Category: Uncategorized

A NEW creche is to be built in the grounds of Kilrush Adult and Com- munity Education Centre on the Co- oraclare road which served as the Kilrush Vocational School for many years.

The existing creche operates in prefab units and the new facility will provide a permanent base for this much needed community facility.

Clare Vocational Education Com- mittee Chief Executive, George O’Callaghan, announced at the com- mittees’ monthly meeting that over

€600,000 in funding has been se- cured from Pobal for the project.

“This will be a state of the art modern facility of similar design and scale as the one being built in the grounds of West Clare Resource Centre in Miltown Malbay by the lo- cal Spraoi Group,’ he added.

The funding body, Pobal, is a non-profit company that manages programmes on behalf of the Gov- ernment and EU. Its mission is to promote social inclusion, reconcilia- tion and equality through integrated social and economic development within communities.

Meanwhile, an opportunity for early school leavers to continue their education presents itself at the Mil- town Malbay Youthreach Centres

The Vocational Education Com- mittee runs the centre and is inviting applications for places at the Mil- town centre.

Early school leavers over 15 years interested in taking part in the Youthreach Programme can study for the Leaving Certificate Applied and Further Education and Training Awards Council of Ireland certifica- tion. They can also learn a range of new skills including art and crafts,

music, stained glass, cookery, leath- erwork, woodwork and sport. Career guidance is available to all students.

Successful candidates receive a training allowance that includes a subsidy towards travel and meal costs from Clare Vocational Educa- tion Committee.

Youthreach programmes in Clare have proved particularly worthwhile over the years, leading many persons into gainful employment and some into self-employment. Further infor- mation is available from Josephine or Enda at the Miltown Malbay Youth- reach project at 065-708 4774.

THERE has been a slight fall in the amount of buildings completed in Clare during the first six months of 2007 compared to the same period in 2006.

A new survey identified 1,163 new buildings in Clare during the first six months of 2007.

However, the figure represents a fall in the number of completed buildings when compared to the 2006 figure of PAY

GeoDirectory, the company jointly established by An Post and Ordnance Survey Ireland to create and manage a database of every building in the Republic of Ireland, identified 1,163 new commercial and_ residential

buildings across County Clare be- tween January and June of this year.

This brings the total number of buildings in Clare to 53,183 at the ATO MOy Mn LUD Ae

On a national level, GeoDirec- tory predicts healthy growth in the number of new buildings that will be completed this year.

In the first six months of the year, GeoDirectory identified 60,781 new commercial and residential buildings across the country.

This represents a 44 per cent in- crease in the number of new build- ings when compared with the same period last year.

The increase brings the total number of buildings in the Republic of Ireland to 1,789,876. When sea-

sonal adjustments are taken into con- sideration, the figures allow GeoDi- rectory to forecast that over 80,000 new buildings will be completed in 2007. This will make 2007 the second highest year for completed buildings in history behind 2006.

GeoDirectory General Manager, Dara Keogh explained, “In the sec- ond half of the year, we expect to identify at least 20,000 additional oLUBN (ONDA TSAce

‘This allows us to forecast that over 80,000 new buildings will be com- pleted by the end of 2007.”

Meanwhile, a survey carried out by the Ulster Bank has indicated a gradual slowdown in the Irish con- struction industry. The Ulster Bank Construction Purchasing Managers’

Index (PMI) — a seasonally adjusted index designed to measure the over- all performance of the construction economy — pointed to the sharpest contraction of activity since July 2003. Anecdotal evidence suggested that reduced new order volumes had caused the marked fall in activity.

Commenting on the survey, Pat McArdle, Chief Economist at Ulster Bank, said, “Housing activity weak- ened further in September as build- ers and developers reduced output in response to lower new order vol- umes. This trend is likely to continue as new orders fell sharply in Septem- ber. The September PMI points to another sharp decline in employment — usage of sub-contractors fell for the first time in almost four years”.

THE West Clare Arts Network, a voluntary group which was set up to support and promote arts and cul- tural events, have been awarded Arts Council funding to co-host an au- tumn tour featuring renowned singer Liam O Maonlai.

The tour 1s a joint initiative between five rural Arts Networks including south Kerry, west Wicklow, south- east Laois and south Tipperary.

The funding is being allocated as part of the Arts Councils Touring Experiment initiative which is de- sisned to inform and shape future policy for touring in Ireland.

