size by some developers has led to an increased incident of road flooding””.

The meeting was adjourned early, with a number of councillors being oN ETSre Rr hehe

A HOSPITAL for Shannon, the rail link and the future of the airport are among the main issues on the minds of the people of Shannon.

That’s according to the Shannon Area Network, which is a collective gathering, open to all community and voluntary groups in Shannon, Newmarket-on-Fergus, Sixmilebri- dge, Kilmurry and parts of Cratloe. It is one of five area networks across the county.

As the group prepares for its AGM on Thursday night – at the Bunratty Castle Hotel – Chairman of the Shan- non Area Network, Pat Gaughran, 1s

appealing to local groups to get in- volved with it and voice their opin- eyes

There are up to 500 voluntary and community organisations in_ the county and the Shannon Area Net- work has up to 150 members.

Mr Gaughran said the network or- ganised a very interesting discussion last year, but regrettably, it was not well attended. “It was dealing with the future of Shannon and asking the question ‘Where do we go from here?,” said Mr Gaughran.

The discussion was focused on a number of issues, including tourism, jobs and a rail link for Shannon.

“We were disappointed with the at-

tendance. We would appeal to people to come out to our events this year,” he added.

A schedule of events and discus- sions for the forthcoming year will be put together after the AGM and the committee is hopeful that many people will attend the various fora.

“We are asking people to come out and have their voices heard. We can only bring forward to the County Development Board the issues they raise. We can highlight things that need to be highlighted,” he said.

The network’s members have a number of interests, he said.

“The rail link has been a big one, along with the airport. A hospital

for Shannon was a priority, but it has been put on the back burner. We hope to get that going,” he said.

Dr Paula Russell, of University College Dublin, will attend the AGM and will speak to those in attend- ance, as part of research she is carry- ing out. Her research, funded by the Environmental Protection Agency, 1s based on sustainable rural develop- ment. The views of those present at the AGM will be taken into consid- eration by her, in her project.

The key posts on the network com- mittee will be filled at the AGM. Be- sides Mr Gaughran, the main posts are currently filled by Richard Cahill (secretary) and PJ Ryan (PRO).

AN Bord Pleanala has turned down a planned €24 million housing devel- opment for Ennis.

Last year, Clare County Council refused planning permission to one of the county’s best known builders, McCarthy Brothers, to construct 94 homes at Ballybeg on the southern environs of the town.

In the appeal, consultants for Mc- Carthy Bros pointed out that the land was zoned residential in the Ennis and Environs Development Plan. The consultants said that the devel- opment of the site responded to the availability of the land at present and while the surrounding lands were zoned residential, there was no guar- antee that the development of these lands would take place at any time in the near future.

The consultants stated that the open space provision met the requirements of the Clare County Development Plan with a total of 16.4 per cent of the site given over to open space. They said that the Ballybeg Road was adequate to cater for the level of traffic generated by the proposed development.

After assessing the application, the appeals board’s planning inspector concluded that the proposed develop- ment “would represent a haphazard and non-integrated piece meal devel-

opment”. The appeals board stated, “The proposed development would therefore be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable develop- ment of the area.”

The appeals board also stated that “it 1s considered that the proposed layout of the development was sub- standard due to the general layout and disposition of public open space and the overall linear emphasis in terms of the layout of access roads and adjoining housing units”.

The board inspector found that the proposed development would seri- ously injure the residential amenity of future occupants of the estate and the proposed development would therefore be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable develop- ment of the area.

The inspector concluded that the proposal would seriously injure the amenities of the residents of an ex- isting cul-de-sac road, particularly having regard to the fact that a more suitable access which would serve the entire area of residentially zoned lands at this location was located approximately 120 metres further west.

As aresult, the board inspector con- cluded that the development “would endanger public safety by reason of a traffic hazard and would be contrary to the proper planning and sustain- able development of the area.”

A TOP level meeting is going ahead this week to prioritise key tourism marketing actions which are needed immediately and will now be pos- sible as the Government has an- nounced €3 million in funding to meet Open Skies.

Commenting on the Government announcement of the fund, a Shan- non Development spokesperson said, “It is good that we have certainty and commitment for a dedicated fund which will allow us to move forward

without delay and use the funds to implement a top-class North Amer1i- can tourism marketing campaign. As part of the implementation group for the allocation of the funds, Shan- non Development will meet early next week with the other appointed representatives to prioritise a set of key tourism marketing actions which will be undertaken immediately.” The plan, which will result in an an- ticipated €15 to €20 million over the next few years, will be implemented by tourism interests in the region. It incorporates investment in infra-

structure and tourism development in the mid-west, as well as a forward- working plan for the autonomy of Shannon Airport.

