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AN Ennis businessman will not be able to start work on ambitious plans to convert the well-known Edenvale House residence into a luxury guesthouse until April of next year.

This is due to the presence of rare protected bats on the 18th TACT YAS Ikon

Clare County Council has at- tached a number of measures to ensure the continued conserva- tion of the Lesser Horseshoe Bat, to its decision to grant planning permission to Martin Cullinan c/o Club Dangan, Ennis to trans- form the historic house into a guesthouse.

The site is of international 1m-

portance to the conservation of the Lesser Horseshoe Bat and Edenvale House is part of a Spe- cial Area of Conservation (SAC), due to having a large number of the protected bats at three dif- ferent locations in the area at Edenvale cave, Newhall cave and Edenvale house farm buildings.

According to an expert report, the two cave systems in winter contain more than 5% of the na- tional population in winter, while the number of Lesser Horseshoe bats found in the SAC during the most recent survey last January was 388.

In his plan, Mr Cullinan is also seeking to extend the main house, which is a protected structure.

In granting Mr Cullinan per-

mission, the Council has ruled that he cannot carry out any de- velopment works between Octo- ber and March inclusive to avoid any impacts on the bat popula- tion or on their breeding season.

With receipt of the Council’s decision, Mr Cullinan must now wait four weeks before the final grant of permission allowing time for any appeals to An Bord Pleanala to be lodged.

This ensures that no works can commence until next April at the earliest if there is no appeal to An Bord Pleanala.

Mr Cullinan also has to submit to the Council prior to the com- mencement of development full details of all conservation meas- ures.

A BOOK of evidence has been served on a Kilrush man, accused of producing a knife and damaging a car in the town.

Leslie Kenny of Elm Drive, Kilrush, is facing two charges arising out of an alleged incident at Convent Road, Kilrush, on June toe ENe

Inspector Michael Gallagher said the ac-

cused had been in custody for a considerable amount of time. The inspector said Kenny could be remanded in custody with consent to bail, pending a number of conditions.

An independent surety was fixed at €2,500 and his own bond set at €500, neither of which were to be lodged.

He has been returned for trial to the next sitting of Ennis Circuit Court in October.

THE Irish Rural Dwellers Association has called for an urgent meeting in Clare with Environment Minister Dick Roche.

The Kilbaha-based lobby group, which is made up of 26 members nationally, wants to discuss its concerns over the New Housing Guidelines published by the Minister.

In a submission, the IRDA

argued that individual plan- ners have “extraordinary powers of decision-mak- ing” when it comes to visual amenity, seeking personal details, and establishing housing need.

It also outlined concerns at “planners’ powers to over- turn reports by consultant engineers and other profes- sionals on matters as funda- mental as, public health and NCA ae

“The fact that the Gov- ernment felt it necessary to publish these guidelines is recognition of the planning turmoil relating to single ru- ral housing in all areas,” said acting secretary of IRDA, Clare-based Jim Connolly.

PUY Oi romm ethos menie vited to address an IRDA conference “Rural Housing – A Rural Right” at the Kilkee Bay Hotel, on Wednesday August 31.

WHETHER it is comedy or classical music, there is something for everybody at Glor this autumn.

Comedian Pat Shortt will bring his brand new show “You Won’t Get Away With That Here” to Ennis.

It will run from November 3-5. Des Bishop will also be dropping by as will Irish comedian Connor Gallen who will appear on September 1.

For the past 4 years, Glor has attract- ed some of the top names in the music industry to Ennis.

This autumn is no different.

One of America’s foremost singer songwriters John Prine will play Glor on November 11.

Other big names to appear will be Damien Dempsey, John Spillane, Flook, and Bell X1.

Highly rated Dublin outfit “the Gug- genheim Grotto’ will perform their first headline show in Glor in September.

Clive Barnes will join veteran per- former Freddie White on September 2.

The inimitable Furey Brothers featur- ing Davey Arthur, Grada and Noelie McDonnell complete an eclectic musi- oF bDatest lop

Classical tastes will also be catered for with an extensive musical progamme.

Flautist Carol McGonnell will be joined by pianist Finghin Collins and

Catherine Leonard on the violin in Sep- tember.

Ballet Ireland return in November, when they perform “Diaghiliev and The Red Shoes’ as a tribute to Ballet Russe.

One of the highlights of the program me is sure to be a performance by U.K. theatre company ‘Fidget Feet’ on Sep- tember 2.

Combining elements of circus, dance and aerial acrobatics, it promises to be a dazzling display.

The simmering tensions of New Or- leans will be brought to the stage when the Keegan theatre group perform “A Streetcar Named Desire” in late Sep- tember.

Clare-based theatre group ‘Brion- gloid’ open the theatre season with ‘Failte Romhat a Mhairtin’ and “Dun na mBan tri Thine’.

Other highlights include, London Classic Theatre’s production of Hugh Leonard’s “Love in the Title’ and Blue Raincoat Theatre Company’s “the Bald Soprano’.

