The Clare People Archive

MORE than eight in 10 Ennis resi- dents believe that the town needs a stronger selection of stores to shop in and the same number are proving it by going to shop elsewhere at least once a month.

Nine in 10 of those shoppers spend more than €50 on their away trips, while 83 per cent of those surveyed believe that Ennis will benefit from the development of a world-class shopping centre and 83 per cent say that a new retail development at Cu- sack Park would add to the town’s economic prosperity.

Questions asked in the survey de- termine that “the provision of world- class retail and entertainment serv- ices 1n the heart of Ennis will retain customers within Ennis town, break habitual spending habits outside the confines of the town and will add significant revenue to the local econ- omy’, according to the summary of the findings, conducted and drawn up by CREST Retail Excellence Ire- land.

76 per cent of those questioned for the survey felt there should be better restaurant and entertainment choices in the town.

Of the stores currently operating in Ennis, women aged 30-50+ years said that Dunnes was the store they most liked, while 20-30-year-old fe- males most like Cornucopia.

Willow was the retail outlet of choice for 14-20-year-olds.

Men aged between 14 and 30 years named Manix as their favourite store and those aged 30 to 50-plus chose Dunnes.

The total sample used for the survey was 839 residents or 4.15 per cent of the population of Ennis, as recorded in the 2006 census.

The sample included 518 women and 321 men who were interviewed on three separate days between March 1 and 8 last by trained re- searchers conducting face-to-face interviews.

The report concludes that an “in- town development of scale would substantially benefit the economy” of the town and the “vast majority

of Ennis residents are fully support- ive of a new in town retail develop- jee 8 i

Reacting to the survey, a spokes- person for the Aisling Chiosoig Part- nership described the results as a remarkable vote of confidence in the proposed RiverSide Quarter.

“Clearly the people of Ennis want this project to go ahead. They want the range of retail outlets that the RiverSide Quarter will provide and they recognise the prosperity it will bring to the town in terms of jobs and increased retail spend.

“With the people of Ennis behind the concept, we feel very confident about the future. We also believe that the incredible support shown by the survey will be consolidated when the detailed plans and illustrations become available for all to see,” he SrBKOe

A PERCEIVED lack of choice is pushing customers away from Ennis and towards larger urban centres, ac- cording to Retail Excellence Ireland.

Commenting on the findings of a re- cent survey, Crest Retail Excellence Ireland CEO, David Fitzsimons said shoppers wanted big-name brands like Marks and Spencers and River Island.

Crest Retail Excellence Ireland was commissioned by the Aisling

Chiosoig Partnership to survey at- titudes of Ennis residents to current shopping choice in Ennis, as well as shopping habits and attitude of resi- dents to the Cusack Park project.

The Aisling Chiosdig Partnership plans a €350 million mixed-use de- velopment to be known as the Riv- erSide Quarter. The 10-acre Cusack Park site is currently the subject of a rezoning submission to Ennis Town Council by Clare GAA.

The survey was carried out in En- nis town over the period March 1-8

last. A sample of 839 respondents were interviewed on three separate days. The survey found that there are 757,500 habitual ‘Out of Ennis’ shopping trips made by Ennis resi- dents annually and that 83 per cent of Ennis residents believe the town re- quires a stronger selection of stores. Mr Fitzsimons said, “The figures are pretty unequivocal. You have al- most 800,000 shopping trips made outside of Ennis and the average spend is close to €100. Ninety per cent of people spend more than €50

on an average shopping trip outside of Ennis. And when people travel they are more likely to buy more. It does appear, or the findings of the Survey appear to indicate, that an aw- ful lot of money is going out of the town because of a perceived lack of selection.”

The survey found that when ques- tioned on their preferred retail out- lets, there was an overwhelming response from shoppers in favour of big-name stores.

Mr Fitzsimons said, “It cuts up pret-

ty differently between age groups but definitely the most favoured selection was Marks and Spencers. Prompted, or when given a Selection of stores to choose from, Marks and Spen- cers came out on top by a fair old bit. Women tended to go for stores like Brown Thomas, while men went for shops like Homebase and Argos. Younger people indicated that they would like to see shops like River Island or Jack and Jones, which was popular with young men, in Ennis.” Limerick and Galway were cited as

that it has bought 17 houses in Clare. A spokesperson con- firmed that the houses were bought

within the past two years.

She said the council was free to purchase housing “inside or outside the boundary”, but refused to say where the houses were located.