This plan was drawn up in consul- tation with a number of Government departments and pays regard to a re- port entitled ‘Mid-West Tourism and Economic Development Plan’ which was submitted by a group under the aegis of the Mid West Regional Au- thority, taking in Clare County Coun- cil, Shannon Development, Shannon Airport Authority (SAA), SIGNAL and IBEC.

Responding to the announcement, SAA Chairman, Mr Pat Shanahan said that the marketing fund is a sig- nificant development in meeting the challenges brought about under the new Open Skies era.

“Shannon Airport Authority wel- comes the Government commitment to invest in a major tourism market- ing strategy to stimulate tourism traf- fic into the west of Ireland through Shannon in the post-Open Skies en- ab KO)eNeelssOLm

“We look forward to working with tourism agencies to ensure the return

from this funding is maximised,” he Sr nKOe

Meanwhile, Clare Deputy, Timmy Dooley also welcomed the funding, stating that Clare will reap economic rewards from commitments outlined in the plan.

“T am delighted that, following a series of discussions with colleagues such as myself in the mid-west, Transport Minister, Noel Dempsey TD and Arts, Sports, and Tourism Minister, Seamus Brennan TD, have come forward with a plan as compre- hensive as this.”

A CONTRACTOR to begin work on the new sewage scheme in Corofin should be in place before the begin- ning of April, but little progress has been made on the Doolin scheme, the North Clare Area Meeting of Clare County Council heard yesterday.

Responding to a motion put for- ward by Ennistymon Cllr Richard Nagle, Senior Engineer of the Water Services, Walter Walshe, said that a new proposal to connect the Doolin scheme to the existing Lisdoonvarna scheme is being examined.

He also said that the Department of Communications, Marine and Natu- ral resources had recently granted a foreshore licence for the Bally- vaughan scheme.

Regarding Ballyvaughan, Cllr Na- gle said, “I am delighted about the eranting of the foreshore licence. The licence has been one of the main obstacles blacking the scheme for a long time.

“Doolin, unfortunately is still un- der consideration. | know that the council is looking at the possibility

of pumping it into the system in Lis- doonvarna system and hopeful some progress will be made on that soon. Doolin 1s in chronic need of a sewer- age system.

“The new proposal of pumping the sewage to Lisdoonvarna could be a lot cheaper than the previously men- tioned stand alone facility in Doo- thee

Cllr Martin Lafferty (Ind) criti- cised what he described as “mislead- ing” information circulated about the Doolin scheme.

‘That proposal to pump the sewage from Doolin up to Lisdoonvarna was made ten years ago. There is a huge need for this in Doolin and there is Spare capacity in Lisdoonvarna,” said Cllr Lafferty.

“There was a confused article in one of the local papers regarding the funding for the Doolin scheme re- cently. It was announced that €6.04 million has been made available for the Doolin scheme. However, it didn’t mention that there was a fund- ing deficit of €5.388 million for this project. This would have to be made up by the local people.”

A DRIVE to raise more _ than €200,000 for the Quin school field fund is to move to a new level, with the launch of a major initiative.

The Scoil na Mainistreach school development committee has _ pur- chased a field, at a cost of £100,000. It will cost another €100,000 to de- velop the pitch and the local commu- nity will have to foot the majority of

the bill.

While half of the total money nec- essary has already been raised, the remaining €100,000 still have to be collected. With this in mind, the committee will hold a *Who wants to be a Thousandaire’ in The Clare Inn hotel on April 18 next.

At a meeting last week, it was de- cided that parents on the committee would seek sponsorship, along with selling tickets for the event, at a cost

of €15 each.

A similar fundraiser raised up to €50,000 last year in Sixmilebridge. Scou na Mainistreach principal Ann Fitzpatrick is optimistic that this event will match that and is appeal- ing to everyone to contribute.

“There has been tremendous sup- port for the development and it will be a great resource for the commu- nity,” said Ms Fitzpatrick.

It is hoped that the field will be

ready for use next September and will be open to the community, along with the school.

“We will be allowing as much ac- cess as possible to the community, controlled access,” she said.

“Tt will be the only field of its type in the village. It is a resource for the community, as well as the school,” said the principal.

The pitch development is part of a three-year plan, launched in 2006.