Category: News

MONEY set aside to improve broadband infrastructure may be used to make up the shortfall in commercial rates collected by Ennis Town Council, it has been revealed.

A provision of € 205,000 has been made in the council’s accounts to develop broadband services in Ennis under the Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) scheme.

However Town Manager Ger Dollard has indicated that the money may have to be used to make up shortfalls in the council’s revenue account for the 2014 budget

The council’s audited accounts for 2011 note that fina`ncial provisions, by way of revenue transfers to capital, were made to provide for: broadband (€ 205,000), Ennis environmental improvements (€ 34,800) and other balances (€ 40,000).

Mr Dollard states that the provi- sion under the heading of broadband relates to the matching contribution that is required for the Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) for Ennis. He adds, “This scheme has not to date been approved by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. The other balances referred to are reserved for particular projects that are at varying stages of progress.”

Mr Dollard told the council’s April meeting that the level of commercial rate collection has fallen as businesses experience difficult times.

He said councillors may have to consider using money set aside for broadband to cover any shortfall in the council’s revenue account.

Cllr Brian Meaney (GP) indicated his concern at the proposal, saying councilors must get an opportunity to discuss it beforehand. Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) proposed that the council consider investing in free wi-fi services for Ennis town centre.

RESIDENTS of local authority housing in Ennis who mistakenly received letters requesting payment of the property tax have been urged to raise the issue with the Office of the Revenue Commissioners directly.

The letters have caused confusion and concern among council tenants, according to Ennis councillor Frank- ie Neylon (Ind). Cllr Neylon says that as the owner of the properties, Ennis Town Council is liable to pay the tax. Cllr Neylon has urged the council to tell the Department of the Environment how many houses it is responsible for.

Mayor of Ennis, Cllr Peter Considine (FF) said he is aware of letters being sent to people who have died.

Town manager Ger Dollard said the he is aware that some council houses mistakenly received letters from the Revenue Commissioners.

He said that even though the council is the landlord liable for the tax, the person who receives the letter is responsible for bringing the mistake to the attention of Revenue.

He told the council’s April meeting that staff would assist residents. However he rejected a call from Cllr Paul O’Shea (Lab) for the council to carry out an awareness campaign.

He said the council had no role in the collection of the tax and any involvement “would only confuse the issue even more”.

Cllr Johnny Flynn (FG) says he has received a number of calls from elderly residents concerned about the tax. Cllr Michael Guilfoyle (Ind) queried why there are differences between the values of neighbouring houses in the Turnpike area of Ennis.

THERE was been a heavy visible Garda presence in a Clarecastle estate over the the Easter weekend as armed units from Limerick monitored the troublespot.

The gardaí were responding to the latest incident that involves one house in the estate, which culminated in a fire early on Good Friday morning. No-one was injured in the fire which was attended by local fire services and no real damage was reported.

The suspicious fire, which gardaí are investigating is the latest in a series of incidents that has greatly concerned local residents, incidents that have seen a house and car damaged on more than one occasion. There have also been reports of men armed with slash hooks and other weapons around the house in question on different occasions over the past four weeks.

“It is ridiculous what’s going on,” a concerned resident who called the offices of The Clare People , told us: “One or two nights cars have driven into this lovely quiet estate with the lights off and men with balaclavas got out and smashed windows and attacked a car,” she said.

Gardaí have acknowledged there is an ongoing issue in the estate and have confirmed that they are keeping a presence in the area to ensure the situation doesn’t escalate.

“The windows of this house have been smashed in a couple of times now and windscreens of cars have been done as well. There are children in the house and someone is going to be seriously hurt if this is allowed to go on,” the caller told us.

One neighbour who also didn’t want to be identified said that the house has been subject to a number of late night attacks over the past few months.

“There are children in this house and on more than one occasion we have all been woken up by screaming as a group of men arrived to the house. They are in and out in minutes, breaking windows and shouting and roaring. We’ve called the Guards and in fairness they are here in no time, but the men are gone as quick,” she said.

“The windows in this house and the door is no sooner replaced than there’s another incident, always at night. I’ve seen the weapons. We are definitely frightened this doesn’t get rightly out of hand, someone could be killed,” she added.

Over the Easter weekend there were a number of Garda cars parked in the estate at various times and an emergency response unit from Limerick also parked at the entrance to the estate.

The incidents are not thought to be related to another ongoing feud within the town of Ennis.

