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Foreign interest in West County

CLARE businesspeople living abroad are among the international investors who have expressed an interest in buying the West County Hotel. The Ennis hotel was listed for sale in July for between € 2.5 million to € 3 million.

Formerly the flagship hotel within the Lynch group of hotels, the West County was placed into receivership in February.

According to CBRE, the property firm handling the sale, “there has been a lot of interest” in the West County Hotel.

Dermot Curtin of CBRE explained, “We’ve had interest from all over the world and from people in Ireland. There has been international interest in the property. A lot of Clare people are living abroad.”

He continued, “It is more difficult to sell properties than it was in the good old days. Obviously the big thing that has changed is that is more difficult for investors to get finance from financial institutions. But are finding that there is still a good deal still in the country.

“There have been a few more sales in recent months. We’re seeing a small lift in the market. € 2.5 million to € 3 million is the guide price but we’ll listen to the market,” he said.

Formerly the flagship hotel within the Lynch group of hotels, the West County was placed into receivership in February.

It sits on a high-profile six-acre site on the southern approach road to Ennis town centre and its accommodation includes 152 en-suite bedrooms, eight separate and inter-connecting conference/banqueting suites that can cater for up to 1,650 delegates, a modern leisure centre with a 20metre heated indoor pool, jacuzzi, steam room and sauna.

The leisure club includes a gym with more than 1,000 local members. The Boru’s Porterhouse bar and lounge has a capacity for around 500 people, and the hotel also has two restaurants. The site can accommodate 450 parking spaces.

Its arrival on the market follows the recent sale of the Clare Inn, which was also part of the Lynch group of hotels that went into receivership in January of last year.

This freehold and fully-licensed hotel property is only 20km from Shannon International Airport and the Shannon Free Zone, the manufacturing and logistics centre for the Shannon region.

The hotel has been a regular venue for the All Ireland and International Irish Dancing Championships and has also hosted the All Ireland Pool Championships.

Last year the West County hosted the AGM of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) and the SIPTU annual conference.

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Kilrush town puts criminals in the frame

CRIMINALS in Kilrush will quite literally be in the frame for any wrong doings within the next few months, as plans for the town’s first CCTV system is finalised.

The town’s local authority has agreed to relocate funding from its own budget to install the crime de- tecting and deterring cameras in the west Clare town.

Kilrush Town Clerk John Corry said plans for CCTV in Kilrush is at an advanced stage.

He told a meeting of the Kilrush Joint Policing Committee (JPC) that the council has learnt that the project now has to go through the planning process.

This will take at least three months.

“We will go to procurements at the same time, which would have taken two months anyhow,” he explained.

Supt Gerry Wall offered some time and money saving ideas to the council, as he welcomed the initiative.

“People become used to CCTV in an area and move on to somewhere else, so we need flexibility,” he said.

He suggested that the council apply for a number of locations that far exceed the number of cameras during the planning process.

The cameras could then be moved quickly to a new location where it may be needed in the fight against crime.

“A little forecasting now would save money in the future,” he said.

The members of the JPC, made up of the council, gardaí and community representatives, are now encouraging members of the public to come to the next public meeting of the committee, to have their say about policing in the area and raise any concerns they may have.

“If they have interest in the community and have a place they believe me or my colleagues should be, this is the place for it,” he said.

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Zero tolerance for boy racers say gardaí

GARDAÍ have issued a warning to boy racers that dangerous driving on Clare’s roads will not be tolerated.

Chief Supt of the Clare Garda Division, John Kerin was speaking at the July meeting of the Joint Policing Committee (JPC). He was responding to concerns raised by local representatives that speeding is a big problem around the county.

However Chief Supt Kerin told the meeting that speeding problems have declined in the county in recent years. “The problem with speeding is not the same problem as it was six years ago.”

He explained that one of the reasons for the decline has been that boy racers no longer have the money to spend on cars. “We are aware of them. We have called to them and to their parents to tell them we would be focusing on them…If we do receive a report, we will call and let them know they under garda attention.”

Chief Supt Kerin said, “There is a perception that people are not being caught but they are being caught.”

Councillors had called on the gardaí to clamp down more forcefully on speeding and dangerous driving.

Cllr Paul Murphy (FG) said a stretch of road near Barntick has become like “Shannon runway at time”. Cllr Oliver Garry (FG) said speeding on national roads was a bigger problem while concern was also expressed over cars speeding on the road between Miltown Malbay and Quilty. JPC Chairman, Cllr Joe Arkins (FG) told the meeting that there is a perception that speed vans are put in locations where they catch a lot of people at the same time. He added, “There are many areas in rural Clare where there are problems with speeding that are not served by the speed van.”

