Month: August 2011

THE Kinvara Farmers market will continue trading in 2011, even if difficulties in obtaining a license to trade in the town’s square cannot be overcome. The future of the market had looked in jeopardy earlier this month due to ongoing delays in completing legislation to clarify the standing of markets hosted on public areas.

The market, which has proved a huge success since it was first set up in 2009, has up until now traded on private property at Johnson’s Garden but this area will be unavailable to traders next year. The market had originally been designed to trade in the Square in Kinvara but delays in drafting market legislation had forced them to take up residence in Johnson’s Garden.

With this legislation still some way off, the future of the market for 2011 had seemed in doubt. However, an innovative new approach by the market has secured the market’s future whether the market legislation is drafted in time or not. Last week, the Kinvara Farmers Market successfully secured a road closure license which allowed them to trade at the Square in Kinvara without the need for the farmers market license. A meeting of traders will now take place next month, where the various options available to the group will be outlined.

“I think we proved that a market can work well in the Square in Kinvara. Despite difficulties with the weather, we got great feedback from customers” said Antoinette Hensey of the Kinvara Farmers Market. “What we can do next year is apply for a road closure for every Friday morning during our trading season and that will allow us to trade each week. This would, we think, cost less that a license and we are not at present able to get a license so there is a solution to our problem. The market will be back next year, one way or the other.

“This is a very unusual route that we have taken and we think that it could be used by other markets who are in difficulty with the licensing regulations. There are lot of conditions to be met but, once you have achieved this, it is relatively straightforward.

“We need to have a stall-holders meeting to see what we will do for next year. There are many who believe that business will be better in the Square but there are other who have an emotional attachment to the space in Johnson’s – which might still be available to us for next year.”

Anyone who wishes to find out more about getting a road closure licence can contact Antoinette Hensey on 065 7078042.

PEOPLE with old sewing machines that are no longer in use are invited to donate them to a group in Shannon.

The Shannon Musical Society is gearing up for its spring production ‘The Pyjama Game’. The show, which will be the society’s 34th production, is based on a trade union dispute in a sewing machine factory.

This is the second time the society has staged this production, following a successful run in 1990.

The group will have its first meeting tomorrow, Wednesday, at the Shannon Knights Inn, where newcomers are invited to attend and meet several of the society’s existing members.

“We have a brilliant crew. Our committee are very young and enthusiastic,” said the PRO of the society, Mary Forde.

“We are trying to encourage new members to join. We have a lot of new people in the past few years but we need to keep adding,” she said.

The show is based on the Richard Bissells novel Seven And A Half Cents , which has been in existence for decades.

Given the show’s topic, she said that the hunt is on for sewing machines. “We would welcome anybody out there with old sewing machines to donate them,” said Ms Forde.

“This is a time for the long-standing members to meet up again after the very successful ‘Wedding Singer’. It’s also a great opportunity for new members to become involved in the society and to meet existing members and get acquainted with the organising and running of the society,” she added.

Carmel Griffin, who has been involved for several years, is the musical director, while Karen Barrett – who also features regularly in the shows – is the choreographer. Donal Cantwell from Dublin, who is involved for the first time, will be the producer.

Rehearsals will get underway on September 6, while the show will be staged at St Patrick’s Comprehensive School from February 12 to 18 next year.

Anyone wishing to get involved in the show should turn up at the Shannon Knights tomorrow, Wednesday, at 8pm, or phone 087 6270107.

A SECOND major climbing accident of the summer took place in North Clare this Saturday when a man had to be airlifted to safety after falling more than five metres at the Ailladee area, just north of Doolin.

The man, who is understood to be a Czech national living in Ireland, was “free climbing” with three others on Saturday evening when the accident took place.

Free climbing mean climbing without the use of ropes and is considered to be more dangerous than abseiling using ropes.

A 41-year-old man was airlifted to hospital after his climbing equipment apparently failed and he fell five metres from a cliff face, crushing several vertebrae in his back. The man was airlifted to by Rescue 115 to the University College Hospital in Galway.

Meanwhile, a passenger ferry ran aground in low tide in Doolin last week – forcing it’s crew and captain to remain on board for several hours until the tide changed again.

The Rose of Aran, which is operated by Aran Doolin Ferries, was arriving in Doolin to collect passengers before travelling to the Aran Islands when the incident took place.

The Doolin unit of the Irish Coast Guard assessed the vessel and concluded that it was neither in danger of capsizing or a pollution risk.

“The tides were very low last week and the ship ran aground. It is something that could happen any time at Doolin except for the skill of the skippers who are navigating in that shallow area,” said Matty Shannon of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coastguard.

“The boat didn’t list and there was no immediate danger. This is the sort of thing that wouldn’t happen if there was a new pier in Doolin.”

CAR sales dropped in Clare during the summer months, but hopes are high that they will recover for the remaining four months of the year.

Overall, new car sales across the county increased by 5.2 per cent since the start of the year. Up to last Friday, there were 1,984 new cars registered in County Clare, compared with 1,886 during the same period last year.

The figures from www.motorcheck. ie show that while car sales increased in Clare in May and June, they decreased in July and August. The increase in May was 2.5 per cent; in June – when car sales surged prior to the end of the popular scrappage scheme – the increase was a massive 73.9 per cent; the decrease in July was 43.5 per cent, while the drop so far in August is along the lines of 90 per cent. There were 136 new cars sold during the first 19 days of August of last year, compared to just 14 this year.

The number of cars purchased in the ‘all cars’ category – which includes new and used cars – has increased by 3.3 per cent so far this year. However, there was a reduction of 77.1 per cent in this category so far this month. There was a decrease of 16.1 per cent in July; an increase of 62.1 per cent in June and an increase of one per cent in May.

