Month: March 2012

A DATE for the opening of the € 15 million, 50-bed development at Ennis General Hospital still has not been set.

Work on the unit began in November 2010.

Yesterday (Monday) management was still unable to give an opening date for the unit, as all of the equipment is not in place.

The HSE lodged a planning application for the hospital extension with Ennis Town Council in August 2010.

The project includes a two-storey ward building including bedrooms, associated treatment rooms and staff facilities, connecting into the existing two-storey hospital at ground and first floor level.

A new landscaping, parking and realignment of internal roadway and paths; alterations to the internal layout of the south east wings of the existing hospital and temporary egress from the hospital during construction to Highfield Park was also included in the planning.

The new unit is not only to provide modern wards and isolation rooms but the vacated space in the existing building is to be “gradually refurbished”.

The existing hospital building is a protected structure.

The HSE has promised that the hospital would offer “general medicine including cardiovascular support, day surgery, plastic surgery, geriatric medicine, acute adult emergency medicine and minor injuries care.”

BRITAIN’S newest GAA club is looking for Clare footballers who are emigrating to London this year to join the growing list of Banner players at Éire Óg in London.

The club, which was founded last year, has become a haven for the Banner abroad, with Ballyvaughan man Martin Nilan now in service as club chairman and assistant manag- er while Kilnaboy man Paul Maher is coaching the team this year.

Éire Óg London will this year field a Junior B team but they are hoping that an influx of Clare talent may help them to gain promotion.

“The club was just set up last year and it is going very well so far. We train in Finsbury up in North London and we will be fielding a Junior B team once the competitions get started over here in two weeks time,” said Martin Nilan.

“There are a lot of jobs going in London at the moment so we are seeing lots of lads from Clare coming over. We are trying to catch them and to let them know that there is a club for them over here.

“We get people from all over Ireland joining up to the club – there are lads from Sligo, lads from Dublin, everywhere – but there is a big Clare focus to the club.

“We have been really getting going over the last 12 months. We have been training for a few weeks now and we think we are ahead of most of the clubs in the area.”

With the Olympics coming up this summer, London has become the destination of choice for many Clare people leaving Ireland to work.

“There has been a big influx of Irish people over the last 12 months so the club teams are getting more and more competitive. Once people arrive, there is a rush to sign them up to a club and, once they are signed, it is very difficult to move. We like to let people come and have a look around, and to train with us before they commit to anything.

“I’ve been here 28 years now and Paul has been here for 10. There’s never been so much interest in playing football in London as there is now.”

Anyone interesting in becoming part of the Banner brigade at Éire Óg London can contact Martin on 07541374766 or email him on mjnilan@hotmail.co.uk.

CLARE faces an uphill battle if it is to regain the international tourists that have been lost to the county over the last 10 years. According to the Lahinch hotelier Michael Vaughan, who was elected national president of the Irish Hotel Federation last week, a new cooperative approach to tourism in Clare will need to take place before we start winning back the international tourists. “Tourism has been declining in Clare for seven or eight years now. This decline has been masked a bit by the buoyant domestic market but the flight situation has really made the situation worse,” said Michael. “We need to link our walkways, our cycling routes, our surfing holidays and package them more so that when people come into the county, they can get a real sense of the different touring loops that offer the tourists a whole package for the area.” Fáilte Ireland is currently piloting a project entitled ‘The Wild Atlantic Ways’, which Michael Vaughan hopes could be a major benefit to Clare once it is rolled out. “This is a series of iconic road-trips all along the west coast that will tie into festivals and other things happening in a locality. “The idea is to map out a few iconic routes through the county and provide people with a plan that tourists could follow. “So if a tourist was to base himself in Doolin, let’s say, he could see very quickly that there were two more days of activities for him to do in the area and plan like that,” continued Michael. “It is that type of awareness of product that we need to get better at in Clare. This is about tying together what we already have in the county. It’s about looking at things and packaging them in a different way. “Tourists in Germany plan in this way but they won’t go to a place until they know that there is an experience to be had in that area. We need to give them that information about Clare. “Fáilte Ireland are rolling this plan out on a pilot basis in Connemara next year but I know that Clare is being looked at very closely by them and is prime for this sort of investment.”

