The Clare People Archive

POLISH workers in Kilkee hotels who successfully completed a FAS Skills for Work course have been commended for their application to studies and their level of achieve- ment.

The group of eight spent fifteen weeks on a part-time series of classes that had to be juggled with varying duty shifts. It was delivered in Kil- kee Bay Hotel by Clare Adult Basic Education Service (CABES), an arm of the Clare Vocational Education Sonatas

FAS devised the Skills for Work course as part of a new programme

from its Services to Business sector. In Kilkee, it was delivered by Kala Moloney of CABES whose tutors and materials costs are paid for by FAS.

Karl Quinn, co-ordinator of Eng- lish language programmes within CABES, who presented certificates to the workers, said he was full of admiration for the progress made throughout the course and looked forward to other similar courses around the county.

Margot Walsh, Skills for Work co- ordinator with FAS, also commented on the progress achieved during the course and hoped that the partici- pants could involve themselves in

further segments of the programme.

Designed to provide easy access to training for employees, the pro- gramme improves essential commu- nication skills and educational levels in the workplace, helping ensure a competitive edge to the employer.

The recipients of certificates were Jolanta and Krzysztof Ciesielski, Marck Sulkowski, Lukaz Kandler and his wife, Kamila, Sebastian Sulkowski, Andrzej Janoska and An- eta Sadowsti.

After the awards ceremony, the stu- dents presented Kala Moloney with a photographic encyclopaedia of Poland. An informal meal followed, featuring typical Polish food made

by the workers and samples of her native foods made by Kala Moloney who is Indian-born.

Several courses are running suc- cessfully in companies around Clare. Benefits are two-fold: the employees, for their part, develop new skills while companies gain in having employees with greater flexibility, improved communication skills and an interest in training and develop- ment.

Other benefits for employers are increased quality and output, more profitability, increased retention of employees, better team performance and health and safety record and or- ganisational flexibility.

PREPARATIONS have begun for one of west Clare’s longest running OME Ie

The ever popular Rose of Clare Festival will begin Sunday, August 5, and will run until the following Fri- day, bringing craic, ceoil and lots of lovely ladies to the villages of Cree and Cooraclare.

In its 28th year the festival contin- ues to attract young women from all over the county to compete for the coveted title of Rose of Clare.

This year, as always, a dozen new roses will be introduced to the crowd

at the Sunday afternoon Fancy Dress parade in Cree.

This will be followed by the family fun day in the GAA grounds. The fun and activities will include stack the turf, sheaf throwing, the dog show, tug-o-war and lots more.

Sunday and Monday will see well- known DJ and local man John Carey at the mixing desk for the first two discos of the week, but Monday night’s event is for children only.

The sound of the music will change on Wednesday night with Céili tak- NOTA OKoI NB KOMI EEL od

On Wednesday there is likely to be standing room only as the 12

roses will be interviewed by Colm O’Connor in the community centre, followed by music by Larry McEvoy.

Supporters will have to wait until Friday night to see if their favourite Rose was successful and will take over from last year’s winner Elma Griffin from Kilmihil as the 2007 Rose of Clare.

This will be followed by a disco by DJ Ger Sweeney.

People can also look forward to a race night on Thursday night and plenty of music and song in both vil- lages.

There will also be underage foot- ball competitions running in con-

junction with the festival and an art competition.

‘A lot of work has gone into organis- ing this year’s Rose of Clare Festival and we are fortunate to have a very dedicated hard working committee,” said Ruth Callinan, joint PRO of the OMe B

“Our community owes them a great debt and parishioners can indeed show their gratitude by supporting the various events during the week. We look forward to seeing our friends from neighbouring parishes and oth- er areas of the county supporting the Roses and hope that everyone has a very enjoyable week in Cooraclare.”

THE mayor of Kilrush is to consider making a trip to France for the coun- cil members part of next year’s local authority budget.

