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WHILE some might feel it’s a classic case of ‘closing the stable door after the horse has bolted’, Clare County Council nonetheless last week issued the second edition of its ‘Clare Rural House Design Guide’, aimed at setting higher stand- ards for rural housing design.

According to the council’s planning office, these design guidelines will make it very clear that housing develop- ment in rural areas needs to be of a high quality and should complement rather than dominate its surroundings.

The new rural house design guide takes account of new national guide- lines on sustainable rural housing. Liam Conneally, Acting Director of Planning with the Council said “it is the princi- ple aim of the new House Design Guide to create a clearer understanding of the components of good house siting and design. Without a well informed public it 1s difficult to achieve the high qual- ity building design that the landscape of Clare deserves”.

Conneally commented that “the land- scape of County Clare is one of its greatest natural assets and the achieve- ment of a high quality built environ- ment in the county is important to its physical and economic well-being. We all share in the responsibility to achieve this end; local authorities, design and building professions, building industry, chents who commission buildings and the community itself,”

He emphasised “the new House De-

sign Guide recognises that contempo- rary design can develop interesting and attractive buildings that contribute to the landscape character of the county.”

He stated that “the guide does not pre- scribe design but draws to the attention of applicants, architects, builders and their agents the benefits of drawing on traditional design elements in the design of new buildings and to give special consideration to siting, materials and orientation in the design process.”

Responding to the launch of the De- sign Guide, Liscannor based architect Alex Russell commented, “in the ideal world the proper profession would do the proper job, and there wouldn’t be any need for planners to impose design parameters. However, in the context of Clare, where a broad range of people think they can design, and have had a go at doing so in the past, with disastrous consequence, the council obviously felt that the need had arisen to produce such parameters”’.

Russell views the guidelines as a “kind of rescue mission’, although he concluded, “for large swathes of the county, they arrive, after the event”.

Russell aired concerns that the guide- lines seemed to be misguided in that they are directed towards the visual look of a house and also relied on a cer- tain interpretation of traditional archi- tecture. He suggested, “it would be bet- ter to guide in terms of proportion and scale and the arrangement of the build- ing, rather then prescribing in terms of visual or aesthetic appearance”.

Paul Conway, partner at Leahy and Conway Architects, Ennis said, “ a number of rural counties have produced House Design Guides in recent years. Considering the extremely poor quality of siting and design of much of what was built throughout the countryside over the past few decades, these guides have, at least, been well intentioned, though some are more successful than others.

He continued, “The new Clare De- sign Guide is aimed at the ‘user’, whom I understand to mean the people who will live in the houses. It is a reason- ably good effort, with new sections on modern design, conservation and an improved section on sustainability, and most professionally qualified architects will welcome it. A lingering concern re- mains as to how it will be operated by the planning authority, with the danger that it will be used as a rule book where the ‘good’ examples illustrated are to be badly copied without reference to the particular siting or circumstances, and an innovative design is reyected because it does not match one of the approved models”.

Conneally, for his part encouraged members of the public and house plan designers to use the design guide when preparing planning applications for one-off houses in the county.”

The House Design Guide is available at libraries throughout the county and at the offices of Clare County Council, Unit 1, Westgate Retail Park, Kilrush Road, Ennis at a cost of Eurol5 per

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Business People section recently, has 118 fulltime employees plus contractors.

Building on its past success and local ex- pertise, Tecnomen announced that it will

invest heavily in the future development of its Charging Business Unit products and this means further growth in its Shannon operation.

“This commitment to significant invest- ment in the Shannon operation further un- derlines the confidence that Tecnomen has in it’s Shannon staff and in the local region to provide the quality of personnel and in- frastructure we require.

“IT have every confidence that this expan- sion will be a success and that the plans will further secure the future of Tecnomen” said Kari Penttilaé, Director of the Charg- ing Business Unit.

Tecnomen has been operating in Shannon since 1991. The company first started as a manufacturing base to service the needs of Tecnomen’s paging and messaging custom- ers. The Irish operation has now grown to

be a central part of Tecnomen’s global op- erations and the headquarters of its’ Charg- ing Business Unit.

The Charging Product Development which is supported from Shannon is used by telecommunication operators to man- age their interface with pre-paid end-users. This is a significant growth area for Tec- nomen especially in the Latin and Central American markets.