In Clare, the Ford Focus is the most popular choice of car, followed by the Nissan Qashqai, the Ford Fiesta, the Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Corolla, Nissan Juke, Toyota Avensis and Volkswagen Passat.

Silver is the most popular colour of car, followed by black, grey, blue and red, in Clare.

Nationally, the number of cars sold in July decreased by 35 per cent, compared with July 2010. However, the figure for July 2010 included cars in the scrappage scheme, which came to an end in June of this year.

A CLARE man says he is confident of winning a place in the Guinness Book of World Records next month when he attempts to swim 10km underwater in under eight hours.

Barefield diver Christopher Healy has been given the official go-ahead from the Guinness Book of World Records to go ahead with the dive on September 18 next. Because this will be a new category for the records, Christopher, who owns the Atlantic Diving School, has been set a target of eight hours to complete the 10km course in order to make the book.

“I am going to go 10 kilometres completely underwater. We are starting off at Crab Island in Doolin and we have a route mapped out which will take us about a quarter of a mile out into the Atlantic, then north up the coast and back again to Crab Island.

“We will be setting a new category for the Guinness Book of World Records. They have set us the challenge of finishing the 10k dive in under eight hours to make the record but I am confident that we can complete it in under seven.

“We are looking to smash the target that they have set and make it very hard for anyone who might want to come after us and want to break this record. We are going to push it all the way and make sure that if anyone wants to come and better us, they will have to earn it.”

The attempt will see Christopher being helped by three safety boats, as well as a safety snorkler and two guide snorklers.

“The guide snorklers will go ahead of me and drag a small lead weight along the bottom of the sea floor that is the mark that I will follow. It is very hard to tell directions under water,” continued Christopher.

“The idea is that we will have two guide snorklers and two safety snorklers who will take the journey in shifts. The safety snorkler will be my son and my wife who will both swim 5km each underwater.”

Sponsorship cards are available for anyone who wants to support Christopher’s record attempt, with all money raised going to the Share A Dream Foundation. To donate money, visit www.mycharity.ie/event/ 10k_world_record_attempt.

CLARE’S heritage can become one of the key drivers in the local economy for much of the next decade, a leading local government official has said this week just as a new blueprint for the development and preservation of key environmental sites around the county was unveiled.

The county’s Heritage Officer, Congella McGuire, has told The Clare People that the county’s rich heritage has a crucial part to play in aiding Clare’s economic recovery through the creation of new visitor attractions and amenities around the locally built environment.

“The arts get a lot of kudos in terms of national recovery, but heritage is the basis for all that,” said Ms McGuire at the launch of County Clare Heritage Plan in the Vandeleur Walled Garden in Kilrush on Monday.

“Heritage is the base product, if you want to put it in crude terms. Heritage is going to be part of the national recovery and Clare can very much play its part in that.

“The Heritage Council has that message.

“By protecting our heritage, raising awareness of it and giving an authentic experience to people about our heritage, there is great scope going forward for the Clare economy,” added Ms McGuire.

Recent developments such as the opening of the Loophead Lighthouse and a number of walking trails in West and North Clare such the Kilkee Walk and Cliffs of Moher Walk have been held by the environment section of Clare County Council as the local authority’s commitment opening up heritage to as many people as possible.

“The idea is to try and make more sites accessible,” said Ms McGuire, “and this involves partnership going forward.

“If we are involved in a project we work with people who have a vested interest and expertise.

“We have an initiative in Lough Derg to link trails connecting all around the lake.

“This will involve connnected with county council colleagues in North Tipperary and Galway.

“These are ongoing initiatives that we are trying to develop. It’s all about better access to trails and sites, better access to heritage and better interpretation of heritage. One of the challenges for the future would be funding.

“We have to go after funding and avail of funding as it arises.

“We have to this much more than we did in the past and keep standards high,” she added.

PROMOTING a greater understanding of Clare’s rich heritage for both local and visitor alike has emerged as a major tenet of Clare County Council environmental policy from now until 2017.

This commitment going forward, in tandem with conserving and enhanc ing the county natural environment, is contained in the second Clare Heritage Plan (2011-2017) that has been put together over the last year.

The launch of the plan in the Vandeleur Walled Garden on Monday was followed by visit to Scattery Islands – considered to be one of jewels in Clare’s heritage crown – by some of the key partners in formulation of the ambitious six-year plan.

The publication of the heritage bluerprint marks the culmination of a year’s work by the County Clare Heritage Forum and brings together the interests and agendas of the 23 forum members and 64 submissions made by the public.

“There were 66 partners in the development of this plan,” revealed Heritage Officer, Conjella McGuire, “all of whom have generously committed their time, energy and expertise.

“As a result of this, the Heritage Plan brings together a wide range of backgrounds and interests.”

Launching the plan, the Mayor of Clare, Cllr Pat Hayes said “our heritage is about people, place, culture, nature and the opportunities that it can offer in the future.

“Our heritage is one of our greatest strengths in the county and I intend to lead the implementation of this ambitious plan for the benefit of the county,” added Mayor Hayes, who has been chairman of the council Heritage Forum since 2006.

“The plan has three overall aims which are supported by 14 objectives and in total contains 77 actions. It is an ambitious plan and seeks to complement and build on the achievements of the previous Heritage Plan 2003-2007,” said Ms McGuire.

“Community groups have fostered and enhanced their local heritage and a wide variety of community heritage initiatives are underway in the county at present, many of which are showcased throughout the county this week during Heritage Week,” said Cllr Oliver Garry, chairman of the West Clare area group of county councilors.

“Community groups and individuals require funding and technical advice in order to implement best practice,” he added.