ONE man was airlifted to hospital while at least two other removed to hospital by ambulance following a traffic accident on the main Ennis to Kilrush Road on Holy Thursday afternoon.

Traffic on the N68 was disrupted at Lissycasey for three hours following the incident.

An elderly man had to be cut from the wreckage following the crash, which occurred at the Ennis side of the West Clare village at approximately 12.30pm.

He was then taken to the local GAA pitch from where he was airlifted to hospital.

A passenger from his car and the driver of a second vehicle were removed to hospital by road ambulance.

Fire crews from Ennis along with HSE paramedics and gardaí attended the incident.

This follows an incident last month when a mother and her two children escaped with minor injuries following a collision involving an articulated lorry and two cars near Lissycasey on Tuesday, March 19.

The collision occurred at around 8.30pm at Crown approximately five kilometers west of Lissycasey on the main N68 Ennis to Kilrush road.

The woman and her children, aged between 7 and 10, were travelling in one of the cars involved in the incident.

They were taken to the Mid Western Regional Hospital Limerick by ambulance as a precaution.

The occupants of the other car and the lorry driver escaped uninjured.

The road was closed for more than two hours.

Gardaí from Kilrush are investigating the accident.

ANOTHER late night aggravated burglary in Kilmihil has sent shock waves through the West Clare community, with many people now living in fear.

According to Clare County Councillor Bill Chamber (FF) “Anyone living alone is living in fear, especially vulnerable people such as the elderly and disadvantaged.”

He was speaking in the aftermath of a Holy Thursday night aggravated burglary during which a gang of three armed men broke into a house in the Knockalough area of Kilmihil.

Carrying iron bars the three entered the home of a 61-year-old man and threatened him.

They left the house on the main Ennis to Kilmihil road shortly af terwards with a sum of money.

Gardaí in Kilrush are investigating this latest aggravated burglary and are appealing for anyone with any information to come forward.

Two elderly brothers from Kilmihil were also the victims of an aggravated burglary before Christmas.

“The Government has to lift the moratorium on Garda recruitment. We need more gardaí and we certainly cannot do with less,” said Cllr Chambers.

“There is a lot of fear out there at the moment.”

“The whole judicial system has to be looked in respect of this type of crime,” he said adding that such crimes need to be fast tracked through the court system and the criminals put behind bars as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, Gardaí in Ennistymon are appealing for information following an aggravated burglary in a rural area of Clare last week.

An elderly married couple were subjected to a frightening ordeal when a group of intruders broke into their home in the Inagh/Connolly area in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

It is thought that two or three people entered the home, which is an isolated rural area. A quantity of cash was taken.

The couple were unhurt but are said to have been left extremely traumatised by the incident. Gardaí in Ennistymon are investigating and have appealed for anyone who may have noticed any suspicious activity in the area to contact them at 065 7071020.

A Garda spokesperson said, “They were traumatised and very upset. It was obviously a very frightening experience for them.

They have been getting support from their neighbours and family. They have been extremely upset by it. Everyone in the area has been upset by it.”

Gardaí are also urging people to call and check in on any elderly neighbours living in their area.

“It is something we would encourage people to do, calling into elderly neighbours.

“It is important, especially in rural communities, that people call in and check on their neighbours.”

THE site which contained the outline of five buildings constructed to floor level also had exposed service pipes, a concrete trough like structure that proved a drowning hazard if it filled with water during heavy rainfall and some discarded waste including a razor, bottles, broken glass and a disbanded sign advertising three bed semi detached houses for sale.

Mother Jean Kavanagh told The Clare People how she had to bring her five year old daughter for a tetanus shot after she ran on to the site after a ball and fell.

The concerned mother said that a wooden fence has been erected at that point of entrance since the incident, which has proved successful at that end of the estate, but large areas still remain dangerously exposed.

Brian Canny is one of the unfortunate homeowners who look directly on to the derelict building site.

“Since my family moved into the estate in 2008, there has been little or no work done on the site,” said the young father who had planned on raising his family in a friendly and safe neighbourhood.

Cluain na Laoi Kilkishen is currently divided into two parts with approximately 30 houses accessible from the main road.

This part of the estate appears to be complete, however 12 semi-detached homes at the back of the estate are accessible only through a temporary entrance off a side road.

Three of these houses remain unoccupied, but the remaining nine have young families as householders.

As well as the dangers of the building site, concerned resident have raised fear about the lack of public lighting facing at the back of the estate.

