Month: June 2012

SINGER Maura O’Connell will perform to a home audience next week after she was announced as the latest addition to the ‘Clare Connections’ concert, which takes place in Ennis next week.

The Nashville-based performer is appearing as a special guest on a bill that already includes Lúnasa, the Kilfenora Céilí Band and the Teetotallers (Martin Hayes, Kevin Crawford and John Doyle).

The concert, which is supported by Ennis Town Council and local businesses, will take place at the Abbey Street car park on Thursday, June 21, at 6pm.

The free music event has been organised as part of Love: Live Music, a day-long celebration of all forms of music in Ireland through free live music events in cities, towns and villages all over the country.

The success of the event could see Ennis receive financial support for a larger concert next year.

Tracy Crawford of Bally-O Promotions explained, “This year’s event is setting the seeds for a new festival in 2013 to tie in with The Gathering. This is an incredibly strong line-up for a free event in the county and one that we hope will be supported as it will lead to other exciting opportunities in the future.”

Members of Ennis Town Council approved the closure of the Abbey Street car park for the concert at their June meeting.

While welcoming the concert, councillors also urged organisers to cater for younger audiences.

Recalling the success of the Beat on the Street event held in Ennis during the mid-’90s, Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) said there was no guarantee that traditional music would draw large crowds to Ennis.

Cllr Peter Considine (FF) said an eclectic line-up was needed to attract a younger audience.

Councillors Tommy Brennan (Ind) and Brian Meaney (GP) called for the concert to be staged at another location in Ennis.

Cllr Meaney said a concert held in the Abbey Street car park for the Fleadh Nua had drawn a “miserable” attendance.

He proposed that an area from Bank Place to O’Connell Square be used for concerts.

Commenting on crowds at the recent Fleadh Nua, Cllr Neylon said the good weather had taken people out of the town.

He said, “We haven’t seen 26, 27 degrees in a long time. The people danced to Lahinch.”

Cllr Brennan proposed that the council examine whether a concert could be staged in the Market.

Town Manager Gerard Dollard told the meeting that the council needs to make a strategic decision on a specific civic space for large events.

THE Clare County Manager is expected to seek further legal advice after a majority of councillors voted in favour of a controversial re-zoning of land in Quin.

An amendment to the South Clare Area Local Plan (2012-2018) that calls for a four-acre site near Malachy’s Pub in Quin to be zoned residential was yesterday adopted at a meeting of Clare County Council.

26 members voted in favour of the re-zoning, two councillors, PJ Kelly (FF) and Bill Chambers (FF), abstained while one councillor, Patricia McCarthy, voted to leave the site as is, as recommended in the Manager’s Report.

County Manager Tom Coughlan had earlier told councillors that he had received “clear and categorical” legal advice from the council’s solicitor, the Department of the Environment and the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) that any re-zoning would contravene an environmental habitats directive concerning the presence of the lesser horseshoe bat. He said, “The legal advice is that this decision should not be implemented.”

Director of Service Gerard Dollard said, “The legal advice is clear cut and black and white and is supported by a High Court case.”

Mr Dollard told the meeting that if the amendment passed, the Council Executive reserved the right to review the decision.

Supporters of the amendment had cited a report prepared by bat expert Conor Kelleher of Aardwolf Wildlife Surveys, that claimed the cave and bat roost at the Pollnagordan Cave Special Area of Conservation (SAC) could be protected by appropriate mitigation measures and assessment.

Quin councillor Sonny Scanlan (FG) said it was unfair that with the “stroke of a pen the council can come along and wipe this thing of the map”.

Cllr Pat Daly (FF) said there were “high stakes” for the landowners involved. He cited the example of a bat house built near Ballykilty Manor that had not attracted any bats.

Cllr Tony Mulqueen (FG) said, “At this stage we seem to have more rights given to bats than to people.”

Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) said she did not support the amendment due to the nature of the legal advice.

A DECISION on a proposed € 34 million retail park on the outskirts of Ennis is not expected to made for a number of weeks.

An Bord Pleanála were due to make a decision yesterday on the proposed retail development at the Clare Road / Tobertascáin. However it emerged on Monday evening that the decision will not be ready for a number of weeks.