A rescue and regeneration initiative for Limerick’s troubled Moyross area means that people have to be relocat- ed while work is taking place. It has not been confirmed that these resi- dents are bring relocated to Clare.

Mayor of Clare Patricia McCarthy said she was concerned as to how the

city council would manage the hous- es it has bought in Clare.

“If the council is applying a strengthened criteria for the new regeneration area then the same cri- teria should be applied in all local authority allocation and HSE rent subsidised housing,” she said.

“IT would be concerned if the city council was concentrating on buy- ing houses on the Clare side of the boundary rather than on the Limer- ick side,” she said.

She said she would also be con- cerned if all of the houses were lo- (OF: Ker OMB NOUN Ol omCT NO GlomreR Rotem

Corbally’s Des Long who 1s chair- man of the Munster Republican Sinn Fein Executive said, “Exporting those involved in anti-social behav- iour by stealth to Clare is no solution to Limerick’s housing problems.”

East Clare Councillor Pascal Fit- zgerald said he would be demanding to know where the houses had been purchased.

CARDIFF’S Millennium Stadium is a place of mixed emotions for Mun- ster men — there was the gut-wrench- ing defeat to Leicester in 2002 and the natural high of beating Biarritz four years later.

Marcus Horan saw action on both those days, but Cardiff was the fur- thest thing from his mind on Sunday afternoon as Munster threatened to throw it all away against a battling Saracens side.

He admitted as much after the heart-stopping 18-16 victory. “We were feeling the pressure,’ he said yeaterday (Monday). “There were a

few line breaks that they made at the end but everyone was battling hard to keep them out.

‘I didn’t realise they were so close — | thought they needed a try and I only realised how close they were at the end. Really, it was nail-biting stuff. It was a classic semi -final.

“Everyone expected us to breeze through it, but Saracens are a well- drilled side and we were under no illusions.

“I don’t know if there was a huge confidence among the fans. There is an expectation built up over the past few years with what we’ve achieved getting to the latter stages of the competition but as a team, we’ve suf-

fered so many disappointments that we can’t take anything for granted. With Alan Gaffney over them, we knew we couldn’t take anything for granted and they’ve some great bat- ase

“We knew what we were up against and we tried to block out what the Supporters were feeling before the game. We put ourselves under pres- sure in the last few minutes. It must have been hell for our supporters but at least we came out the right side and it was a good test for our defence,” he added.

Only then did Horan allow his mind fast-forward to the Millen- nium Stadium on 24 May. “Looking

ahead, it should be a great occasion. Like ourselves Toulouse did enough to get through. That’s what a semi- final is all about, even if you have to win ugly.”

Winning ugly on 24 May would do too. Then Munster could think ahead to a showdown with the All-Blacks on November 18th next to mark the reo- pening of the redeveloped Thomond Park. Thirty years and a few weeks to the day of that 12-0 win that made Munster famous in the first place.

AS CLARE manager Colm Hanley says himself, comparisons with last season’s All-Ireland decider with Derry were inevitable. In that Croke Park meeting, Derry stung Clare with a late, late win but Hanley says this experience was used by Clare to defeat Derry on Saturday evening.

“We knew we had it in us to win the league,” he says. “In fairness, we were the better team on the day and we followed through on that. I still think we were the better team when Derry beat us in Croke Park last year, but this time we stayed going.

“It’s obvious that there would be mention of that game, particularly as we were meeting Derry in another national final and in Croke Park we just didn’t put them away, so it was pleasing to do that this time round.”

As the clock ticked down and with Clare leading, Derry were thrown something of a lifeline with four minutes of injury time announced.

“When the few minutes of extra time was announced at the end it was a real flashback to our last game but even if the referee played ten minutes added time, we never looked like conceding.

“It goes to show that we’ve learned from that experience and hopefully that’s something we can use in the months ahead because Clare really showed enormous conviction.”

With the league secured, Clare move on with the championship on their minds and three more weeks of training has been scheduled before the players take a week off at the end of May.

‘The season was divided into two sections at the start of the year. The league and the championship. We wanted to play well first and fore- most in the league and maybe secure a win. Now that we’ve got the title, it’s full steam ahead for the champi- oyeravl On

“But we’re not looking at Croke Park just yet. We’ve three tough group games to get through against

Offaly, Down and Antrim with our first outing on June 29. But for now, we’re just delighted with the way things have gone in the league. The ereat thing 1s, we have a nice mix of experience and emerging talent and that augurs well for the future.”