THE campaign by Clare turfcutters to continue what they say is their “age-old right” to cut turf at Tullaher Lough Bog in West Clare now moves to Brussels and will be won.

That’s the battlecry from chairman of the Clare branch of the Turfcutters and Contractors Association, Padraig Haugh, following last Thursday’s march on Leinster House and the passage of a private members motion in the Dáil in support of turfcutters in Special Areas of Conservation.

“I was up in Dublin,” said Mr Haugh, “and people were saying to me that I was hitting my head off a stone wall and there was no point going to Dublin marching and protesting, but we have achieved a lot.

“We have climbed the first hurdle against the directive from Europe which says that we cannot cut turf on Tullaher Lough Bog anymore. There are about 50 people who cut turf there,” he added.

Mr Haugh became chairman of the local branch of the Turfcutters and Contractors Association after a public meeting was staged in Garrihy’s of Moyasta last November and since then has taken the campaign to keep Tullaher Lough Bog open to turf cutters in west Clare.

“There is a high bog area and it’s very small and we are very happy to keep that preserved,” said Mr Haugh, “but there was another portion added into the Special Area of Conservation that’s 1400 hectares and there was no necessity to do that, because the EU is denying people a right to do what families have been doing for hundreds of years there.

“As turf cutters we are determined to fight for the right to cut turf. I’ve cut turf every year since 1948 and we are hopeful that these people in Brussels will see that what we’re looking for is only a small thing.

“We’ve already got concessions from the Government in that they are giving another € 1,000 onto the € 1,000 and a new top up payment of € 500. That’s down to the campaign and we won’t stop until we are allowed cut turf on Tullaher Lough again,” he added.

MANAGEMENT at Ennis Golf Club have moved to further improve security measures after a spate of recent break-ins.

The club, which has around 1,300 members, has been the target of three break-ins in recent months.

On Wednesday, February 22, the club was broken into by breaking a window. Nothing was stolen on that occasion.

On February 12 the cash register was stolen from the club shop when a person gained access to the premises by breaking the side window.

Damage has been repeatedly caused to windows at the club shop, a situation one committee member has described as “very annoying and frustrating”.

The premises is covered by CCTV and now management at the club have improved lighting at the front and rear of the club in an attempt to ward off intruders.

Honourary secretary John Cullinane said, “We have had three at least since last December. We don’t keep cash in the bar, the restaurant or the golf shop. Recently the breakins have been at the golf shop. The policy there is that we leave the till open so people can see that there is no money in it.”

Last year the club installed a new security system aimed at ensuring greater protection for staff and members. Members must now type in an access code at the main entrance door in order to gain access to the clubhouse at night. The measures were introduced last summer following incidents where intruders broke into the golf club.

Mr Cullinane continued, “10 days ago some guy broke the window but the alarm went off and he ran away. The guards told us that he faced into one of the cameras so they got him on CCTV. We’re looking at what else we can do in terms of security. The CCTV has been fairly good but when they get to the building they are ducking and diving trying to avoid it.”

He added, “There is a cost to the club every time that something happens. There is replacement cost to replace a window every time they break it. It’s very frustrating and annoying. We’ve had to replace the window several times.”

THE felling of the last tree in the village of Ballyvaughan has provoked an angry row within the local community – with a number of local groups claiming that it was cut down illegally.

The tree was located in front of L’Arco’s Italian Restaurant in the village – a premises owned by former Clare TD, Madeline Taylor Quinn, and her husband George Quinn.

Clare County Council confirmed to The Clare People yesterday that no permission had been sought for any tree felling work to be undertaken in Ballyvaughan on or before February 29, when the tree was cut down.

A spokesperson from the Ballyvaughan Tidy Towns committee said the people of the town are furious that the tree was removed.

“There is a lot of upset and anger among the people up here.

