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THE way is now clear for the provision of a privately run three- storey medical centre, which will form part of a new commercial development on the outskirts of Ennis town centre.

The masterplan being driven by T Sheils & Co for the company’s flagship site on the Ennis-Galway Rd also includes the proposed new McDonalds for Ennis, along with a new supermarket and six two-storey retail units.

The ambitious plan will also see the development of underground and overground car-parking fa- cilities, along with a stand-alone petrol station.

The existing showrooms and shop will be demolished.

With an Bord Pleanala giving the medical centre component the go-ahead, the only remaining aspect of the masterplan yet to get the green-light is the McDonalds drive-thru restaurant, where a de- cision 1s expected in October.

However, as part of the condi- tions attached to the permission, the appeals board has ruled that

the medical centre shall not be occupied until the Ennis by-pass is complete in the interests of traffic safety with the by-pass project not expected to be com- plete by April 2007.

The development – when com- plete – 1s expected to further in- crease the value and profits of the Sheils Company.

The Ford dealer, which has out- lets in Ennis, Limerick and Gal- way, recorded a turnover of €32.5 million to the end of October last year employing 60 people.

Ennis Town Council granted planning permission for the med- ical centre earlier this year, how- ever it was appealed to An Bord Pleanala by local resident, Brian Crowe of 79 Elm Park, Gort Rd, Syabavhy

Mr. Crowe claimed that the de- velopment of the medical centre 22 metres from his home is unac- ceptable.

However, T Sheils & Co point- ed out to the appeals board that the development is in close prox- imity to St Joseph’s Hospital and will provide primary care and personal social services.

The company stated: “This is in keeping with the 2001 Health Strategy issued by the Depart- ment of Health and Children.”

They also argued that the pro- posal is not significantly higher than the existing dwellings, nor in close proximity, therefore over- shadowing will not be significant and therefore the proposed devel- opment will not seriously injure residential amenity.

As aresult of the inspector’s de- cision to grant planning permis- sion, the Board ruled that “having regard to the zoning of the site of the proposed development in the current Development Plan for the area and the pattern of develop- ment in the area.

“It 1s considered that the pro- posal would be compatible with other permitted uses, would not seriously injure residential amen- ity and would be acceptable in terms of traffic safety and con- venience.

“The proposed development would, therefore, be in accord- ance with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.”

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LOCAL cyclists will set off from Ennis next week will as part of a charity cycle to raise money for work that has been undertaken on the spire of the Cathedral in Ennis. Thirteen volunteers will travel 80 miles from Ennis to Birr on Saturday August 27 as part of a fund-raising drive to pay for the cost of restoration work on the spire.

All donations are gratefully accepted. Work on the restoration of the spire has been completed at a cost of €1.75m. Last year’s cycle to Cork raised €26000 for the project.

This 1s the second year of the event.

The church has also planned a series of other fundraising initiatives.

An art exhibition 1s planned for Christ- mas while there are also plans for a con- cert in the cathedral.

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MEMBERS of the Ennis based Centre for Inde- pendent Living (CIL) have echoed a statement made this week by the People With Disability’s in Ireland (PWDI), that greater efforts should be made to make public transport more accessible.

The call comes as members of the CIL prepare to travel to Strasbourg in September as part of European-wide initiative to raise the issue of dis- ability with the EU.

The ‘Strasbourg Freedom Drive 2005’ will bring together 600 people from around Europe who will stage a major disability rights rally at the European Parliament in Strasbourg from September 5-8. 58 people will travel from Ire- land, with six people representing Clare.

According to Thomas Connole, who will lead the Clare delegation in Strasbourg, more needs to be done to make the transport service more accessible for people with disabilities.

“We were trying to lobby for a low floor bus for the use of people with disabilities between Ennis and Limerick but Bus Eireann kept saying there was engineering difficulties with the road. The trains are also very inaccessible to people with disabilities especially if you are in a wheelchair,” said Thomas on Friday.

Reports carried out by the National Disability Authority (NDA) showed that there is an extra

burden placed on a person living with disability, because of the extra costs associated with dis- ability.

This week the PW DI recommended that a pay- ment be made to disabled people to cover rising AUS COIS

“There is also talk now that taxi drivers are go- ing to introduce a fuel surcharge and the mobil- ity allowance I get at the moment won’t cover that,” explains Thomas.

Accessible transport is just one issue that the group hopes to highlight in Strasbourg.

The CIL are part of a larger European-wide movement known as the European Network of Independent Living (ENIL), who have three key demands that they would like to see met at Stras- bourg.

These include; stopping the drift towards insti- tutionalisation, the provision of a European-wide funding for personal assistance and to pass a res- olution stating that 5% of Overseas Development Aid be given to community development projects for disabled people in developing countries.

According to Dermot Hayes of the CIL, the issue of personal assistance remains hugely im- portant in Clare.

“At the moment there are approximately 72 people waiting for personal assistance that we know of, and we view this as a human rights is-

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THE team at Design Shannon are hard at work researching a new train- ing programme for enterprises in the Shannon Region.

The project centres on developing a network of companies who are in- terested in participating in a training programme that focuses on design as a driver of innovation.

And the good news is that compa- nies could have their training subsi- dised by up to 75 per cent under the government’s Skillsnet initiative.

Design Shannon are currently in- viting SME’s to join them at 4pm on Thursday, August 25, at the Clarion Hotel, Steamboat Quay, Limerick, to discuss the programme in detail.