Tecnomen develops and supplies mes- saging and charging solutions for telecom operators and service providers worldwide. Founded in Finland in 1978 the Company has over 25 years of experience in the tele- communications sector with many industry firsts including first to deliver voice mail, first to deliver unified messaging and first commercial MMS interconnection using different vendors’ systems.

Tecnomen systems are in use by over 60 operators in 40 countries worldwide.

This innovative multinational regards Shannon as a very advantageous global R & D production and logistics base, having Skilled labour, tax incentives and business infrastructure coupled with a strategic lo- cation beside an international airport are among the chief reasons why the company located in Shannon.

Most of the company’s R & D staff are third-level graduates from colleges in Lim- erick, Cork and Galway.

Shannon is the sole manufacturing and global distribution operation within the group and product is shipped by air to Tel- ecoms operators throughout the world.

All open positions in Shannon can be viewed at www.tecnomen.com.

SUITABLE Clare enterprises can apply for a share of €119 million to be made available by the government to support renewable energy projects over 15 years. There is a possibility of substantial sup- port for developments in wind energy, biomass, landfill gas, anaerobic diges- tion plants and hydroelectricity — and some of the savings on the costs of im- porting fuel are to be re-directed to the rural economy.

The technologies listed above cannot as yet fully compete with conventional electricity generation in an open com- petitive market.

Special financial support is therefore needed, and this can be justified under EU competition and state aids rules un- der the EU’s environmental protection guidelines.

Noel Dempsey, Minister for Commu- nications, Marine and Natural Resourc- es, has changed the system of providing grants for developing renewable energy SAI Coa nee

The former method was competitive tendering under the Alternative Energy Requirement (AER), but this 1s now to be a fixed price tariff system. These new fixed price tariffs per kilowatt-hour are: large wind energy (over 5 megawatts) 5.7 cent; small wind energy (under 5 MW) 5.9 cent; biomass (landfill gas) 7.0 cent; and hydroelectricity and biomass technologies 7.2 cent.

The new measure provides support for a contract with a registered supply com- pany to purchase all the output of the selected stations at guaranteed prices for up to fifteen years. The confidence engendered by long-term nature of this contract is expected to generate suffi- cient investment finance and loan capi- tal, which perhaps might not otherwise be provided.

The Department says that it will sup-

port a minimum of 400 MW of new renewable capacity, which will be in- creased to accommodate any slippage rates from previous competitions.

Mr Dempsey said the benefits would include secure clean environmentally- friendly indigenous electricity, and a major reduction in greenhouse gas emis- sions from the electricity sector.

There would be an estimated annual reduction of approximately | million tonnes of carbon dioxide, which has been identified as the chief culprit in glo- bal warning. A corresponding reduction in costs of over 20 million euro annually

for greenhouse gas emissions permits up to the 2010 target levels 1s also forecast.

Dependency on imported fossil fuels would be reduced and the national trade balance would be improved by redi- recting money previously spent on im- porting energy back into the rural Irish economy.

He predicted that this redistributed money would facilitate the creation of new long-term jobs in renewable energy equipment operation and maintenance, and of construction jobs during the building phase.

FRIDAY marked the 50th anniversary of James Dean’s death — the screen idol was killed in a car crash on that date in 1955.

Although he appeared in just three films Dean re- mains one of the most fa- mous actors in Hollywood history personifying the rebellious nature of young people in the 1950s.

The stretch of motorway on which he died is to be renamed “The James Dean Memorial Junction’ and a plaque will be unveiled at the exact spot where he died.

California State Highway 46 streaks eastward from the city of Paso Robles, near the northern edge of San

Luis Obispo County, and cuts across the gentle roll- ing hills. It’s a desolate and windblown vista.

Almost twenty-five miles from Paso Robles, and less than a mile east of Cholame, the highway cuts through a gap in the Temblor Moun- tains.

Here the highway splits: 46 continues eastward to Bakersfield, and its branch, Highway 41, turns northeast toward Fresno.

James Dean met his gris- ly end at this junction near Cholame.

Dean had just wrapped up shooting on the Warner Bros. film “Giant” and was set to compete in an automo- bile race held at the Salinas Airport.