As a result of the funding the arts network in west Clare hope to high-

light the positive contribution that voluntary groups can make to pro- moting the arts in rural areas and encourage new members to get in- volved.

The west Clare concert will take place in Teach Cheoil in Kilrush on Saturday next. Doors open at 8pm and Saturday is the final date on the tour.

This old Church of Ireland build- ing was a major beneficiary under the new Development Programme of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann and is now transformed into a magnificent (or NEC

Tickets for the concert cost €10 and are selling fast. They can be pur- chased from the Brothers of Char- ity office, Kilrush, Kilkee Business

Centre and from Jacinta O’Grady in Doonbeg.

Liam O Maonlai is probably best know from his time with the Hot- house Flowers and has since carved out a successful career as a solo artist drawing on his love for the Irish lan- guage and traditional music whilst embracing contemporary music and song from around the world.

He recently performed at the Elec- tric Picnic festival in Laois and was to be heard singing Steve Cooney’s song “The Money Mad Mile’ about the M3 motorway controversy from the Hill of Tara.

A special guest performer on the night of the concert will be local young musician, Rory McMahon.

The tour will also involve a work-

shop with Liam on traditional song in Teach Cheoil on Sunday, October 14 from 2pm to 4pm.

Places on the workshop are strictly limited and should be booked by contacting 085-8144661 and leaving your name and number or be e-mail- ing westclareartsnetwork@gmail. ofeyneF

The West Clare Arts Network was set up in late 2004 with the support of Rural Resource Development Ltd and the arts office of Clare County Council. Nationally, the tour is being co-ordinated by trainer and facilita- tor, Conor O’Leary, who was also instrumental in setting up four of the networks including west Clare at that time and he can be contacted at 087- Oe

this week, lives were put at jeopardy due to contfus- ing road markings.

On Sunday, September 16, Laura Burke from Lisdoonvarna was in- volved in an accident at Shop Cross on the R477.

“I was driving my car that morning, having been to mass in Lisdoonvar- na. I had one of my children in the car and one of her friends — they had both been serving Mass that morning,” she said.

“Tl slowed, braked and indicated to

turn right. As I did so, a car pulled out in an overtaking manoeuvre and crashed into the back of my car.”

Despite the existence of warning signs at that section of the R477, the road contains broken white lines, in- dicating that it is safe to overtake.

“Both children were screaming, distressed and traumatised. My daughter’s friend is an asthmatic and it took considerable effort to gain her confidence and calm her down,” she said.

“This is not the only accident of this nature to take place at this junc- tion recently. I don’t think it would be too difficult to replace the broken line with a single solid white line.

“I don’t think there is any time where it is safe to overtake at a cross- road, and my own personal experi- ence bears this out. Needless to say,

it would be distressing for the coun- cil to wait for a fatal accident before they took action.”

Meanwhile, in a separate corre- spondence with

IT goes to show you – you just can’t keep a good thing down. No sooner has the Stella Maris Day Care Centre reopened for two days in September 2005, than a message went out; we eNO LM ON KsLee

Now, almost two years to the day since Mary Harney reopened the centre, they have achieved just that. Last Wednesday a group of older people from Bell Harbour, Carron, New Quay, Kilfenora and Kilnaboy visited Stella Maris, taking a well deserved day out to socialise and re- lax.

Their weekly day out has been made possible by funding from the Department of Health and a new

bus, bought with money donated by a group of local businesses.

“When we started off we had two days and our long term goal is to have four or five days. The latest group are coming from the most remote places, so to cover these places we needed a bigger bus,” said Nuala Dillon of the Stella Maris Centre.

“So out of the blue, a group of local businessman came forward with the funding. Eugene Garrihy organised it, his father Jack used to come in and spend some time with us.

“Jack loved coming here, he was very enthusiastic about the place. So Eugene gathered together a group of local business people, people who have become very successful at their different types of businesses, they

contributed and now we have a brand new bus.

“We would also really like to thank John Curtin, who was our bus driver here. He was very involved in the committee and very involved in us getting the new bus. He unfortunate- ly passed away a couple of months x On

Alongside this, student from Mary Immaculate School raised €5,500 for the Stella Maris.

“We’re going to use that money to start a brand new project, we are going to compile a personal history for all the people who use the facil- ity here. It is something that a lot of older people don’t know about and will be really interesting. It will be about their own lives, how they grew

up, old sayings that they might have,” Leys lepeLeCre MN LUE DEB

“Each person will get a bound per- sonal history of their own life.

