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A TWO and half year project cost- ing €27 million will come to fruition at New Road, Ennis this Wednesday when Clare County Council’s new Corporate Headquarters opens for LUI BALeASE ;

To facilitate the relocation to Aras Contae an Chlair, all county council offices in Ennis will remain closed to

he public today and tomorrow.

The completed facility will provide accommodation for 300 staff, as well as meeting rooms, a staff canteen, laboratory, mayor’s office and coun- cil chamber and three party rooms for the elected members. 320 car parking spaces are provided at the rear of the building.

The Corporate Headquarters build- ing incorporates a number of envi-

ronmentally-friendly measures and will operate as a naturally ventilated building. Some solar panels and a wood chip heating system have been installed. Following a tender proc- ess, Clare Wood Chip of Flagmount has been selected to supply the wood chip for the building.

Cllr Patricia McCarthy, Mayor of Clare welcomed the opening of the new offices and referred to the ease of

access to the various council services that will now be available at the new location. Mr Alec Fleming, Clare County Manager, added, “I would like to pay tribute to the council staff for their patience and co-operation in relocating from the old offices and the move back to Aras Contae an Chlair this week. I now look forward to the council providing a service of the highest standard from Aras Con- tae an Chlair.”

Mr Michael McNamara, Director of Services, explained that the building had been designed in a user-friendly manner.

He said, “The council was very conscious of the need to put in place the highest standards of accessibility to all parts of the building and serv- ice within. We have been working with the National Disability Author- ity with a view to attaining accredi- tation under the Excellence through Accessibility Scheme.”

Sections of the council were relo- cated to several sites around Ennis when the old offices on the New Road site were vacated in mid-2005. Following a tender process that gen- erated a lot of interest from many of the country’s larger developers, the firm of Michael McNamara & Co Building Contractors was chosen as the preferred option to design, build and finance the provision of the new building. The contractors com- menced work in January 2006.

“A GOOD result in miserable condi- tions.” Two days after the game, that’s Anthony Foley’s concise reaction to Saturday’s victory over Wasps, a re- sult that saw the reigning champions dumped out of the competition.

It was one of those old Thomond nights when Munster rolled out the red carpet for an esteemed visitor be- fore devouring their reputation with 80 minutes of controlled rugby.

The achievement didn’t end with the scalp of Wasps and Munster didn’t rely on their home record to see them through. Effectively, it was the bonus point secured against Cl- ermont Auvergne that catapulted Munster to their tenth consecutive

appearance in the knock-out stages of the competition.

“It was great to get all the points be- cause we went into the game with a lot of permutations in our heads. Bo- nus points, the winning margin. So we had to keep our eyes on a number of different things and to succeed on all fronts was a great achievement.

“It was a real cup atmosphere, a winner takes all thing. Thomond has seen a lot of those over the years and we ve got a lot of experience in those battles and we never doubted our- selves on Saturday.”

Munster’s composure impressed Foley. The full force of Wasps was met early on and the home side con- trolled the momentum.

‘“We’ve come to learn that playing

against any English side there’s a big 20 minutes in them from the start. They’ll throw everything at you and you’ve got to cope with that. Then they’Il come out in the second half and give it everything for the ten minutes after the break.”

Foley is asked if the ground, in the process of a major facelift, lost any of the character and tenor that dappled the place in the past and dismisses the theory immediately.

“Not a chance. It’s a great ground. The atmosphere was terrific and the kick off time was better than the Sunday games. Saturday evening seems to suit the crowd. There was a great buzz around the stadium and you have to think that as the stadium develops, the spectacle is just going

to be get better and better.”

Munster now face Gloucester at Kingsholm Stadium at the beginning of April and in between, they play just six matches with four of those going ahead during the Six Nations. When he looks at the pool of clubs still left in the competition, Foley reckons it never mattered who Mun- ster faced next.

“There are seven other teams ca- pable of winning the tournament. A few teams have never been at this stage before, so there’s going to be some extra excitement.