Racing down the Grape-

vine grade on Route 99 north of Los Angeles, Dean was even stopped by a Cali- fornia Highway patrolman and given a citation.

Approaching the famous intersection from the op- posite direction was a large black-and-white 1950 Ford Custom Tudor coupé.

Dean’s Porsche accelerated to a reported estimate of 85 mph and as the two cars con- verged on the junction, the Ford veered over the centre line. The Ford and Dean’s Porsche hit almost head-on. The impact of the crash was terrific. Dean’s car ended up in a ditch by the roadside and “looking like a crum- pled pack of cigarettes.”

Dean was dead on arrival at Paso Robles War Memo- rial Hospital.

AUDI have unleashed their new Nu- volari Quattro concept study, a vi- sion of tomorrow’s elegant, powerful Gran Turismo, at this year’s Motor Shows.

It combines future Audi design philosophy and the progressive tech- nology and dynamic road potential of a high-powered GT.

With the Nuvolari quattro, Audi’s designers have created a two-door two-seater coupé with classic GT proportions. Its lines are an evolu- tionary interpretation of the current repertoire of outlines typical of Au- di’s styling philosophy.

After the debut of the Pikes Peak quattro crossover study at the De- troit Motor Show, the Nuvolari is the ererO) LO MMOL TMA IHOMM ONC OMPAUECONMECIELO)US off the future of the brand: a future notable for systematic emphasis on sporting character, highly advanced technology, unique design and em- phasis on exclusiveness.

Gran Turismo – the term is syn- onymous with the ultimate high-per- formance, road-going long-distance sports car.

Time and time again, GIs were among the most fascinating and most beautiful cars of their day. Like no other type of vehicle, a classic GT combines the aura of performance and speed with styling that derives its aesthetic appeal from technology

and dynamism rendered visible to the onlooker.

Without a doubt, the Audi Nuvol- ari quattro, which has a Luna Silver paint finish, is such a car – this be- comes clear the very first time you see it. The combination of system- atic lightweight design and a highly rigid body is doubly important in high-powered GT’s such as the Audi Nuvolari quattro – for the car’s per- formance and also for resistance to vibration, which is a vital precondi- tion for dynamic driving.

Inside the dash panel, which 1s cov- ered by a semi-circular hood, com- bines classic GT architecture and advanced ergonomics.

The tiptronic gearshift lever has one shift gate. If the driver prefers to select gears manually, he or she can do so at shift paddles behind the three-spoke sports steering wheel – as in the Le Mans-winning Audi R8.

High power output, maximum torque, refinement and a fascinating sound – these are the basic character- istics of a perfect GT engine, with a fascination that lies both in its potent performance and its everyday us- ability. The 5.0-litre “biturbo’ V10 has these features plus the bite that comes from ample torque in all en- gine speed ranges and a willingness to run up to high speeds that is second to none. This engine is a new design, capable of mobilising an impressive 600 bhp. The Nuvolari is also will-

ing to rev freely and let its vigorous power flow at all engine speeds – it accelerates from O to 100 km/h in just 4.1 seconds and on to a maxi- mum speed of 250 km/h. The maxi- mum torque of 750 Nm is available at an engine speed as low as 2,000 rpm. All this results in powerful, not to say supreme, forward thrust.

The Nuvolari quattro transmits the power from its engine to the road via the quattro permanent four-wheel drive layout, which is still unrivalled and provides excellent traction and lateral stability.

Indeed the entire concept is dedi- cated to Tazio Nuvolari – the legen- dary racing driver. 61 Grand Prix

victories and other international suc- cesses confirmed Tazio Nuvolari as one of the greatest racing drivers in the period before the Second World ee

He raced actively for almost thirty years, and it is to his artistry at the wheel that Auto Union owed many of its Grand Prix triumphs.

we love horsepower, naturally. And responsive handling – the more g’s, the more grins at Carmody Street. Sexy sheetmetal? Always gets our attention. We’ve never denied our affinity for luxurious ameni- ties, either.

Above all, though, we are admirers of brilliant design and engineering. Which is to say, design and engineering that advance the state of the automo- tive art without forcing users to relearn what they already know about the au- tomobile.