Cassandra Dinan explained how a child was almost knocked down by a reversing car due to the lack of proper lighting, only to be saved by the screams of a neighbour.

“We are trying to be reasonable because we know the economic climate is not easy. We all know we must pay the property tax as that is the law, but we get frustrated when we hear that estates have been finished to a reasonable level when they are expected to pay the tax,” she said.

The small community has bonded over the issues and filled all of the forms required of them so as to allow a bond to be released to the builder to finish of this part of the estate.

Ms Dinan said that the group would be happy if this were to happen but no progress has been made on this issue since last December.

Adding his support to the young families Michael Hogan of Kilkishen Tidy Town’s Committee and the Local Community Development said the village was working hard to enhance the aesthetics of the area, but this remained an eyesore.

CLARE County Council said it is unlikely that housing estates like Cluain na Laoi will be made exempt from paying the residential property tax, even though it was added to the household charge exemption list at a late date,

“The list of estates for exemption from the property tax was compiled in accordance with criteria issued by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government and following a comprehensive assessment by Clare County Council of all estates in accordance with that criteria according to Director of Services Ger Dollard.

“The key test was whether the estate was in a “seriously problematic condition” i.e. incomplete to a substantial extent and without services such as roads, footpaths, public lighting, open space etc,” he said.

“Persons who were exempt from the household charge but are now liable for the property tax are not now retrospectively liable for the household charge.” The council official said there was no provision to add to the exemption list as it is carried out by Ministerial order.

“I would expect that the list would be reviewed on an annual basis to take account of progress made on developments which may remove them from being in a “seriously problematic condition” category,” he added.

“Both developments at Kilkishen and Sixmilebridge are on the Council’s active list for progress. We are satisfied that any public safety issues have been satisfactorily dealt with and we are working with the developer to achieve progress on issues on both estates. Work has been undertaken and we would expect further works to take place in the short term.”

Local Councillor John Crowe (FG) said he believed Cluain na Laoi should have been on the tax exemption list, similar to another estate in the East Clare village of Kilkishen.

“The people of Kilkishen have reason to be aggrieved. There are two estates in Kilkishen in that situation and one is still exempt,” he said.

Cllr PJ Ryan (Ind) said he was also of the belief that a resolution to the payment of part of the bond would have to be found, even if it meant the county council buying the material directly for the suppliers. The Cla re People attempted to contact the builder yesterday (Monday) but had no response at time of going to press

.

TWENTY beds have been reopened at a Limerick hospital to alleviate chronic over crowding at the regions only 24-hour accident and emergency department.

Patients from Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary have been subjected to long waits and hours on trolleys as the Mid Western Regional Hospital Limerick struggled with patient numbers at it’s A&E.

On Wednesday chief executive of the Mid Western Regional Hospitals Group Ann Doherty announced the reopening of the 20 beds at St John’s Hospital in Limerick.

A statement from the HSE said she was supported by the Minister for Health Dr James Reilly, the Special Delivery Unit and the HSE in her decision.

In the lead up to the announcement a large number of very sick patients were presenting with acute medical conditions particularly respiratory complaints at the hospital, placing the already pressurized hospital in an even more chaotic state.

The HSE confirmed that there has been no indication of a flu outbreak.

“We have had a succession of acutely unwell patients over the age of 70 presenting at the ED. The majority have required admission to a bed. All inpatients are reviewed three times a day to assess their fitness for discharge. However, the reality is that every bed in the hospital is occupied by somebody who needs to be there,” explained Ms Doherty.

“There are no delayed discharges due to people waiting for Fair Deal home care packages or because of inappropriate stays,” she added.

“We are very much aware of the limits of the present Emergency Department and construction has commenced on a new department which is expected to be operational in two years,” she said.

Meanwhile a risk assessment is currently being conducted at the hospital under the direction of the local fire service.

Limerick County Council, as the Fire Authority for the Mid-West Regional Hospital inspected the overcrowded A&E following a complaint.

The HSE has until Friday to completed the Risk Based Assessment.

A spokesperson for the HSE said, “We are very much aware of the inadequacies of the present emergency department and construction has commenced on a new department which is expected to be operational in two years.”

THE economic recession is hitting Lahinch Golf Club, with the annual accounts for 2012 showing that the county’s flagship course has been hit by a loss of 500 fee-paying members in the last three years.