Chief Supt Kerin said speed vans are used to monitor roads around the county.

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6,000 signing on in Ennis

UNEMPLOYMENT in Clare is at a four-month high, but the numbers signing on have dropped compared to this time last year. However, there are now more women on the dole queues than there were this time last year.

As many as 10,437 people were receiving some form of unemployment assistance in the county last month.

This is the lowest number of people seeking unemployment payments during the month of July since the number unemployed rose significantly in 2009.

In July 2008, 6,023 Clare people were unemployed. By July 2009, the number had jumped to 10,497 and increased again to 10,796 this time last year.

There was a slight drop of 271 this July when compared to 12 months ago. However, unemployment in the county had increased by 239 compared to June 2012.

While the overall unemployment number has dropped compared to last year, there was a slight increase in the number of women signing on. However there are still over 2,000 more men than women on Clare’s dole queues even though the number of men seeking job assistance had dropped by 288 on last year.

There are also less people under 25 seeking employment compared to the same time last year. However, the unemployment rate among this age group has increased by 59 to 1,729 compared to June.

The number of people over 25 years of age unemployed has now reached 8,708 an increase of 180 on the previous month but a drop of 85 on last year.

The largest number of Clare people seeking unemployment assistance do so in Ennis, with 5,995 people signing on last month.

This compares favourably to July 2011 when 6,159 people were signing on.

In Ennis, the number of women in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance and unemployment benefit has increased slightly, while the number of men in the same position has decreased.

This is a fact reflected in two of the three social welfare areas, the exception being Tulla where 1, 501 people are currently unemployed.

Here too the number of unemployed decreased slightly compared to 12 months ago. However, there was a drop in unemployment rates among both genders.

In Kilrush, the number unemployed was at 1,449, a drop of just seven compared to last year, while in Ennistymon there was a decrease of 33 to 1,492 people on the unemployment list.

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Pensioners forced to shoplift to survive

OLD age pensioners and young mothers in Clare are resorting to shoplifting to survive as the recession sends a new group of people to the poverty line.

New figures show that older people are also going without certain foods, cutting back on electricity and fuel and are not buying clothes as they struggle to pay essential bills.

Clare Gardaí said they have come across a number of older people and mothers “who basically do not have enough money” and have come to their attention for shoplifting.

Superintendent Gerry Wall said there have been a number of incidents of shoplifting in Kilrush in the last seven months, with those responsible broken into three distinct cate gories – older people, young mothers and general thieves.

The increase in the number of older people and mothers resorting to crime to feed themselves and their families is a growing social concern, he maintained.

Gardaí have been treating the issue with sensitivity.

Supt Wall said that he and his colleagues are sensitive to the social needs of these people and have dealt with them by way of an adult caution. “I must say the shops in question have also been very understand ing,” he said.

Age Action Ireland, which promotes positive ageing and better policies and services for older people, said many older people are finding it impossible to make ends meet.

According to EU SILC statistics 9.6 per cent of over 65 year olds in Ireland are deemed to be at risk of poverty.

Gerard Scully of Age Action told The Clare People that the increase of household bills such as electricity and heating coupled with the reduction in the household package, which once assisted with those bills, is adding to the struggles.

“The social welfare pension has not even cut, but it also hasn’t been increased which is effectively a cut,” he said.

“A lot of older people with pri- vate pensions have also been badly hit. There is a phenomena of a ‘new poor’,” he explained.

“For the year 2010, 23 per cent of people over 65 were unable to pay for an item on the household budget. Older people are cutting back on clothes or shoes, and they wouldn’t be using electricity as much or eating meat in order to save money.

“It highlights the fact that many older people are finding it difficult to make ends meet. It belies any suggestion that older people are doing well out of the recession,” he said.

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Tourism boss ‘quite pleased’ despite losses

SHANNON Development incurred losses of over € 10m in 2011, but the chief executive, Dr Vincent Cunnane, has expressed himself to be “quite pleased” with company’s performance amid the challenging times of the current economic climate.

Figures from the annual report that was released last Tuesday show that pre-tax losses at the company narrowed by over 27 per cent during the year, from € 14.5m in 2010 to € 11.9m for the year ending December 2011.

The company’s performance comes against a backdrop of revenues declining by seven per cent from € 32.4m to € 30.2m in the 12 months to the end of December last. Dr Vincent Cunnane said he was “quite pleased” with this performance and pointed out that the biggest contributory factor to the pre-tax loss was a combined non-cash cost of € 10.5m made up of a depreciation charge of € 7m and a € 3.5m write-down in property assets.