“Every member of the Ballyvaughan Tidy Towns Committee has been inundated with calls about it so we decided to contact Clare County Council and see what could be done,” said a committee member form Ballyvaughan Tidy Towns.

“The council agree that the situation needs to be rectified. People are really very angry about this situation and want this rectified.”

A spokesperson from the Ennistymon Area Office of Clare County Council contacted the Ballyvaughan Tidy Towns Group last week, confirming the council intention to seek to restore a new tree to the site on the village main street.

In a statement released to The Clare People yesterday, the Ballyvaughan Community Development Group said they were very “upset” that noone in the village was notified before the tree was cut down.

“We are very upset that the tree has been cut down.

“The Community Development Group are surprised and upset that this happened and also with the manner in which this has taken place,” said the statement.

“We now want to work with everyone involved in this situation and insure that a solution is found which would see a tree being reinstated for the village.”

The tree itself was planted more than 25 years ago and is the last of more then a dozen trees which were planted in the village at that time.

THE last traces of the old Golf Links Hotel in Lahinch was demolished on Friday, as the area known as the “pump-house”, located on the southern most point of Lahinch beach, was removed by Clare County Council.

The structure, which has stood on the Lahinch seafront for more than 120 years, was originally built to service the old Lahinch Gold Links Hotel in 1890. The concrete pumphouse was used to pump fresh sea water to the hotel, which was then used to provide hot and cold, saltwater baths for its guests.

The hotel itself, which was located at the highest point in the village of Lahinch, was built to cater for the large number of tourists who flocked to play on the famed Lahinch Golf Course. It burned down in suspicious circumstances in the 1920s and the pump-house was all that remained of the historic structure.

Despite countless storms and high tides over the last century, the pumphouse has survived everything that the Atlantic Ocean has thrown at it over more than 120 years. The location, which could be accessed by a narrow cliffs side path, has been a popular teenage hangout for decades.

A spokesperson from Clare County Council confirmed that it has been concerned about the locations safety in recent times.

“The structure has become dangerous due to coastal erosion. Local groups have on numerous occasions in the past requested the council to remove this structure as it had become a gathering place for groups of youths and posed a serious health and safety risk to the general public,” said a spokesperson.

“So the works involved the removal of a serious health and safety risk.”

Over the last decade the pump- house has become a favourite hang out for the scores of local surfers who live in Lahinch and the surrounding area. A number of local surfers have expressed their disappointment that the structure has been removed.

It has also been suggested that one of the locals waves could be named in honour of the pump-house.

The old Golf Links Hotel was constructed a large tract of land which covered, in part, the area currently occupied by the Lahinch playground. It was build in close proximity both to the Golf Course and the Lahinch stop on the West Clare Railway, which is located on present day Station Road.

SHANNON is one the verge of a major rat infestation with no specific funding currently available to tackle the growing pest problem in the town.

This has come to light following an official request from local Cllr Gerry Flynn (Ind), at this week’s meeting of Shannon Town Council, that there’s no funding be found to tackle the problem. Shannon Development has previously provided some funding to tackle the problem but it was confirmed at the meeting that no specific source of funding was in place to tackle the situation.

“I requested that Shannon Town Council source some funding for this and this need to happen. Up to September of 2004, Shannon Development made funding available for pest control in the town. Unfortu- nately, this is no longer the case and no funding has been put in place by Clare County Council for this,” said Cllr Flynn.

“Shannon is a unique place, there are a lot of wetlands here. A lot of people are ringing me about difficulties with pests and they are surprised to learn that there is no funding set aside by Clare County Council for pest control. I am not happy with the reply and I would hope that you might find some funding for this.”

Speaking at the meeting, Shannon Town Manager Bernadette Kinsella said that pest control in Shannon was paid for out of the normal Clare County Council’s central budget.

“I know Shannon Development used to take care of this and it’s a pity that they didn’t transfer over the funding as well,” she said.

“The first point of call when there is a serious infestation is here, at the Shannon Local Offices, there is no specific budget from Clare County Council for dealing with pest control in Shannon.”