The committee in Stella Maris have now set their sites at getting funding to open the centre for a fourth and then a fifth day. In the future, they also plan to devote one day each week to people from the area who suffer from Alzheimer’s.

THE Minister for Transport, Noel Dempsey has been unable to tell the Dail when the long-anticipated eco- nomic plan in response to Open Skies aviation deal will be published.

This follows a Dail question from Deputy Pat Breen asking whether funding will be made available to the Midwest region following the in- troduction of Open Skies; and if so, when it will be made available and who will have responsibility for the management of the fund

In response, Minister Dempsey said, “My department is currently finalising an Economic and Tourism Development Plan for the Shannon Airport catchment area. The plan has been prepared in consultation with the Department of Finance, the Department of Arts, Sport and Tour- ism, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the De- partment of Communications, En- ergy and Natural Resources.

“The purpose of the plan is to en-

sure that the region is well placed to respond to the challenges and oppor- tunities emerging in the context of full liberalisation of the transatlantic aviation market and the phasing out of the Shannon stop as envisaged under the EU-US Open Skies Agree- ment. I hope to bring the plan to con- clusion shortly.”

The plan, which was launched in July 2006, seeks to achieve a tour-

ism promotional fund of €44 mil- hon from Government funds, a route support fund of €9 million and an independent and financially viable S)at-beveleyembeneleum

Already, the Mid-West Regional Authority has written to Government asking why funding has not been forthcoming.

The phased ending of the Shannon stop-over commenced earlier this year and Shannon has already lost a number of transatlantic services for the next winter.

The agreement stipulates that full Open Skies will commence in April pau eres

The five-year plan aims to secure a 30 per cent share of the direct trans- atlantic market between America and Ireland and to achieve an appro- priate sustainable level of year-round services to main US gateways.

Currently, Shannon has 37 per cent of the Irish transatlantic business.

THREE and a half years of planning paid off this weekend as the crowds gathered in the west Clare village of Quilty for the first ever Leon XIII oneal

Even the weather played its part as musicians dancers and singers enter- tained those gathered to remember the final voyage of the ill fated ship 100 years ago.

The local fishermen men who car- ried out the dramatic rescue of its crew were remembered by a special currach race, which saw local people including the local priest training for the last year.

On Friday evening, anew commem- orative plaque and lectern featuring the Leon XII story was unveiled by relatives of the Quilty fishermen of IONE

AN BORD Pleanala has refused planning permission for a €15 mil- lion wind farm in west Clare due to the impact the proposal would have on protected birds such as Hen Har- riers and Whooper Swans.

Earlier this year, Clare County Council granted planning permission to a German company, Pro Ventum, to construct a six-turbine windfarm near the west Clare towns of Kilrush and Kilkee. The company already has in place a seven turbine farm in close proximity to the new site – only one of two in operation in Clare.

The application was originally lodged four years ago in May 2003 but it wasn’t until February of this year that the council granted permis- sion after a long delay by the appli- cants in providing new information.

However, the decision was appealed to An Bord Pleanala by chairman of the Moanmore Action Group, Frank Lillis. Mr Lillis claimed that the cu- mulative effect of an enlarged wind- farm operation in such close proxim- ity raised serious health issues and that Birdwatch Ireland stated that there should be a presumption against siting windfarms in or adjacent to sensitive ecological areas including Special Protection Areas (SPAs).

The Inspector’s report cites a De-

partment of the Environment which states dissatisfaction with the ab- sence of any recent bird survey and an analysis of the impact of the adja- cent windfarm upon certain species.

The Inspector stated, “I have as- sessed the documentation submitted regarding these Annex | species and visited the site, yet consider the detail provided with regard to the impact of the development upon these Annex | species and furthermore, the cumula- tive impact of a 13 turbine wind farm upon these birds to be inadequate.”

The inspector said that an updated bird survey should have been carried out by the applicant. “I consider that insufficient information has been pro- vided to support the applicant’s state- ment that the proposed development would not by itself or cumulatively have an adverse impact upon the mi- eratory path or feeding grounds of these three bird species, identified un- der EU law for protection.”

The inspector warns that the cu- mulative effects of the two turbine developments on the habitat of the hen harrier on the basis of current knowledge and research are not es- tablished. The proposed develop- ment is located on a site identified as being in close proximity to a direct flight path for feeding and roosting sites of species listed for protection in the Birds Directive.