Prior to 2004, cars like the Prius were unlikely to find their way onto motor- ist’s short lists of favourite vehicles. After all, we’ve experienced hybrid vehicles before, most notably Honda’s agreeable, but capacity-challenged two- seat Insight and Toyota’s own previous- generation Prius which was conspicu- ously short on performance, and style.

When the all-new Prius was unleashed in 2004, however, it represented an al- together more compelling proposition. Not only was it the first hybrid that an enthusiast could truly enjoy, it provided a tantalizing preview of a future where extreme fuel-efficiency, ultra-low emis- sions, and stirring performance could happily exist.

Unlike the previous wallflower edi- tion, the current model is a versatile five-door hatchback wearing striking, almost futuristic bodywork and entirely in keeping with its forward-thinking mission – the Prius even boasts a drag coefficient of just 0.26, making it one of the most aerodynamic production cars ever to hit our roads.

At 106.3 inches, the wheelbase of the Prius is six inches longer than the previ- ous model’s and just an inch shorter than the full-size Toyota Avalon’s. Passenger room has climbed from just under 89

cubic feet in the old Prius to more than 96. Indeed the Prius 1s so spacious, it’s now classified as a mid-size sedan. Five adults can fit comfortably, with more than 16 cubic feet of cargo room left over in back. The 60/40 split rear seats also can be folded flat, creating a cav- ernous cargo hold under the rear hatch.

One glance at the Prius’s dashboard – with its ‘Power’ starter button, LED gauges nestled in a strip under the windshield, and small joystick shifter- -and you know you’re not in Kansas any more. The Prius is so brilliantly approachable, so undemanding and un- complicated to drive, you could easily convince an unsuspecting guest driver that it’s just a conventional car.

But it isn’t. The simple user interface belies the sophistication of the Prius’s computer-operated petrol/electric Hy- brid Synergy Drive. With its heady torque peak of 295 pound-feet available at O rpm, the electric motor delivers in- stant and enthusiastic thrust in around- town driving. Above 40 mph, the petrol engine automatically kicks in. Actually, ‘kicks’ is the wrong word. The transi- tion from electric-only to electric/petrol and back is seamless and all but unde- tectable. A large, moving Energy Moni- tor pictogram on the standard dash- board Multi Display screen reveals the Prius’s constantly changing power flow and the draining/recharging status of the nickel-metal-hydride battery pack. No automotive enthusiast could watch this fascinating electronic juggling act without smiling at the serene wizardry Om im-0e

In the next few years we’ll see more hybrids from automakers around the globe. Indeed, Toyota says a large por- tion of its model lineup will offer hybrid power by 2007.

But it’s the Prius that will be remem- bered as the first vehicle to move the hybrid concept from the penalty box to enthusiasts’ garages.

For that – a feat of true engineering brilliance – Toyota deserve many’s the accolade.

THE National Roads Authority’s (NRA) of- fensive against Clare County Council’s policy of allowing one-off housing to be built on national routes in certain circumstances, has been endorsed by An Bord Pleanala.

Earlier this year, members of Clare County Council ignored a warning from the NRA against loosening restrictions on one-off homes being built on national routes in the new Clare County Development Plan.

The NRA warned that such a move would jeopardise the roads programme in Clare.

Now, 1n the first test-case of the council’s new policy — which 1s also contained in the Ennis and Environs Development Plan — the NRA has been successful in appealing a deci- sion by the council to grant planning to Paul Brodie to build a house on land facing onto the N18, 3km north of Barefield.

The appeals board ruled that Mr Brodie’s proposal would endanger public safety by reason of traffic hazard because the site was located alongside the heavily-trafficked road, at a point where a speed limit of 100 km/h.

The appeals board also ruled that the pro- posal would endanger public safety by reason of traffic hazard and obstruction of road us- Clase

The NRA’s stance was backed by the Clare Association of An Taisce who lodged a sub- mission with the Board, stating that the devel-

opment is “a classic case of ribbon develop- ment on a national road”’.

The decision provoked an angry reaction from Councillor Sonny Scanlan (FG) who said, “I am very disappointed and disgusted with the NRA. They must be accountable for their actions and they must tell the council why it is now adopting this policy.”