Michael Lynch Ltd had sought permission for the (1) Demolition of all structures on site including 5 residential units, office block and all ancillary buildings; (2) Provision of a public plaza fronting on to the Limerick Road including both soft and hard landscaping; (3) A retail development including a food store incorporating customer restaurant and cafe, off licence sales area, dot com area and storage service area. (4) Separate ancillary two-storey retail and office block, a standalone two-storey office block, 610 parking spaces, provision for cycle parking, trolley bays and vehicular access to and from the Tobarteascain Road.

The developers had said the project would create 300 jobs in construction and between 180 and 200 permanent jobs. However objectors, including town centre businesses, argued that the development would have a “significantly detrimental effect on town centre retail” and lead to a “decreased viability of the town centre”.

In their submissions both Ennis Chamber and Ennis Development Forum, along with other street associations in the town, outlined their concerns for the proposed development. Among the concerns was the statistical data on which the application is based, justifying the need for significant additional retail space, is out of date given the changing eco- nomic circumstances and that the cnsus of population for Clare which shows a very significant slowdown in the level of population growth.

CEO of Ennis Chamber, Rita Mc Inerney said, “We are very concerned that this proposal is located on a flood plain area designated as a flood risk A, the most at-risk category. Given the very serious history of flooding in Ennis, we cannot accept the suggestion that the development could proceed until the detailed flood studies recommended by the OPW have been carried out indicating that flood risk can be overcome and these studies have not been carried out to date.”

A spokesperson for the Ennis Development Forum added: “All of the evidence indicates a 25 per cent drop at least in retail expenditure since 2008. Therefore we feel that granting permission for the proposal will put an end to Ennis town centre as a viable retail area.”

MEMBERS of Clare County Council have backed a proposal to have Shannon designated as the official airport for next year’s Gathering tourism initiative.

Announced earlier this year by the Government, the Gathering aims to bring around 400,000 visitors to Ireland in 2013 by promoting the country to the Irish Diaspora.

There were calls yesterday to make sure Clare is prepared to take advantage of any spike in tourist numbers.

At the June meeting of Clare Coun- ty Council, Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) tabled a motion stating “that Clare County Council establish a Clare Gathering 2012 co-ordination group to market Clare and its Festivals and Events (F&E) for 2012”.

He continued, “Such group also to urgently design, plan and co-ordinate the Gathering Year 2013 for Clare county to ensure that County Clare maximises the opportunities presented in the international, national and regional marketing and funding of Clare’s 2013 festivals and events (noting short deadlines with regard to Fáilte Ireland funding for 2013 F&Es of early this June 2012).”

Cllr Flynn told the meeting that many of the people that left Ireland in the forties and fifties did so from Shannon Airport. He called for the council to ensure that Shannon is promoted as the official airport of the Gathering. He said plans were already in Knock Airport to rival the Shannon bid.

In his response, the Director of Services, Gerard Dollard, stated, “The council has already initiated a process to establish an overall county group representative of various groups and organisations that have the capacity to initiate events and festivals as part of the Gathering.”

He continued, “The first meeting of the group is scheduled for June 19 (2012). At that meeting the terms of reference of the group will be discussed together with any suggestions for expanding membership of the group.”

Mr Dollard said the council is also in discussions with Fáilte Ireland and that all arrangements are being progressed with the full support of Shannon Airport.

Asked to comment on the role of Shannon Development, Mr Dollard said it was “business as usual” as far as Clare County Council concerned.

Councillors also backed plans to promote the Gathering through the various electoral areas of the coun- ty.

The Mayor of Clare, Cllr Pat Hayes (FF), said it is important Clare takes advantage of tourism opportunities created in 2013.

Cllr Christy Curtin (Ind) said the event is a great opportunity to “mobilize communities to welcome the Diaspora”.

Cllr James Breen (Ind) called on the council to explore re-opening the West Clare Railway for tourists. He said a delegation from the council should visit a similar project in Mayo.

Mr Dollard said the council has started preliminary work on opening the route of the West Clare Railway.

A FORMER Mayor of Clare has hit out at the re-allocation of services from Ennis Town Council to Clare County Council saying the local authority faces being “wiped out” if nothing is done.

Independent councillor Tommy Brennan said last week that Ennis Town Council should not make its annual payment of the county demand to Clare County Council.

He claimed Clare County Council had crippled Ennis Town Council by taking over some of its functions over recent years.

He said plans are no longer just made for Ennis but rather for Ennis and its environs while the role of town engineer has been changed to area engineer.