A WEST Clare GP outlined in clear terms the uphill battle facing the people of the county if it loses its 24- hour accident and emergency serv- ice. Dr Michael Harty, Chairman of the Clare branch of the Irish College of General Practitioners, was also clear on the current challenges faced by Ennis General Hospital and laid the blame squarely at the door of the HSE and the Government.

“This systematic starving of the hos- pital of resources has led to the lower- ing of morale among the staff work- ing in the hospital and has eroded the confidence of the general public

in the hospital. These are the facts of the situation but as professionals we are not supposed to mention them as we might further undermine the con- fidence in the hospital. The time for such niceties has long passed,’ he told the protesting crowd on Saturday.

‘The vision of the Government and the HSE for the future of the Irish health service does not include En- nis General Hospital as a provider of 24-hour acute medical care. The minister for health has indicated that the consultant-led accident and emer- gency services will be limited to day time services only and there will be no consultant service at night.”

Dr Harty outlined the knock-on ef-

fects of this policy. “There will be no intensive care services, there will be no coronary care services, there will be no medical or surgical staff on duty at night. There will be no radi- ology or laboratory services. Ambu- lances will be directed to Limerick with all emergencies.

‘There has been a concerted cam- paign by consecutive governments, the health board and now the HSE to undermine Ennis hospital,’ said Dr Harty.

“One of the fundamental problems in the Irish health service 1s the short- age of beds. Nationally we are short 3,000 beds. In the mid-west region, this 1s equivalent to 250 beds.

‘To put Ennis in context, there are times, when Ennis operates at 117 per cent capacity, that there are 15 extra beds in Ennis over and above the 88 they are allocated.

“General hospitals such as Ennis should operate efficiently at 85 per- cent capacity. Thus at times Ennis is operating at 32 per cent above opti- mum capacity.

‘The fact that Ennis operates at 117 per cent capacity proves that there is a demand for acute services in Ennis. When acute services close in Ennis where will the replacement services be? Limerick Regional Hospital is already operating at maximum ca- pacity as well,” he said.

A ROW over water pressure led to one councillor blowing a valve and storming out of last night’s meeting of Ennis Town Council.

Independent councillor Frankie CAV Cente CesM mm MelommeclercinbercamnemecDemrcDelca my mood, less than 15 minutes after it started, 1n protest at continuing prob- lems with water pressure in areas of Ennis.

Councillor Neylon said he had been raising the issue for the past 12 months and was fed up with the coun- cil’s failure to solve the problem.

The argument between Cllr Neylon and Town Engineer, Tom Tiernan

arose as members discussed the min- utes of the September meeting of En- nis Town Council.

As Town Engineer, Tom Tiernan listed the difficulties with ensuring adequate water pressure in elevated parts of Ennis, Cllr Neylon rose from his chair and declared, “I?ll have to leave this meeting. I’m sick and tired of the bulls**t coming across this table”.

Cllr Neylon said homes in Connolly Villas, St Flannans Terrace and the Tulla Road are regularly affected and he had fielded numerous complaints from people living in those areas.

According to Cllr Neylon, low water pressure in homes and fire hydrants

could result in a serious accident.

“Tam 12 months talking about wa- ter pressure in this town and I am sick and tired of having to bring it up. It is taking up to seven hours to fill tanks in Connolly Villas. There is an ac- cident waiting to happen if someone lights a fire in their home and there is no water in the tank.”

He continued “There was a fire on Station Road last week and luckily it was contained, but we have problems with the fire hydrants. It’s a potential disaster. And this isn’t just a Connol- ly Villas problem, this isn’t a Frankie Neylon problem — it affects Flan- nans Terrace, Tulla Road, Station Road, Mill Road. I’m constantly be-

ing contacted by people. They think I’m a fool. ’m getting embarrassed at this stage”.

Mr Tiernan conceded problems did exist in elevated parts of town. He said, “We are doing everything we can to resolve the problems. The mains in those areas are very old. An awful lot are laid in back gardens and that brings problems in time.”

He added, “Extra resources are be- ing put into finding leaks. The 1m- pression is that we are doing nothing and that is not the case.”

Fine Gael councillor, Johnny Flynn supported Cllr Neylon and said he awaited Mr Tiernan’s report on the matter.