Meanwhile, Shannon Town Council will continue to host the Shannon.ie website after a heated debate on the subject in last weeks meeting. It had been proposed that the web address, which is the property of Clare County Council, was to be taken from the local authority and held in reserve for a new unified website about Shannon – when funding became available to create this site.

“I’m not happy with changing the name. What does Clare County Council intend to do with the existing name? I don’t understand why is it going to take so long to develop this unified website?” said Cllr Cathy McCafferty (Ind).

“This is the same council that wants to take over running of the airport and it’s going to take them six moths to develop a website.”

THERE have been calls for the 60 jobs created by the construction of a controversial new road maintenance depot near Ennis to be ring-fenced for Clare people.

40 jobs will be created during construction of the facility at the old GAMA site adjacent to the N18 motorway on the outskirts of Ennis. 20 permanent jobs will later be available at the 6, 500 tonne salt barn facility, which will be run by the National Roads Authority (NRA).

Details of the jobs were outlined at a meeting between officials from the NRA and Clare County Council last week.

The NRA will take charge of maintenance of the country’s motorway network with the proposed Tulla Road depot used to service the motorway in Clare and parts of Galway and Limerick.

Clare County Council has applied for planning permission to develop the site, a move that has attracted strong criticism from some local councillors.

The matter was raised at yester day’s monthly council meeting. Former Mayor of Clare, Cllr Tommy Brennan (Ind) said the county was already adequately served by salt depots at Beechpark.

He said Clare County Council could tender to operate the facility at Tulla Road and maintain the region’s motorway network.

He said, “Clare County Council carried out this work all along. Why should we have to tender. It’s a downright disgrace.”

Cllr Brennan added, “I still think this is another quango set up by the government.” He called for all jobs created by the project “to be filled by people in this county”.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said the junction layout near the proposed road depot should be re-designed to allow for proper on/off access to the M18.

He told the meeting that the current 100-metre access road was too short for buses and trucks to reduce their speed from 120 km/h to 30 km/h when they exit the motorway.

Acknowledging concerns over “compact junctions” along a stretch of the M18, county engineer Tom Tiernan said he was not aware if the NRA planned to address these issues through the development of the road maintenance depot.

He said the transfer of responsibility for the maintenance of Clare’s motorway network to the NRA would reduce the council’s workload by 10 to 15 per cent.

However he added that there was still a significant network of secondary and regional roads in the county to cater for.

In response to a question from Cllr Pascal Fitzgerald (Lab), Mr Tiernan said that he did believe the NRA’s new functions would have any impact on existing jobs at Clare County Council.

A POPULAR new stone sculpture in Ennis will aid tourism in the town, according to the Mayor of Ennis.

Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind) said last week that the Market Day, installed in the market roundabout last week, has already generated huge interest on social networking sites such as Facebook.

Speaking at the March meeting of Ennis Town Council, Cllr Guilfoyle said, “We need all the attractions we can get in this town at the moment”.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) described the piece as a “fantastic piece of sculpture”.

He added, “The amount of people getting their photos taken is amazing. It’s going to become a major tourist attraction”.

Made from granite, the near 20 tonne work depicts the two farmers discussing the purchase of a cow. The sculpture was installed on the market roundabout earlier this month as a replacement for the Icarus statue, which has been re-located to the Rocky Road roundabout.

The piece was designed and built by local sculptor Barry Wrafter. Market Day was commissioned by the Ennis Sculpture Initiative who also covered the cost of transporting the sculpture’s pieces to Ennis.

The Ennis Sculpture Initiative has installed numerous sculptures along the riverside in Ennis, as well as creating street furniture in the town centre. The sculpture trail takes many forms depicting cultural, historical and sporting events as well as more

abstract pieces.

In recent years, the initiative has spent close to one million euros on sculptures in and around Ennis in recent years.

Noel Crowley, Chairman of Ennis Tidy Towns, said there has been a fantastic response to the sculpture.

He also paid tribute to the efforts of the Sculpture initiative in ensuring the project was completed. “We commissioned it and paid for the transport.

“The Council paid for the re-enforcement of the roundabout so it could be installed there”.