We’ll have some time off between now and then and there’s the Six Na- tions in between, so there’s going to be a lot of free time and we’ll have to handle that. You’d prefer to be play-

ing games, to stay together and that’s something we’ll have to deal with.

“But for now, you’ve just got to be happy with a quarter-final. To come away from Thomond with that place secured was the target. We knew go- ing into it that we wouldn’t have a home tie and we wouldn’t have an easy passage. It’s the old story – there are no easy games in the last rounds of the Heineken Cup.”

THE schools of the Burren have continued to build on the regions blossoming reputation for scientific achievement with an excellent show- ing in last weeks BT Young Scien- tist Competition which took place in Dublin.

Students from Scoil Mhuire in En- nistymon, Mary Immaculate Sec- ondary School in Lisdoonvarna and Gort Community School all gained high marks from the judges in the RDS.

Indeed, Mary Immaculate were the second most successful school in the competition in terms of the amount of prizes that they brought home. With one first place, two second place, a third place and a number of

commendation under their belts, the students of Lisdoon did their school proud.

Sixth year, Laura Sims, took home the prize for first place in the Senior Social and Behavioural category with her examination of the importance of voter geography in elections.

Evelyn Linnane and Tess McGov- ern were awarded a second place for their project on tolerance and prejudice while Darren O’Gorman also came second in his category for his project on temporary limestone FEN Coh

Transition year student, David Crowe, was awarded third place in his category while there was also commendations for Ciara Griffin, Amie Barrett, Amy McGrath, Sine- ad McMahon, Catriona Callinan.

Meanwhile, the weekend proved very successful for transition year student Emma Hennessy who was awarded the SafeFood title and re- ceived a commendation for her KO) (em

In her project, Emma used ad- vanced scientific methods of testing to compare how many germs were present on cans of coke bought in a number of different locations.

The BT Young Scientist also proved to be a happy hunting ground for Gort Community School. In just their second year in the competition, the school put up another good show- ing this year with one project receiv- ing a commendation.

Leaving Cert James Mahon, fourth year Cian Brassil and third year Joe Murphy also received a green ribbon

for their project which attempted to investigate the possibility of using Zebra Mussels as an organic ferti- liser.

After the success of the “The Elec- tromagnetic Glove’ invented by Finn Krewer, Robin Flake, Michael Sell and James Mahon last year, Gort Community School continued to gain a place in the media at this year event.

Indeed, James Mahon, soimpressed the people from RTE that they asked him to present the section on the Ex- hibition for the DEN News2day pro- eramme.

More than 1400 projects from all over the country entered the BT Young Scientist Competition this year, with only 500 making it to the erand final in Dublin.

FARMERS are being left out in the cold and excluded from offering val- uable assistance in the area of pro- ducing energy. According to the IFA National Environment Committee Chairman Tom Dunne, Irish farmers could have had a very positive input into the publication of the All-Island Grid Study, which was published last week.

“This study has failed to recognise the extent to which farmers can play a pivotal role in carbon emission reduction while providing a secure energy supply through renewable electricity, heat and transport fuel initiatives,’ he said.

“As far back as the year 2000,

the European Climate Change Pro- eramme clearly identified that the agricultural sector could contribute significantly to fulfilling the reduc- tion objective for Kyoto. Many of these objectives can be achieved through renewable energy produc- nto)

Early last week, Energy Minister, Eamon Ryan, published this ground- breaking report which for the first time examined a range of generation portfolios for Ireland, the ability of our power system to handle various amounts of electricity from renew- able sources, the investment levels required, and the climate change and security of supply benefits that would accrue.

‘Farmers are prepared to invest

in renewable energy production and can provide carbon-neutral energy. However for farmers to maximise their participation in renewable ener- gy production, the Government must provide a realistic feed-in tariff, sim- plified access to the grid network and the priority use of renewable en- ergy, continued Dunne.