He added, “If we don’t do something we are going to be wiped out.” Cllr Brennan was speaking last Tuesday at a special meeting called to debate the future of town councils.

He claimed local authorities were being sacrificed because the Government “can’t get rid of the Seanad”.

Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) said the Government had already succeeded in reducing the roles of town councils by taking away refuse collection and water services.

He told the meeting that local councillors “are the most important people in politics because they are in touch with the people who put them in their jobs”.

Cllr Paul O’Shea (Lab) said councillors often work 12 hour-days on behalf of their constituents. He described plans to reduce the number of local authorities as criminal.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) said fewer town councils would result in less representation for people in urban areas.

He said the push towards more regional authorities was comparable to the “spin doctoring” that took place when health boards were abolished to make way for the Health Services Executive (HSE).

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) said the plans to cull local authorities are part of the programme for government agreed between Fine Gael and Labour. He said it appeared that the Minister for the Environment, Phil Hogan, was not keeping his Fine Gael and Labour colleagues abreast of developments, a situation he described as “shocking”.

After Cllr Flynn criticised what he said was the influence of the civil service on government policy, Cllr Meaney said his comments were a “slur” on town council officials.

He said, “My experience of the local government officials and civil service is that they are totally independent and outside of the political system.”

Cllr Flynn said his comments were directed at Dublin based civil servants and not local officials.

Mayor of Ennis, Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind), hit out at TDs, Senators and MEPs whom he said were trying to do the work of councillors. The former Fianna Fáil councillor also urged any of his colleagues who are disillusioned with party politics to leave their respective political parties.

Cllr Mary Coote Ryan (FG) said it would “shocking” if the council was abolished.

The meeting at Waterpark House was also attended by the President of the Association of Municipal Authorities Ireland (AMAI) Ted Howlin and AMAI secretary Tomas Ryan.

PLANS have been put forward to create an annual ‘Democracy Day’ that would celebrate landmark political moments in Ennis that helped shape the development of modern Ireland.

Ennis Town Council has said it would welcome the input of local historical societies into the proposal that would be centered on the election of Daniel O’Connell in Clare in 1828.

The proposal was raised at last week’s council meeting as members debated a motion put forward by Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG).

He proposed that the council put in place an event or commemoration on July 5 each year to mark the significant role played Ennis has played in the development of modern Ireland.

He stated, “On that date in 1828 the world’s first democratic, peaceful revolution resulted in the Liberator, Daniel O’Connell being proclaimed elected as a Catholic to represent Clare in the British Parliament. Voters, who as tenants in defiance of their landlord’s wishes, marched from all over the county to Ennis to cast their vote to challenge the rule by which Catholics were not allowed to hold a seat in Parliament.”

Cllr Flynn told the meeting that July 5 should be declared ‘Democracy Day’ in Ennis. He said the event could be a big success. He said he had been approached by local historians about the proposal.

Town manager Gerard Dollard said that while the idea is a positive one, the council did not currently have the funding or resources to do it justice.

Cllr Peter Considine (FF) also welcomed the proposal and suggested that a decision be deferred until the council’s budget estimates meeting later in the year.

Town clerk Leonard Cleary said any commemoration would depend heavily on the involvement of local historical groups.

ENNIS Town Council has given the green light to a € 76,000 upgrade of coach parking facilities in the town centre.

The plan, which aims to boost the amount of bus tours stopping in Ennis, was adopted last week at the council’s June meeting.

According to a report from Town Manager Gerard Dollard, the scheme would involve the conversion of the lower part of Friar’s Walk car park to a coach park with coaches dropping off and picking up passengers adjacent to the County Museum.

A bus shelter is to be provided while a tap facility will be available to which coach operators could con nect a hose for coach washing purposes. A wastewater disposal facility would also be provided to enable operators to empty waste disposal units from the coach.

Mr Dollard explained, “The overall park would be monitored by CCTV that would be linked to the Glór centre where drivers would be able to remain for the duration of the passenger’s visit to the town. They would also be available to observe their coach on the CCTV monitors in Glór.”

Mr Dollard said further talks would now take place with coach operators and the business community “to ensure maximum benefit is derived from the scheme”.

The report states that Friar’s Walk has been vacant since the change from long stay parking to short stay parking was introduced in 2011. Mr Dollard said that the revenue loss to the council from the changes would be “minimal”.

