This article is from page 31 of the 2007-06-19 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 31 JPG
THE success enjoyed by local gov- ernment in Shannon over the past 25 years was celebrated, when council- lors – past and present – gathered to- gether last week.
At a special function to mark the 25th anniversary of the establishment of local government in the town, spe- cial tributes were paid to Town Clerk Tomas MacCormaic and Councillor Patricia McCarthy (Independent). Both have been involved with the lo- cal authority since its inception.
Current councillors were joined in the celebrations by former council- lors, including the first chairman of the local authority in the town Brendan Regan and Pat O’Brien, who was among the first elected mem- bers.
Shannon Town Manager Ger Dol- lard said he was proud that two ma- jor projects, which have been “in the blocks” for some time, are nearing CeO eF
One of those, the €3.5 million Shan- non Southern Primary Road project will open to traffic within a week and will be officially opened in July.
The other major project, the Shan- non Recycling Centre in Smithstown, will also be open for business this Ssseloe
Mr Dollard told the group that “a debt of gratitude” was owed to those who set up Shannon Town Commis- sion, back in 1982.
“That sense of community 1s still in Shannon,” said Mr Dollard.
He said that since Clare County Council took over the running of the town in 2004, a strong link between
the town authority and the county council has been maintained.
The mayor of Shannon, Councillor Tony McMahon (Labour), pointed out that the town has grown signifi- cantly over the years.
“It is a sign of the times in the de- velopment of Shannon that Shannon has progressed to the stage where we need to look at our boundaries. That is a sign of growth. It is a very posi- tive thing that Shannon has grown to that degree,” said Cllr McMahon.
He said the local authority is a “master of our own destiny” in look- ing ahead to the future status of the reaa
“We long for the day when Shannon has a different status. We do want to see that in the future,’ he said.
He expressed hope that the views of the people of Shannon are taken
into consideration, in the event of a proposed overhaul of the town taking se eeleres
Councillor Patricia McCarthy said she was honoured to be present, hav- ing represented the people of Shan- non at local authority level for the past 25 years.
“T first heard of Shannon in 1959. That was when my father moved us from Kilrush to take up a post in Sixmilebridge station. I always thank my family for that decision,’ she nee
“We all came to Shannon to make our home in Shannon. People always made us feel welcome,’ she added.
Addressing County Manager Alec Fleming, Cllr McCarthy said, “I still think he should evolve a budget each year for us to decide on how to spend on the town.”