EVERYTHING is going for Clare — they rode their luck to beat Down in the semi-final and have been handed a home tie in the final.

Playing in Cusack Park will, how- ever, pose its own problems for Deir- dre Murphy’s team and the added anxiety to perform well in front of their home supporters will no doubt add some pressure.

Donegal are a strong physical side and it was this strength throughout the field that saw them through to a 1-13 to 2-4 win against Waterford to qualify for Sunday’s decider. Clare are without doubt the more skilful side and despite having the lack of natural ball winners in the midfield area, their work rate and eagerness in this pivotal position makes up for any lack of physical presence.

Captain Louise Henchy is a Trojan worker at midfield and has recently struck up a great playing relationship with both Sandra Malone or Fiona Lafferty. Ideally Henchy should be at

centre forward but with Tammy He- hir still struggling to regain full fit- ness she is likely to again command the central role on Sunday.

Defensively Clare has searched all year for the right combination. The loss of Coolmeen’s Grace Lynch to London for this year’s league was major blow, yet the recent return to county training of her club mate Sinéad Eustace is a big boost for the ornate

While Eustace may or may not start on Sunday she will definitely play some part in proceedings. Sinéad Kelly of West Clare Gaels is also a player who is maturing into a serious inter county star. Kelly relishes the battle and gained much experience from her club’s progress to the All- Ireland final last year.

She is sure to play a big game this weekend and won’t lack in confi- dence or experience. Lorraine Kelly is also another player who won’t be overawed by the occasion. Although sometimes a slow starter the Fergus Rovers player has the uncanny knack

of getting the better of her opponent as games go on. If she gets into the game from the start in the final she could be pivotal to Clare’s chances CO) Herero ice

Up front though is where Clare will be expected to do most damage. Young player of the year Eimear Considine of Kilmihil is having an outstanding tournament to date. The Kilmihil ace, newly graduated from last year’s All Ireland U-16 B win- ning team, has contributed an incred- ible 6-5 to Clare’s total in this year’s league campaign.

The aplomb in which she took some of these scores belied her tender years and she is the perfect compliment up front for such established players as Niamh Keane (Banner Ladies) and Aine Kelly (Fergus Rovers).

Aine Kelly is no slouch either and has clocked up a formidable 3-11 in the Suzuki league to date so hope- fully this strike rate will continue on Sunday. The key however to success on Sunday could be the perform- ances of the West Clare Gael’s duo

of Marie Kelly and Majella Griffin. Kelly is a workaholic forward and often both creates and finishes her scores. Majella on the other hand is the ‘Maurice Fitzgerald’ of Clare ladies football. Often anonymous, but when in possession exudes class and has an uncanny accuracy when it comes to scoring. Her kicking and fielding technique is a joy to watch and she is without doubt the most ac- complished footballer that will be on view next Sunday (and that includes the Cork and Kerry match).

DESPITE more people on the streets, retailers in Ennis admit there has been a dip in the level of business ac- tivity in the town.

A more cautious customer, rising rents and rate levels and a reduc- tion in parking spaces are among the principal reasons behind a gradual slowdown, Say retailers

On a broader level, the overall downturn in the economy is high- lighted as another contributory fac- ro) a

Retailers also believe that a recent survey carried out by Retail Excel- lence Ireland and CB Richard Ellis doesn’t provide an accurate reflection of the business picture in Ennis. The

survey carried out in March 2007 showed that footfall on Ennis’ streets was up 39 per cent, bucking the trend at national level, which showed over- all footfall on Ireland’s streets to be down 17.3 per cent.

Gearoid Mannion, Chairman of the O’Connell Street Trader’s Associa- tion, said the findings were a snap- shot and didn’t factor in the changes in customer spending habits.

“Pedestrians aren’t necessarily shoppers. We had this before when Ennis Town Council tried to trum- pet the findings of a similar survey. Foottfall equals people on the street. That could be young children, babies in buggies. It doesn’t measure wheth- er or not people are buying.

‘Most businesses would be finding

themselves in a tight situation, with rents going up and rates too. It’s not completely drastic, that’s for sure, but the spender is becoming a bit more cautious and a small bit of reality is setting in. It is a competitive market- place and retailers are going to have to be more competitive.”

Oliver Moylan, owner of the Ennis Cash Company, believes activity has levelled off. He maintains this is due to the loss of parking spaces along Ennis’s main thoroughfares.

“At the moment, a lot of businesses in the town are struggling to sur- vive and a lot of places have closed down.