“We had a small operating deficit,” said Dr Cunnane. “Over € 10m of it is a paper loss in terms of depreciation and impairment. When you take it all out their was a small operating loss of € 1.5m,” he added.

During 2011 Shannon Development’s rental earnings from its € 100m property portfolio dropped by over € 1m from € 13.3m to € 12.2m, which represented an eight per cent drop.

Meanwhile, as a direct result of the property crash, the company’s income from property sales has collapsed resulting in combined losses of € 45.6m in the past three years, largely made up of impairment charges and depreciation. “A significant improvement in un- derlying economic conditions will be required in order to facilitate the realisation of a number of major property sales and investment projects by the company,” the annual report states. “Accordingly, the company will adjust a number of the strategic plan key performance indicators such as job creation targets, visitor numbers and capital expenditure targets during 2012 and 2013 in order to take account of the prevailing economic climate,” it adds. “I believe that the best way out of a difficulty is to face it head on,” said Dr Cunnane. “In that vein, Shannon Development has managed its resources to respond to the most serious recession in a generation. “Against a difficult economic background, Shannon Development staff are continuing to craft the building blocks to help secure the economic future of our region. For this, I would like to personally commend their continued commitment and dedication. Shannon Development will continue to work to ensure that our region is a world class global location where people want to live, work and spend leisure time. As a regional development agency we are firmly focused on delivering a strong economic future for everyone living in the Shannon region,” he added.

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Gardaí tackle lending issue

KILRUSH’S most senior garda has reassured those who may be the victim of illegal loan sharks that they can meet his colleagues in the strictest confidence. At Thursday morning’s meeting of the Kilrush Joint Policing Committee (JPC), Superintendent Gerry Wall said he was aware of the is- sue of illegal money-lending in the town, but he needed people to come forward and make a statement if an arrest was to be made. He told the committee members that there are two ways open to the Gardaí to tackle the issue – firstly through direct reporting, and secondly throgh the assistance of specialst gardaí based in Dublin. “I have as much access to these specialist gardaí as any of my colleagues. “They are not a million miles away just because they are based in Dublin,” he said. The most direct route to an arrest is through victims and witnesses coming forward. “We are drawing a blank on people reporting this,” he added. The superintendent said he would encourage people affected to come forward and speak to Gardaí in strict confidence. During the last few months, problems associated with illegal moneylending have come to the fore in the West Clare town, with reports of lenders standing outside the post office waiting for payment as borrowers collect social welfare payments. There are also reports of lenders holding on to people’s social welfare cards to ensure payment. Those at the mercy of the moneylenders have said they are not willing to talk about their situation as they are afraid of reprisals. Many who signed up for these exorbitant loans fear the unscrupulous lenders too much to even tell the Gardaí. Gardaí in Kilrush have reassured people, however, that they will meet them in confidence.

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Shannon region is top performer in tourism

SHANNON Development’s work as a driver for tourism in the mid-west is being rewarded with the results of increased numbers into region over the past year.

That’s the message delivered by Shannon Development chief executive Dr Vincent Cunnane following the publication of the company’s annual report last week.

Preliminary tourism figures from Fáilte Ireland for 2011 indicate that the Shannon region was one of Ire- land’s top performing areas in terms of the growth of international visitor numbers.

The region recorded 850,000 overseas visitors in 2011, an 11.7 per cent increase over the previous year, with Dr Cunnane highlighting Shannon Development key role in this upsured. “We are delighted with these preliminary results which clearly reflect the hard work that is being done on the ground and internationally to promote this region as a premier tourist destination,” he told The Clare People .

“While these figures are encouraging, we would acknowledge that not all businesses would have benefited equally. To support tourism businesses in the Shannon region, Shannon Development undertook a series of its own strategic tourism initiatives in 2011,” he said.

“These delivered 155,000 extra visitors, 310,000 bednights and an additional € 30 million in revenue. Over the past four years, tourism initiatives undertaken directly by the company have delivered a direct economic benefit of almost € 160 million for the region’s tourism industry.”

Tourism continues to be one of the key economic drivers in the Shannon region’s economy, employing more than 25,000 people in over 1,000 tourism businesses and attracting over 1.8 million visitors in 2011.

The continued success of Shannon Development subsidiary, Shannon Heritage, in this tourist drive was highlighted in the figures that show it recorded a five per cent growth in 2011 with 436,300 visitors across the board at all its tourist sites.

“The Shannon Heritage operation continues to be an economic driver by contributing an estimated € 15 million in revenue for the local economy,” said Dr Cunnane

“The Shannon region boasts a superb range of tourist attractions and Shannon Development’s Product Development team is constantly working to help the tourism trade devise new visitor attractions to entice the next generation of visitors.