“Wind only represents one of many renewable energy options. The im- plementation of the measures out- lined has resulted in a 16% increase in renewable energy production in Crasere teh vae

In July 2005 the Governments of Ireland and Northern Ireland jointly issued a preliminary consultation pa- per on an all-island ‘2020 Vision’ for renewable energy.

The paper sought views on the development of a joint strategy for the provision of renewable energy sourced electricity within the All- island Energy Market leading up to 2020 and beyond, so that consumers, north and south, continue to benefit from access to sustainable energy supplies provided at a competitive ON A

It is within the context of the All- island Energy Market Development Framework agreed by ministers in November 2004 and the undertaking to develop a Single Electricity Mar- ket that views were sought on how the electricity infrastructure on the island might best develop to allow the maximum penetration of renew- able energy.

JERRY Kitt will retire from partici- pating in the West Clare Mini Mara- thon this Sunday.

The determined Kilkee man has decided that the 10th anniversary of the marathon will be his swansong, although he has vowed to remain part of the organising committee.

This Sunday will be Jerry’s seventh mini marathon, which 1s no mean feat for a man who has suffered se- vere injuries in a car accident, a tu- mour and a stroke.

In 1982 he was injured in a car acci- dent in Darragh, followed by an op- eration for a brain tumour in 1985.

Just six months later he suffered a stroke.

Standing in his kitchen Jerry ex- plained how he learnt to live with the side affects of his illness and the af- termath of an operation that saw part of his skull removed.

He demonstrates how he some times looses his balance if walking alone but by merely having a lead, or someone or something to hold onto, he has the confidence and ability to keep walking securely. This is why his best friend and dog Radar was so helpful for so many years.

The loyal Alsatian escorted Jerry on his first four west Clare mini marathons. It was just before the

fifth marathon than the unfortunate canine broke his leg and Jerry had to look elsewhere for support.

Michael Gallagher from Doonbeg came to the rescue and walked with Jerry that year and the following year.

This year, for his swansong Jerry has encountered the assistance of friend and neighbour Tommy Mc- Grath. The inventive duo have taken Jerry’s wheelchair and attached pip- ing, using two plumbing fittings, to the back.

The detachable new “handle’ is high enough for Jerry to push the chair and will give him the confidence to walk the 10 km and finish the race. The

mini marathon expert expects to fin- ish in his usual time of three hours, accompanied by his son Michael and erandson David Kelly.

“IT am definitely going to pack it in this year,’ he told

has learned.

According to new figures made available for the first time last week, the average price paid for farm land in Clare, Donegal and the counties of Connacht was just €15,293 per acre in 2007.

While this represents an increase of €1,206 on the 2006 average, it is still well below the national average per acre for farm land of €20,367.

This is according to the national

agricultural land price survey, which is carried out each year by the Irish office of Knight Frank.

On a national level, the price of farmland stabilised this year despite the difficulties experiences in many sections of the property market.

The national average price per acre was down €415 or 1.9 per cent on av- erage compared to 2006.

Despite the drop, indicators sug- gest that 2008 could see a return to increasing prices for farm land.

‘There was a welcome rise in farm incomes in 2007 and those farmers who sold land for development, road building in recent years will continue

to be keen to buy other land to farm in its place,” said Knight Frank part- ner and Head of Ireland Residential, Robert Ganly.

“If the volume of land sales in- crease with a moderation of demand, then land prices are likely to stabilise or decrease by just a single digit per- centage overall in the coming year.

“Looking ahead, farmland prices through 2008 and beyond will be in- fluenced by a wide range of interna- tional and domestic factors and will perhaps only partly reflect trends in the general Irish property market.”

The survey also found that the amount of farmland sold nationally

last year dropped, following on from 2006 which saw no increase in the number of farmland sales on the pre- vious year.

In total there were 154 reported sales in 2007, representing a 41 per cent decrease from the previous year’s 261.