To date, this year, the NRA has appealed four separate decisions by the council to grant planning for one-off homes along national routes.

Cllr Scanlan said, “It is very unfair that An Bord Pleanala finds in favour of the NRA everytime regardless of the circumstances of the application. The Council would not have granted planning permission to Mr Brodie if it had jeopardised road safety in any way.”

Leader of the Council’s Fianna Fail group, Clir PJ Kelly said, “It 1s time that the Minister for the Environment, Dick Roche, acted and changed the remit of the NRA and remove their powers of appealing decisions to An Bord Pleanala.”

Green Party councillor Brian Meaney de- scribed the action by the NRA as “heavy- handed”.

Speaking on the issue earlier this year, the NRA’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Michael Egan, confirmed that, “It would be extremely shortsighted to allow a free-for-all in allow- ing one-off homes along national routes. We ignore the issue at our peril.”

A LORRY driver who claimed he had not worked since being dis- missed from his job was caught on camera driving a digger on the En- nis by-pass site.

Thomas Lynch claimed before a hearing of the Employment Ap- peals Tribunal in Ennis that he had been dismissed by his boss, haulier Francis Greene, for not delivering a load of cement, which Lynch said

had been cancelled.

Lynch said that he was paid €500 for working up to 80 hours a week and received no overtime.

Greene denied unfairly dismiss- ing Lynch who he said had “left to go and work with his brother.” He denied Lynch had worked up to 80 hours a week. He had agreed a flat rate when Greene was hired, at Greene’s request, the employer Sr nLO

The truck driver claimed that he had not worked since the alleged dismissal.

But after having been shown photographs taken by a private detective of him in the cab of a digging machine on September 15 last, Lynch said he had “worked a few hours” to see what the machine was like. He said he got no pay for the work.

The Tribunal will give its deci- sion on the case in a few weeks.

, Mr Ryan said, “A great many business people in West Clare will also be shocked at this outcome.

“Mr Marrinan is a very well respected member of the

community and he provides an essential service in rural West Clare where a lot of eld- erly people living in isolated homes depend on his business to provide them with oil.

“Mr Marrinan has also of- fered to Clare County Coun- cil to relocate his business to alternative locations, but these were turned down by the council.”

Mr Ryan added that Mr Marrinan had spent in excess of €20,000 in trying to meet the requirements of Clare County Council.

However, solicitor for the Council, Mairead Doyle, told Kilrush District Court, “Mr Marrinan has been playing the system”.

At Kilrush District Court in October 2003, Mr Marrinan was fined €1,500 and given a suspended sentence of three months after failing to com- ply with a Council Enforce- ment Notice to remove the unauthorized structure and cease carrying out business at his oil depot, built without

planning permission.

Mr Marrinan appealed the decision to Ennis Cir- cuit Court in February 2004 Where Mr Marrinan was given three months to remove the structure, or face prison.

However, Mr Marrinan failed to remove the unau- thorized structure and Clare County Council initiated a fresh prosecution as the oil depot was still in place, al- though Mr Ryan told last Wednesday’s court that Mr Marrinan had removed the tankers from the depot, ren- dering the facility inoper- able.

Mr Ryan also said that Mr Marrinan had lodged a plan- ning retention application with the council. This was re- fused and an appeal had been lodged by Mr Marrinan with An Bord Pleanala.

After hearing submissions from Mr Ryan and Ms Doyle, Judge Mangan imposed the three-month jail term and made no order for costs.

AN POST in Clare has been asked to explain reports that hospital leaflets it was con- tracted to distribute in the county never arrived.

The leaflets from the En- nis General Hospital Devel- opment Committee outlined concerns about the future of the Mid-Western Regional Hospital Ennis.

The committee contracted

An Post to deliver 44,000 leaflets, at what group mem- bers described as “consider- able cost.”

But reports have come in to the group of deliveries not happening in a large number of areas.

Their spokesman said, ““we were aware that there are parts of the county that are not covered in the contract, because of different adminis- trative areas in An Post. But

these areas did not include Ennis and West Clare and we are concerned with people re- porting no knowledge of the leaflet.”

The committee have set up a phone number in response to the reports.

They’re asking people to call, or text, to let them know if they have not received a eb ilem

The phone number to text or call is 086 8813232.