“When you take away parking on the main street, you keep away peo- ple who are in town to go shopping.”

THE INCOMING president of the Midwest Marketing Association has rubbished reports that says there are more shoppers in Ennis than ever.

Nationwide research carried out by Retail Excellence Ireland and CB R1- chard Ellis put Ennis in the top two in terms of percentage increase foot- fall in the main shopping areas.

The survey said that hourly footfall in O’Connell Street in March of last year was up 39 per cent. The only

other centre surveyed which enjoyed an increase was Patrick Street in Cork, which was up 50 per cent, ac- cording to the research.

The Ennis figures were up on the 1,917 shoppers recorded in March 2006 to 2,658. Ennis and Cork were the only two centres to show an in- crease. Others were down by up to 48 per cent.

But Ennis retailers say that if that was true then, it’s no longer the case.

Olwyn King, sales manager with The Gift Venue in Abbey Street and

soon to be chair of the Midwest Mar- keting Association, said that “this 1s definitely not the case. It’s absolutely dead around town. You’d do more business on Monday now than on a Saturday.”

Having been in retail in the town for 10 years, Olwyn says she “can’t see how there could be increased footfall. I think people just aren’t coming into town. It’s frightening to see how quiet town is. You only have to look at all the vacant premises.”

The situation with parking and the

opening of the bypass are contribu- tory factors, the sales manager be- WAVene

“There isn’t enough parking and there is virtually no parking for coaches – just a couple of bays at the Temple Gate which is a long walk. “The tourists aren’t coming in, par- ticularly the US tourists. It’s a combi- nation of a lot of things but everyone is feeling the pinch.”

CEO of the Ennis Chamber of Commerce, Rita McInerney is not so convinced that the figures are

wrong. “Business is steady in Ennis. It’s possibly an exaggerated rise but they are a reputable company and it is encouraging that it is an indication of an upward trend,” she said.

She added that “as a county, we have done extremely well in recent times and you couldn’t continue at Webel eaten “We have to look at our competi- tiveness in terms of rates and energy costs and there needs to be some assistance for the retail sector from Government in those terms.”

MORE than eight in 10 people in Ennis support the development of a major retail park in the town, a new SUT Voa Ol tbe the

The proposed RiverSide Quarter development at Cusack Park is sup- ported by 84 per cent of people in Ennis, according to the survey.

Crest Retail Excellence Ireland was commissioned by the Aisling Chiosoig Partnership to survey at- titudes of Ennis residents to current shopping choice in Ennis as well as shopping habits and attitudes of resi- dents to the Cusack Park project. “The results show that a world-class retail development within Ennis town centre will be unequivocally

welcomed by most people. It is also the opinion of the great majority of Ennis residents that the proposed Cusack Park development will vast- ly benefit the town’s prosperity,” a spokesman for the partnership said.

At a time when many town centre traders are closing their doors, the Aisling Chiosoig Partnership plans a €350 million mixed-use develop- ment to be known as the RiverSide Quarter.

The 10-acre Cusack Park is cur- rently the subject of a rezoning sub- mission to Ennis Town Council by Clare GAA.

The survey was carried out in En- nis town over the first week in March. A sample of 839 respondents were interviewed on three separate days.

THE dream of winning a place in the National Final of the 2008 Danone

Nations Cup, and possibly going on to represent Ireland in the World Fi- nals in Parc de Princes, Paris in Sep- tember, has ended for valiant Clare Rare b sete

Avenue United and Lifford had won the honour of representing the Clare

League in the South West Regional final of the Danone Nations Cup, which took place on Saturday in Rathkeale.

The competition was fierce through- out the day with several games de- cided by penalties.

Avenue United put on a talented display in the group stages earning them a place in the Finals where they were unlucky to lose on penal- ties to Killarney Celtic (Kerry). To

get there Avenue beat St Brendan’s 2-0 in their opening tie, while they then beat Mungret 1-0 on penalties to secure their final place.

In the shoot with Killarney Celtic in the final out both Liam Kearney (Kil- larney Celtic) and Eimhin Courtney (Avenue United) scored excellent Opening penalties for their respective teams. Shane Cronin also scored a terrific penalty despite Avenue’s keeper going the right way while Brian Guilfoyle’s effort skimmed the crossbar and went over.

When Darren O’Docherty stepped up to take his teams final penalty and despite the pressure he held his nerve and slotted the ball home thus ensuring a trip to the National finals for himself and his team

mates. Elsewhere fellow Clare league representative’s Lifford failed to progress past group Stages.