The total area of land sold in 2007 was 9,933 acres, a decrease of 30 per cent on the previous year.

The survey also showed that the av- erage plot size was down last year to 64.50 acres from 54 acres in 2006. This was a continuation of a previous trend, as plot size was also down in 2006 from the previous year.

THE proposed controversial right of way accessing Doughmore beach is to be part of an oral hearing.

Kilrush area councillors voted for the proposal outlining plans to close part of the Caherfeenick road and open a new pedestrian access through Doonbeg Golf Club on to the beach, to go on public display.

An inspector will then be promoted and an oral hearing held on the is- sue.

Under the proposal, a right of way on to the beach will be handed over to Doonbeg Golf Club Limited in exchange to alternative access to the beach and further conditions.

Clare County Council executives maintain that the proposal will have no affect on a high court judicial re- view taken by the golf club against An Bord Pleanala.

Under the proposal, which must fi- nally get the approval of the elected members of the council, the right of way over part of the public road at Caherfeenick, Cree will be extin- guished for 120 metres.

The extinguishment will only take place when certain criteria are met

by the golf club. Among the commit-

ments is the provision of a car park County Council’s specifications and

of 35 spaces constructed to Clare

supervised by local authority staff. An area of land including the car

park and a further estimated 0.6 acres for 35 more car park spaces must also be transferred into the ownership of Clare County Council.

A new “turn table at the new termi- nal point” on the Caherfeenick road to Clare County Council’s specifica- tion in size and standard must also be constructed and bollards installed.

“A clear legal grant of a pedestrian right of way to be given by Doonbeg Golf Club to Clare County Council from the turn table” at the end of the road to the beach is another part of the controversial proposal.

A document circulated to the coun- cillors also points to “a clear legal grant of a vehicular right of way for emergency vehicles” to be given by the golf club to Clare County Coun- cil and this right of way to be three metres wide. The final criteria to be met by the golf club states that Clare County Council is to be “indemni- fied against any claim on the Doon- beg Golf Club property by Doonbeg Golf Club.”

CHILDCARE facilities in Ennis are set for a significant upgrade as work gets underway on a new 5000sq foot community creche.

Mayor of Clare, Patricia McCarthy and Mayor of Ennis, Tommy Bren- nan yesterday turned the sod on the site on the Watery Road. When com- plete, the creche will serve all com- munities in Ennis, providing urgently needed childcare facilities.

An extensive programme in pre- school education will be delivered. The créche will also operate a full

Montessori run by fully qualified teaching staff, and provide for chil- dren with special needs with facili- ties to include state-of-the-art multi- sensory rooms and four classrooms.

The Clare Family Resource Centre will operate the creche with a staff of 33 full-time workers. There will also be a close working partnership with the FAS community employment scheme. A management committee will be made up of a voluntary board of directors.

The total cost of the project is esti- mated at under €2 million with the majority funded by the Office of the

Minster for Children. The remainder will be raised by the Clare Family Resource Centre (CFSC) through a series of fundraising initiatives.

The project was first mooted two years ago when it was established there was a need to expand the level of childcare services in Ennis. Mau- reen Keane of the CFSC said the cen- tre had received huge support from different organisations and groups.

‘There is a great need for a creche like this in Ennis. Since two years ago, when the idea was first put for- ward, we have received great support and it has made this project possible.

We received a lot of support from the HSE, Pobal and FAS,” she said.

The CFSC is currently based in Clonroad Business Park and provides creche services for 80 children.

Ms Keane added, “Our ethos is to provide an environment that is warm, safe and friendly, and supports and encourages children to be them- selves, grow and reach their potential at their own pace. And we will still be local and accessible to the town.”

Work at the site will commence in the next few weeks and should be completed in time for the creche to open in October.

PLANS have been lodged with Clare County Council for a €5 million tourism development in Bunratty.

The plan has been lodged on behalf of Kieran Flanagan who is seeking planning permission for two blocks that include commercial units and a café restaurant.