Design Shannon Skillnet will pro- vide access to cutting edge training and professional development.

The focus is on training that uses creativity to help capture premium niche markets rapidly and efficiently.

“The result we are promising is a training programme that works in creating a new Strategic direction for

each company’s business plan that is knowledge based, driven by good re- search and development and strong market foresight,” a spokeswoman for Design Shannon said.

The spokeswoman said that the pro- gramme “will be delivered locally and will base its topics and themes on issues that have been expressed to De- sign Shannon through its Design Au- dit and Design Cluster programmes.”

All participating companies will get an opportunity to collaborate and network with other members. Design Shannon will facilitate the network which will be driven by its participat- ing companies.

“We are currently seeking views and feedback on some of the key themes of the training programme as well as the core topics,’ the spokes- woman said.

Skillnets is an enterprise-led, part- nership based support body dedicated to the promotion and facilitation of learning as a key element in sustain- ing Ireland’s national competitiveness. For more information, log on to www. designshannon.ie/seminars.html.

THE maritime town of Kilrush will delve back into its history this Sun- day, when the Western Yacht Club rerun a race first staged in the 1800s. In 1827, members of the then new yacht club decided to hold an all- encompassing __ regatta over a week on the Shan- non Estuary. The regatta started over a weekend at Kilrush and finished the following weekend in Limerick, with races held each day at the various ports on the Estuary. One of the major events at the time, was the long distance race known as the Glin Castle Race. It

started and finished at the castle. Usually, most of the Yachts would com- plete the course in some 12 to 14 hours.

This Saturday, the Western Yacht Club will re-run this “race”, with all its tidal challenges. Racing will follow the ISA Racing Rules, with first gun at 11.00 am Due to the time constraints of modern life, the course will be adjusted accord- ingly to suit wind, tide and yacht classes, so that yachts will finish at Glin Castle sometime around 4.30 pm. Staying with tradition, the presenta- tion will be at the castle that evening.

TWO budding Ennis mountain- eers scaled the heights of suc- cess recently when they trekked to the top of Croagh Patrick.

Darragh Ryan (8) and brother Ben (4) completed the climb while on a family holiday to Mayo in July.

Along with their mother Cath- erine, the two brothers braved the elements and the slippy rocky road to make it up the Pb ae

The family made the ascent on Wednesday July 27, just before the annual ‘Reek Sunday’ pil- erimage.

Darragh and Ben confounded the expectations of other walk- ers by completing the climb.

‘People were saying that we wouldn’t complete it because it was too slippy and the fact that I was on my own, it would be too much for the little lad,” explains Gr Ti etormneter

Such comments only spurred on the lads who reached the summit in two hours and fifty minutes.

Walking with the aid of their sturdy reek sticks, the boys were delighted with their achieve- ment. They made light work of

the arduous trek, with Ben even singing all the way up.

“It was great, there was no stopping them and Ben was

singing ‘Skip to my Lou my dar- ling,” said Catherine on Friday.

Catherine, who works with the Clare Sports Partnership, is a keen walker and has competed in two marathons.

A few weeks before Croagh Patrick, she had climbed Mul- laghmore.

Darragh is in 3rd class while Ben is preparing for his first year in school. Both attend Knocka- neen primary school.

This year over 20,000 people gathered in Mayo for the annual ‘Reek Sunday’ pilgrimage.

As 1s traditional, many of the pilgrims made the climb bare- foot.

This year marked the cente- nary of the church built at the top of the mountain.

Naturally Catherine is very proud of the boys, who now have their sights set on the ultimate climb.

“I thought for the two of them it was a great achievement to successfully climb the mountain so they are saying Mt Everest is next!” said Catherine.

THE ENNIS Chamber of Commerce has called for laws to make big business pay interest to small concerns on unpaid bills in a climate in which small firms are being crippled by late payments.

ISME, the independent business organisation said this week that small businesses are being squeezed to death by the failure of creditors to pay their bills on time.

According to a survey carried out by ISME, one-third of small companies are waiting long- er for payments than they did this time last year

and the distribution sector faces the biggest problem, with 41 per cent of those companies waiting longer now than they did last year.

While legislation exists to deal with prompt payments, Mark Fielding, Chief Executive of ISME, said that the laws are “not worth the pa- per they are written on. The evidence suggests that small companies are still being forced, particularly by accountancy-led big business to accept credit terms longer than those outlined in the legislation.”

CEO of the Ennis Chamber, Rita McInerney, said that the Chamber’s view on the Prompt Payments Legislation is that it is “a positive fa-

cility for business as it’s objective is to stimulate erowth and development. However, indigenous small businesses in Ireland are under increas- ing pressure, as they are operating in a country that has seen consistent rising costs while ex- pected to compete with the foreign stores and products.”

Ms McInerney said that while competition is healthy, mechanisms should be in place to en- courage domestic enterprises.

“It should be made easier for small businesses to implement the good intention of the Prompt Payments Legislation. It is time to rectify the situation where larger businesses can dictate

credit terms to small businesses while these smaller enterprises have to wait for payment and pay promptly themselves.

“When a government department or agency is late with a payment, they are obliged when settling an account to pay interest to their sup- plier on the overdue amount – private compa- nies should be made to adhere to these same conditions,’ the CAE said.

ISME is now calling on the government to amend the prompt payments legislation and in- troduce a mandatory level of 30 days for credit terms from the 53-day term which currently exists.