Cllr Tom Clyne (Ind) said, “I would like to say that I am keen that mem- bers of the current elected council, in place since 2004, would be part of a return visit to Plouzane and I will be bringing this to the fore later in the year when we are considering budg- ets for the coming 12 months.”

He was speaking at the 25th anni- versary of the twinning of Kilrush with the French town of Plouzane at a special monthly meeting of the Kilrush Town Council in the Vande- leur Walled Garden.

The 30-strong French delegation was led by the deputy mayor of the French town, Yves Dubuit.

The very first exchange took place in 1982, when Michael Flynn, the

then mayor, lead the inaugural twin- ning delegation to Plouzane.

Members of that delegation were also present at the special meet- ing including Michael Flynn and PJ Hanrahan. The late John McNama- ra was represented by his wife Kitty McNamara.

‘You must be very proud that some- thing started 25 years ago continues to thrive to this day,” Mayor Clyne told the members in the public gal- Says

“The first Plouzane delegation to come to Kilrush will have witnessed many changes since 1982. And even as some things change, some things remain the same. Kilrush still en- joys the same natural advantages it always has had – the same beautiful wide streets, the waterside location, accessible woodlands, fine architec- ture and streetscapes and the same vibrant community spirit – of which the Plouzane-Kilrush Twinning

Committee is a good example,’ the mayor continued.

“The advantages that Kilrush has to offer are now being recognised widely, by developers and others. Kilrush has received numerous Tidy Towns Awards in recent years. A Government department has recent- ly decentralised to Kilrush and there are 50 new revenue commissioners working in town. The commercial and business life of the town 1s thriv- ing and set to continue to thrive. The high standard of quality of life that can be enjoyed in Kilrush is reaping economic rewards.”

Plouzane shares a maritime tradi- tion with Kilrush, and Cllr Clyne took every opportunity to mention the new marina development to the visitors. He also outlined the on-set of full broadband facilities for the town.

“Our friends from Plouzane and ourselves have in common the best

interests of our towns at heart and we thank the people and the town of Plouzane for your sustained friend- ship and interest in Kilrush over the years. Regardless of any changes to shopping or tourism or technology, the key to successful twinning is in the friendships formed between or- dinary people. I congratulate both the Kilrush and Plouzane twinning committees for their dedicated hard work and for ensuring that the con- nections between people remain at the heart of this successful twinning relationship,’ he said.

KILRUSH is on line and available to the world through the internet.

Kilrush.ie is the brainchild of the town council, and will provide infor- mation about services and facilities in the west Care capital.

The site was re-launched this week, with up to date information and tech- nology in Clare’s local authorities most up to date site.

Following extensive re-development work carried out by Kilrush Town Council with the assistance of the IT Department of Clare County Coun-

cil, Kilrush Town Council’s web site is easy accessible and user friendly.

“This new enhanced site aims to provide the public with a vast amount of useful information on the work of the local authorities operating in Kil- rush as well as information for any- one planning a trip to Kilrush show- casing the town’s achievements and facilities on offer,’ Siobhan Garvey, acting marketing and development officer with Kilrush Town Council explained.

Application forms for and relating to services such as planning, roads, parking and housing will be available

to download from the site.

In addition, the public will have the ability to search Kilrush Town Coun- cil planning applications, checking the status on these applications from the comfort of home.

For the first time ever information on all Kilrush’s planning applications will be on line, similar to the service that has been available from Clare County Council for the last number of years.

‘The site has been designed to be accessible for all users including people with disabilities,’ said Ms Crane

“Websites are a valuable informa- tion tool and can reach a vast variety of the public; with this in mind Kul- rush Town Council are committed to ensure that all relevant up to date information will be available on this website,’ she added.

“We hope you will find this site a useful source of information and we welcome any comments you may have.”

People with such comments or queries can contact Kilrush Town Council n 065 9051047 and e- rnerew et kilrush@clarecoco.ie or sgarvey @clarecoco.ie.