The site has been zoned for the pur- poses of providing tourism/leisure facilities and is located within walk- ing distance of Bunratty Castle — the main attraction in the area.

According to planning documents lodged with the council, “the modest

size of the individual units ensures that the development remains at a scale appropriate to the surrounding village context. The design of the de- velopment successfully reflects tra- ditional design character in a mod- ern idiom and is thereby in keeping with the established character of BLUbevestAATy

“The proposed development will consolidate the tourist retail presence within Bunratty and provide sup- porting facilities for existing tour- ist attractions and accommodation in the area. It will serve to increase and expand the tourist retail offer of Bunratty and in turn increase the

attractiveness and vibrancy of Bun- ratty as a tourist attraction.”

‘The site is one of the limited sites within Bunratty which has been zoned for the purposes of tourism AN OCO MD (sR UN Kon

“The development is compatible with the zoning objectives for the area which is to reserve lands for tourism related purposes,’ the plan- ning application states.

‘The urban design strategy for the development is to consolidate the village streetscape of Bunratty. This is achieved by the proposed design form and layout, which presents a streetscape to the main road through

Bunratty and also the access road to the development.

“The target market for this devel- opment is the substantial number of tourists who visit Bunratty each year as well as the local population. It is envisioned that the units will provide outlets for small, specialised stores, selling high order comparison goods suitable for the tourism market, such as crafts, gifts or clothing

“The development will serve to increase and expand the tourist re- tail offer of Bunratty and in turn in- crease the attractiveness of Bunratty as a tourist destination”, the planning application concludes.

, Cllr Meaney said that he had been in contact with his solicitor re- garding comments which appeared on the front page of a local newspa- per last week.

Meaney described the comments as being “wild rhetoric” and “tanta- mount to intimidation.”

Senator Dooley had last week threatened legal action against any members of Clare County Coun- cil who supported the ban on TD’s meeting planners in non-public areas of the planning office.

‘There is nothing cut and dry about this yet, the TD’s are certainly mov- ing among their own groups. There is talk of legal action,’ said Cllr Meaney.

“I have had to go and get my own legal advice in relation to comment I read on the front of a local publica- tion last week. My legal advice are watching the situation and have de- scribed the comments as idle threats and tantamount to intimidation.

“It was wild rhetoric and it was ill

thought-out. The notion of suing a councillor who chooses to support a motion is a limit to our free speech.”

Cllr Meaney was speaking after an in camera meeting of Clare County Council last night.

SW slow antec nestcom yd eNCONMM Nc: enrel sere LUE tere! to last just 45 minutes, spilled over

into the time allocated for the gen- eral council meeting and lasting for more than a two and a half hours in KO)E-YB

Journalists and spectators were re- fused access to the meeting, but, ac- cording to Cllr Meaney, the situation regarding access I’D’s gaining access

to non-public areas was clear. “There was an awful lot of resist- ance to introducing a procedure that would interfere with the County Councillors right to engage with the planning system. Certainly, it was made clear at the meeting that the TD’s have no rights in terms of ac-

cess to the planners,” continued Cllr Meaney.

“They have rights to make repre- sentations, they have rights in terms of making planning legislation’s, but they have no rights in terms of ac- cessing the non public areas.

“We don’t have to reinvent the Wheel on this issue. The four plan- ning authorities in the Dublin area do not allow any access by TD’s to the non-public areas of the planning office. It has to be done in a transpar- OLA Nl

According to Cllr Meaney, the situ- ation regarding County Councillor access to the non public areas of the planning section has been deferred to next Mondays meeting of Clare County Council.

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Martin Conway described the pro- ceedings as “constructive”.

“I’m not in a position to discuss anything that was discussed at the in camera meeting, except that I felt that it was a very productive meet- ing,” he said.

“We had a very detailed and frank discussion and I would be confident that we will have a very satisfactory resolution to the issued that council- lors were faced with.”