“We want to ensure that this region is a ‘must visit’ destination.

“Our team is currently working on over € 22 million worth of tourism projects. A particular area of concentration for the company in 2011 was the development of sports tourism and conference business in the Shannon region,” added Dr Cunnane.

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Ogonnelloe father’s death ‘a terrible tragedy’

THE East Clare community of Ogonnelloe will say a final farewell this morning (Tuesday) to a father of three who drowned following a boating accident on Lough Derg.

Pat Danaher lost his life in the picturesque lake after his 20-foot speedboat capsized on Thursday. It is understood that the boat ran aground after hitting rocks.

It was later found upturned and a search of the waters was immediately carried out. The massive search involved volunteer members of the RNLI, Coast Guard, Civil Defence, Mountshannon Search and Rescue and Killaloe/Ballina Search and Recovery Unit.

Divers from the Killaloe/Ballina Search and Recovery Unit recovered the 44-year-old’s body on Friday.

His death has been described as a tragedy by Parish Priest Donagh O’Meara, who said the whole community was still in shock.

“Pat’s tragic death is an awful loss to his family and the local community. Pat was a great character, larger than life, and the community is still in shock at the news. It’s a terrible tragedy.”

Fr O’Meara was confident that the community would provide support to his widow Pauline and their three young children, Rachel, Laura and Leo.

“There is a fantastic community here in Ogonnelloe and people are great. I know they will all rally around Pauline and the children and Pat’s own family at this terrible time. Many from the community were down in Garrykennedy during the search to show their support for the family,” he said.

Mr Danaher was originally from Ballinacurra Gardens in Limerick, but the painting contractor had set- tled with his young family in Nancy’s Well, Ogonnelloe.

Gardaí and the Marine Casualty Investigation Board are continuing to conduct separate inquiries into his untimely death. Gardaí have confirmed that they are treating the death as a tragic accident.

Requiem Mass will take place this morning in St Mary’s Old Church, Ogonolloe at 11am followed by a private cremation.

Mr Danaher is survived by his wife Pauline and three children Rachel, Laura and Leo, his parents Bridie and Tony, and sisters Monique, Samantha, Sonia and Natasha.

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Two months for adventure park submissions

SHANNON Development has stated that plans to develop a major new visitor attraction in Bunratty are still in the pipeline, with the company’s annual report revealing that the campaign to secure expressions of interest for the multi-million euro project is ongoing.

“Shannon Development is seeking expressions of interest for a major new international visitor attraction on its 120-acre landbank next to the world famous Bunratty Castle and Folk Park,” the report reveals.

“Research carried out by Shannon Development identified a number of possible suitable projects for the site, among them a diaspora visitor centre and genealogy centre, and a themed family adventure park,” it adds.

The deadline for expressions of interest for the project was extended earlier this year as part of Shannon Development’s attempts to spark interest in a multi-national investor coming on board to develop the project.

It was originally intended that the closing date for submission to the regional development agency would be the end of March, but in extending this deadline chief executive Dr Vincent Cunnane said, “additional time is required” because of the sig- nificant “nature of the project” that would be one of the largest to be undertaken under Shannon Development’s watch in decades.

“While the money may not be in Ireland, there is money elsewhere and the best value can be had at this point in time,” Dr Cunnane said.

This project has its genesis in a 2009 Clare County Council decision through the South Clare Local Area Plan to pave the way for the development of visitor facilities on the Shannon Development-owned site.

Shannon Development subsequently revealed that “informal discussions with Clare County Council indicated that they would welcome a tourism related planning application for this strategic site”.

In tender documents for the development of the site adjacent to Bunratty Castle, Shannon Development have highlighted gaps in the market that can be filled Bunratty – 50 years on from the start of medieval banquets in Bunratty Castle.

One of the proposals is to develop an Ireland Through the Ages History and Cultural Centre incorporating a diaspora visitor centre and genealogy centre.

“It is estimated that the size of the available market for cultural tourism in Ireland from main source markets of Britain, United States, France and Germany to be of the order of € 65 million,” the tender documents stated.

“The preferred option for Shannon Development is to enter into a development and management agreement with a preferred party for the development and operation of the new attraction,” the documents added.

Earlier this year, Dr Cunnane stated that the project “represents a unique opportunity beside an existing tourism attraction visited by 400,000 people per annum, adjacent to Shannon Airport and two hours by motorway from Dublin.

“We are hopeful that something very significant will happen at Bunratty. I’m confident that we will receive several expressions of interest,” he added.