CONCERN has been expressed about people moving to Shannon, from other areas, and engaging in anti-social behaviour.

Shannon-based councillors have expressed concern that people who are creating trouble in their areas are moving to the town, under the rent subsidy scheme.

At a Shannon Electoral Area meeting last week, Clare County Council senior executive officer Nora Kaye said she has personally refused housing to individuals, amid concerns relating to anti-so- aE Wim oloset- hrs celtow

“IT have refused myself, both af- fordable and social housing, fol- lowing the vetting process by gardai,’ said Ms Kaye.

“We are working closely with gardai in relation to anti-social behaviour,’ she added.

Councillor Patricia McCarthy (Independent) said one of the con- cerns was that the vetting which has been done by the county council was not being done by the HSE.

“Two or three agencies need to come together. Unless there is a sustained co-ordinated effort, it is

going to get worse,” she said.

Councillor Tony Mulcahy (FG) said, “We have a couple of unde- sirables at the moment, on the rent subsidy scheme.”

The mayor of Shannon, Council- lor Sean McLoughlin (FG) asked was any accommodation coming on stream for homeless men.

Ms Kaye said that while nothing specifically geared towards the homeless was becoming available, homeless people could be accom- modated in private houses.

She also said that the go-ahead has been given for new building options in Tradaree. They have to be designed, before any further progress is made.

“We are not consciously putting people in Tradaree at the moment, because they are going to be de- molished soon,” she said.

She said that while nothing defi- nite is coming on stream in New- market-on-Fergus and Quin in the foreseeable future, she is confi- dent that a number of options will be explored in those areas, at a later stage.

A small percentage of applicants on the social housing list are also on the affordable list, said Ms ier

THIRTEEN per cent of all houses in Shannon were unoccupied last year. While this figure is lower than the county average of 21 per cent, it is a significantly high figure for Shannon, which is not a haven for holiday home construction.

Shannon councillors last week re- ceived details of the county council’s housing strategy, between this year and 2011. The document points to- wards a projected house construction in the county of almost 11,000 new homes, between now and 2011.

Clare County Council senior execu- tive engineer (planning), John Brad- ley said that 3,457 houses in Shannon

were occupied, in the Census fig- ures for 2006. 522 were unoccupied, which represents 13 per cent of all TOU ehe

‘Where are these vacant houses and what is the reason? Are these second homes?” asked Mr Bradley.

He said that he was surprised by the high number of vacant houses and the number of replacement homes in Shannon.

‘This is not a holiday home venue. This area shouldn’t be holiday homes. While 522 unoccupied homes is low- er than the norm of 21] per cent for the whole of the county, it 1s of concern. Virtually any estate we have been through, there is a huge number of ‘for sale’ boards,” said Mr Bradley.

The mayor of Clare, Councillor Pa- tricia McCarthy (Independent) said the number of vacant houses in Clare was “frightening”.

“In the housing strategy, the area that isn’t covered is step down hous- ing, who are the elderly. They don’t want mortgages and they need some- thing to step down to. The social housing doesn’t cater for them. The affordable doesn’t cater for them,” she said.

Councillor Gerry Flynn (Independ- ent) noted that 21 per cent of houses in the county were vacant last year and asked, “Is that a failure in plan- bate

“Are we now seeing a failure show- ing up in the system that was always

anticipated?”’ he asked.

Cllr Tony Mulcahy (FG) said that the needs of single men with children Should be addressed, in terms of so- cial and affordable housing.

“They need to get some form of subsidy. We are way short,’ he said.

Newmarket-on-Fergus — Council- lor Pat McMahon said that housing shortages in his area, and Sixmileb- ridge, should be tackled.

“Newmarket and Sixmilebridge ex- perience great growth and will expe- rience more growth in the next five to 10 years,” he said.

He said the housing issue was like “adding another fence in the Grand National. It gets harder to win. It is a very Serious issue”.