It was revealed on Friday last that a drop in new membership numbers in the past year has contributed to a financial slide of a 46 per cent decline in profits for 2012.

The figures are contained in the latest annual report showing that the club, which celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2017, saw profits drop by € 248,084 from € 540,231 in 2011 to € 291,947 last year.

Plummeting revenues from entrance fee levies on new members is the main factor behind this drop in profits, with the figures for 2012 drop- ping by 94 per cent from € 262,999 in 2011 to just € 15,000 last year.

This rate of loss has also been magnified by over the past three years the Lahinch has lost 500 fee-paying members, a statistic that was revealed by club captain Ray Hennessy in the report to the annual general meeting that took place on Friday last.

In 2012 membership dropped by 87 from 2,772 to 2,685, a figure that follows on from the loss of 75 members in 2011, a year in which an additional 98 members were granted leave of absences from the club, although many are expected to rejoin.

In a response to tackle the dropoff in membership, the club last year slashed entrance fees for new members from € 25,000 to € 10,000 and also proposed a new intermediate category of membership.

However, the financial figures also show that the drop in membership monies have been offset in part by a seven percent increase in green fee income in 2012 to € 1.13m.

A collapse in green fee traffic post2008 saw a decline of 45 per cent in revenues from the € 1.87m that was garnered in 2007.

This drop saw the club record a combined operating loss of € 1m in 2008 and 2009.

However, a restructuring at the club that plays host to the prestigious South of Ireland Amateur Championship every year saw it return to profit in 2011 when an operating surplus of € 97,626 was recorded.

WHILE the take up of childhood vaccinations in Clare has increased significantly in the last number of years, it is still not high enough for the HSE to consider the population immune from diseases such as measles, whooping cough and certain strains of meningitis. Specialist in Public Health Medi- cine Dr Rose Fitzgerald told The Clare People that the ideal vaccination target is 95 per cent. “We know if we get 95 per cent up take we get herd immunity,” she said. The public health expert said that there has been a significant increase in the number of people having their children vaccinated in the last five years with the per centage opting for the state vaccination programme jumping from the mid 70s to 94 per cent in many cases. In County Clare there is a slight drop off in the up take towards the end of the programme which Dr Fitzgerald attributes to busy mothers returning to work after maternity leave, and a recent change in the vaccine schedule which led to some confusion. Apathy also plays a part she maintains. Figures from July to September last year show that 98 per cent of Clare parents allowed their infants to be vaccinated against tuberculosis at birth. However that number fell to 94 per cent and less for all others vaccines, with the exception of the first 6 in 1 injections at four months. This was as high as 96 per cent. Dr Fitzgerald said that it was never too late to have a child vaccinated. “Just bring the child to the doctor straight away. “The schedule might change slightly depending on the age of the child in question,” she said.

AN ENNIS man verbally abused staff in a Chinese take away in a row over barbecue sauce, a court has heard.

John Mongan (34) also told gardaí to “fuck off” after they were called to the incident on the Mill Road, Ennis on February 16 (2013).

At Ennis District Court on Wednesday, he pleaded guilty to charges of intoxication and engaging in threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour with intent to provoke a breach of the peace.

Solicitor John Casey told the court that his client was drunk on the night and the row started after Mr Mongan received the wrong food order.

Judge Patrick Durcan asked what the accused had ordered on the night.

Mr Mongan said he ordered barbecue spare ribs but had not received any barbecue sauce.

Mr Casey said, “He’s not impressed with his behaviour and he accepts he was one hundred per cent wrong.”

Laughter could be heard around the courtroom during the brief court hearing.

Mr Mongan, with an address at 71 Glenina, Ennis, apologised in court for his behaviour on the night.

He said, “I’m very sorry your honor, to the gardaí and the Chinese restaurant.”

Mr Casey said his client’s behaviour was inexcusable.

He added, “He does view this seriously and he is concerned by this.”

The court heard the father of four has a previous conviction for a public order offence.

Judge Durcan said, “I regard this as a serious matter because of the previ- ous conviction.”

He said fast food operators provide a good service.

He said it is not acceptable that people abuse members of the gardaí.

Judge Durcan imposed a twomonth prison sentence, suspending it on condition that Mr Mongan be of good behaviour and law abiding.

Judge Durcan warned Mr Mongan that he would have to control his drinking.

He added, “If you come back here and you are convicted of a public order offence, you will be leaving in the first Paddy wagon I can find.”