Glor’s ever-popular film club, returns on September 18.

As always the programme includes the very best in English and foreign lan- guage cinema.

The season kicks have with ‘My Sum- mer of Love’ and continues with *Vodka Lemmon’ and slick Hungarian thriller, ‘Kontrol’.

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A KILKISHEN leaving cert student, his brother and sister could be stranded without school transport when school opens after summer.

The three Stewart-Dunne children may have to switch school following a Vocational Education Committee warn- ing that they may not have places on the

school bus in the new term – if they can get a place in a new school.

Anne Stewart, mother of Michael (16), John (14) and Emer (12) says she is “at a loss” to know what to do about her chil- dren’s education after receiving a letter from the VEC last week warning that there may not be any space for her chil- dren on the bus to their secondary school in Shannon come September.

“Michael is about to start in to his Leaving Certificate cycle, John has set- tled into school at Shannon and loves it there and Emer wants to go to school where her brothers and cousins go. For them to change and go to Tulla, which is the nearest school, would be a major disruption. We don’t know if the school in Tulla has places for them – I don’t even know if we should be applying there or getting ready for Shannnon,” said Anne.

A major consideration for Anne – who is a lone parent and works part-time – would be the cost of changing schools.

“It will set me back about €300 for uniforms alone and there is a free book scheme in Shannon. I don’t know if that applies in Tulla. I only work part-time and I don’t have that kind of money,’ the mother of three said.

The letter which Anne Stewart received a few days ago is one of thousands sent out to families nation-wide.

The letters were sent to parents who have opted to send their children to a secondary school other than the one Aeterna com nelsn0

Before now, children who travelled to school outside their catchment areas were classified as “boundary catchment pupils” and were allocated seats on the basis of availability but in practice, al- most every child got a place on the bus.

The letters are a result of the Govern- ment decision to end a “three for two” seating arrangement on school buses.

The Stewart children were enrolled ins school at Shannon so they could be educated with their extended family and be close to their grandad, who provides them with a hot lunch while their mum is working.

“I know that the Department of Educa- tion is trying to improve safety standards on school buses and that’s all to the good but instead of doing the decent thing and putting on more buses, they want children uprooted and taken away from school where they are doing well, “ said Anne.

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CLARE people got a chance to sample what life is like behind the scenes at Lough Derg’s RNLI Lifeboat Station’s first Open Day last week.

The day was a huge success, with many local people visiting the station for the first time. Volunteer crew and committee mem- bers gave guided tours and answered ques- tions about the work of the RNLI and about their local lifeboat.

There were videos of the Atlantic Class lifeboat in action on the sea and slideshows on the development and progress of the Lough Derg Station.

The Irish Coast Guard’s Search and Res-

cue helicopter did a fly by, much to the delight of the young children visiting the station.

August 7 was also the first day of the Lough Derg Yacht Club annual regatta and many sailors visited the station. It is tra- ditionally a day in which the Yacht Club makes a collection for the RNLI.

‘All volunteers at the station would like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who made the journey to visit the lifeboat sta- tion; for their enthusiasm, support and gen- erosity” said Lifeboat PRO Eleanor Hogan. “The Open Day was a tremendous success and helped to raise funds to continue the valuable work of the RNLI and our local lifeboat station.”

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THE president of the IFA John Dillon has pledged to continue the campaign to pre- vent factory owners from importing low cost beef from South America.

Mr Dillon’s pledge came after what he described as a ‘useful’ meeting with the directors of the Queally Meat Group last week. The meeting took place following an IFA protest by some 300 farmers at the plant in Naas, Co Kildare. More than 50 farmers occupied the offices of the Queally Group during the 10 hour long protest.

The IFA head claimed that there had been a full and frank exchange of views at the meeting on the issue of beef imports from South America.

“I conveyed to Peter Queally and Dan Browne the depth of anger among beef producers in this country who have seen prices collapse in the last six weeks,” said Mr Dillon. “Meat factories have cut cattle prices by €150 per head since June, leav- ing over 50,000 beef farmers in a loss- making situation.”

“The IFA is demanding that Agriculture Minister Mary Coughlan introduce proper labelling at all hotels, restaurants and ca- tering outlets,” he continued.

Earlier in the week Mr Dillon accused meat factories of “stabbing Irish farmers in the back” over the slaughter of beef, be- lieved to originate in Brazil, in the Kildare factory.

Indeed, questions have also been raised

from many sectors of the farming com- munity about the proper labelling of beef imported from South America and the pos- sibility of placing a quota on the amount of beef that can be imported.

Meanwhile, the president of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Association, Malcolm Thompson, has also joined the fight against beef imports from South America. Mr Thompson travelled to Derry last night to join a protest against the sale of Brazilian beef in supermarkets in Northern Ireland.

“We need to send a clear message to our World ‘Trade Organisations negotiators that Irish farmers will not tolerate the deci- mation of our industry any longer and beef needs to be treated as a nationally sensitive product,” said Mr Thompson.