A STUDY of every housing estate and road in Shannon will be carried out within the next week, with a view to putting signs in place during Sep- tember.

Clare County Council is undertak- ing the project in an effort to deter- mine the exact signage requirements and, as a result, will compile a list of individual signs. That list will be sent to the placename committee, to deter-

mine if the English to Irish translation is appropriate and also to check that the spelling of each estate is correct.

When this part of the project is com- pleted, an order will be placed for the new signs.

A list of 56 roads and estates has been compiled and this will be final- ised by the end of the month.

Where there are a number of estates served by a single collector road, each estate will be signed where the col- lector road meets a distributor road,

in addition to being signed at the en- trance of the estate.

Housing estates such as Cronan will also require additional signage, such as the replacement of signs fixed to the gable ends of houses.

Clare County Council Executive Engineer Michael Healy said he be- lieves that in excess of 100 signs will be required for the estates throughout Shannon, which are in charge of Clare County Council.

Earlier this year, 60 new street name

signs were erected in Shannon. The signs were ordered last October and a number of issues relating to their design resulted in a delay. However, they were eventually delivered and have put a nice touch on parts of the town, particularly as some areas were previously not easily identifiable. The decision to use the wording on the signs, as Gaeilge, was also welcomed by residents in the town, who are keen to cultivate an interest in the Irish lan- guage.

THE development of a multi-pur- pose arts centre should form the focal point of the redevelopment of Shannon Town Centre, according to the local musical society.

A team of architects has been ap- pointed and been requested to create a new ‘urban retail environment’ and a ‘living centre’, on a site across the road from SkyCourt.

Submissions from various groups in the town have been sought and many have been made, to the local authority.

In its submission, Shannon Musical Society said a multipurpose arts/civ- ic centre is needed, where opportuni- ties for cultural, social and commer-

cial events would be developed.

The society’s chairman, Derek Barrett, pointed out that the town is perceived as three things, “an inter- national airport, an industrial zone and a shopping mall”.

“Most people do not realise that there is a town and a community hidden within this triangle. We need to create a space and a centre that is both active and animated, not just during the 9am to 5.30pm shift. Shannon has all the traits of a sub- urb and few of a real town. That 1s our problem in a nutshell,’ said Mr By be KoA

“The town has a community spirit and that spirit has managed to sur- vive as community facilities and amenities have decayed over the

town’s short history,” he said.

He said that a streetscape, as 1s sug- gested in the plans, is necessary, to tie the existing shopping centre to the new town centre.

“It is very clear that we do not need another shopping centre.

“We need a link to the current shopping centre, with possible small scale retail, service and other com- mercial opportunities within that space,” he said.

The society points to a number of key components of the development – a focal point or monument for the town, such as a town clock; a rec- reational area, like a picnic area or skatepark.

“Do not let a commercial developer decide what our town becomes. This

has been our problem the last two times we had spurts of development in Shannon. Tax incentives have not helped the objectiveness of develop- SIS OComnsy- BCG

“In Shannon, community halls and similar centres have been allowed to decay and dilute to such a level that they have become useless. School halls, sports clubs, hotel function rooms and pubs have all been called upon to fill the gaps,” said Mr Bar- rett.

The musical society is suggesting that an arts centre would need to accommodate up to 400 people and would feature an orchestras pit, base- ment, foyer and venue, which would be “multi-functional” and could be TIMUR OM Aer AYA

MORE than one third of all road traf- fic cases which went to the district court in Clare last year were struck OMB Lm eRMoN Eee

4.896 cases went to court and 1,646 of those were struck out, according to figures published by the Courts Serv- ice on Friday.

Fines were imposed in 1,365 of the motoring offences, with jail or deten- tion sentences imposed in 69 cases. The Probation Act was applied in 137

of the cases. The total number of 4,896 cases represented 2,653 defendants.