The council’s traffic section estimates the average monthly loss in parking income would be € 484.80.

It will cost the council € 76,612 to carry out the upgrade with CCTV in- stallation (€ 32,000) accounting for most of the cost.

Mr Dollard said, “It is appreciated that progression of this project would represent a significant investment by Ennis Town Council. However this is a strategic initiative by the council to attract coach business to the town and must be seen in the wider context of economic benefit to the town area.” Members welcomed the scheme with Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) describing it as a “great initiative”.

Cllr Frankie Neylon (Ind) told the meeting that he believed the plan would bring more business to Ennis. Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) urged the council to consider an advanced booking system to facilitate use of the facility by camper vans.

He also proposed that car parks at Ennis Town Council and Clare County Council be opened for fans going to matches in Cusack Park.

“It could be a very effective use of a public space,” he said.

AN apprentice electrician was put “under pressure” to sell cocaine in order to pay off a drug debt, a court has heard.

At Ennis District Court on Wednesday, Gerard Griffin (18), formerly of 68 Abbeyville, Limerick Road, Ennis, pleaded guilty to having cocaine for sale or supply at the same address on December 14 (2011). The court heard that Mr Griffin has now moved to a new address.

Detective Garda Stephen Hession gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution. Mr Griffin made no reply to charge after caution, the court heard. Inspector Tom Kennedy said the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had directed summary disposal of the matter.

He told the court that Gardaí conducted a search of a property Mr Gaffney had been renting on December 14 (2011). He said cocaine with an estimated value of € 1610 was found along with a quantity of selfsealing plastic “dealing” bags.

Detective Hession said that the accused owed money for cannabis and had been told to sell harder drugs to pay off the debt. He said Mr Gaffney had been “under pressure” to sell the drugs.

He said the accused had not made any monetary gain and has since broken away from a group of people he had associated with.

Insp Kennedy said Mr Griffin has no previous convictions.

Solicitor John Casey said his client had cooperated fully with gardaí. He said Mr Gaffney had been given “little or no choice” but to sell the drugs. Mr Casey said his client, an apprentice electrician, had not sold any of the cocaine and didn’t know how to. “He still has a debt to pay off. It has scared him”, he added.

Judge Patrick Durcan praised Mr Griffin’s family for the support they had given. Addressing the accused, he said, “You are very lucky to have gotten out of difficulty.”

He said Mr Griffin was on the road to a “better place.”

Judge Durcan added, “If you get to the top of the mountain then you have nothing to fear. Your record will not be affected.”

He ordered the preparation of a report from the Probation Services and remanded Mr Griffin on continuing bail to appear at Ennis District Court on July 24.

A MAN who allegedly threatened to kill a dentist in Ennis last month is to be sent forward for trial.

Eoin Hannan (39) with an address at 14 Kilrush Road, appeared at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

It is alleged that on May 10 (2012) at Merchant’s Square, Ennis Mr Hannan did without lawful excuse make a threat intending that a person believed their property would be damaged. Mr Hannan is also charged with allegedly making a threat to kill or cause harm to another man by means intending the other to believe it will be carried out, at Merchant’s Square on May 11 (2012).

Inspector Tom Kennedy said both charges would be proceeding on indictment.

He told the court that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had directed trial on indictment.

Judge Patrick Durcan remanded the accused on continuing bail to appear again at Ennis District Court on July 4 for service of the book of evidence.

A Judge has accepted jurisdiction of a case where a woman is alleged to have made a series of emergency calls to Ennis Garda Station.

Rachel Fogarty (21) with an address at Boher Road, Emly, Tippperary is charged with sending by means of a telecommunications systems, a message for the purpose of causing annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety to another.

It is alleged that the offence took place on August 30 (2011) at a place unknown in the district area of Ennis District No. 12.

Ms Fogarty is charged under the postal and telecommunications act.

At Ennis District Court on Wednesday, Inspector Tom Kennedy said the Director of Public Prosecutions had directed summary disposal of the case. He said it would be alleged that between 4.24am and 5.44am on the date in question, Ennis Garda Station received a total of eight 999 emergency calls.

Insp Kennedy said the gardaí were requested to attend a house in Hermitage though it was not clear why they were directed to do so.

He said gardaí discovered that the calls were allegedly made by Ms Fogarty.

Judge Patrick Durcan accepted jurisdiction. The case was adjounred until June 13.