A similar number of cases went to court the previous year, 2005 — 4685 — 1419 of which were struck out.

The figures show that 150 drugs cases went to the district court, which involved 123 defendants.

Twelve people were jailed, 26 were fined, while 32 people had their drugs cases struck out. The Probation Act was applied in the case of 27 defend- ants.

A total of 265 larceny cases (a drop

from 302 in 2005) went to court, which represented 168 people. 51 cases re- sulted in jail or detention sentences be- ing imposed. 92 cases were taken into consideration (with other charges), while fines were imposed in 28 cases. The Probation Act was applied in 31 cases, while 29 were struck out. Seven cases involving sexual offenc- es were heard in the district court, dur- ing 2006. One defendant was jailed or had detention imposed. Three were fined, two were struck out, while the other case was taken into considera-

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751 cases relating to assault or public order were heard in the district court last year. These involved 592 defend- evel AE

92 cases resulted in jail or detention sentences being imposed, while fines were imposed in 126 cases. The Pro- bation Act was applied in 79 cases, while 191 were struck out. Communi- ty service was handed out in 11 cases.

The Courts Service figures show that the average waiting time for criminal and civil trials in the Circuit Court in

ERE Meee som Oo Aol IMU elRoromr: Tale! six months. The waiting time for ap- peals was three months.

The waiting time for divorce cases in the family law court was three months, while those seeking judicial separation had an average wait of six months.

The average waiting times for crim1- nal cases in the district court in Ennis was one month, with no delay for civil cases. Family law cases in the dis- trict court had a waiting time of one month.

THE much-loved Lambert Puppet Theatre from Dublin will take cen- tre stage at Scariff GAA Park on Saturday, August 4. This is part of an amazing afternoon of family fun organised in conjunction with Scar- iff Harbour Festival. Renowned pup- peteer Conor Lambert will entertain young and old with two showings of his unique 45 minute adaptation of ‘Punch and Judy’.

“This is comedy improvisation and stand-up at its best,’ said Karena O’Brien one of the organisers of the Family Fun Day, a day of entertain- ment and games which starts at 12 noon and runs until 4pm on the Sat-

urday of the bank holiday weekend. “Puppetry is enjoyed by everyone, it captures the imagination but most of all it gives audience participation a whole new meaning,” she said.

To add further colour to the after- noon, Toons and Balloons, a Ballina, County Mayo-based company has promised to provide a breathless afternoon’s entertainment. Bouncy castles, giant slide, bungee rodeo bull, shoot-out football game, giant twister game, costumed characters, air-dancer clown, novelty races and a wheel of fortune are among the fun events expected.

According to Joan Crotty, also a member of the organising team, a fantastic line-up of events is prom-

ised. “Our own Brendan McNa- mara, former All-Ireland Hurling medal winner and Munster Poc Fada Champion will stand in goals for our hurling penalty shoot-out. For the older children and adults there’s a rodeo bull, jumping sausages and pillow bash,” she said.

The Family Fun Day is sponsored by Supermacs.

Other festival events on the day include a Street Arts and Craft Fair, horse-drawn harbour tours and open- air traditional music session on the fair green throughout the afternoon with Doug Gibson on mandola, Ged Foley on fiddle, Paul Smith on flute and Clare Carey on mandolin.

Later in the evening, there will be

a Gaelic Football exhibition match when the Ballymacnab Round Tow- ers Football team from Armagh will take on west Clare. Traditional mummers from Co Fermanagh will take to the streets around 9pm while Rock Band Alter Ego and Mysteri- ous Ways, a well-known U2 Tribute Band will perform on the Fairgreen.

Launched in 2003, the annual Scariff Harbour Festival is an open- air, Street-based event showcasing the many attractions and amenities accessible from Scariff. Its aim 1s to promote the leisure and pleasure potential of Lough Derg, the inland waterways and the east Clare coun- tryside both among local people and visitors from further afield.