Tag Archives: Ennis

A POPULAR Ennis pub has announced it will be calling time and closing its doors for the last time next month, writes Jessica Quinn. McHugh’s pub on Parnell Street, owned by Maeve Sheridan and her brother, Michael Eustace of Western Herd Brewing Company, have confirmed it will be closing on March 6. According to the owners it has been “an absolute pleasure” serving their customers, however the time is now right to close the bar and concentrate on the brewery. A statement on social media read, “After the last few weekends, it seems like we have weathered the worst of the pandemic. With things back to normal, now is the right time for us to step out from behind the bar. “It’s hard to believe that it has been over six years since we pulled our first pint but now we want to concentrate our efforts on the brewery. March 6 will be our final day in McHugh’s. For anyone …

THERE was a large attendance of Oireachtas members and councillors at the recent pyrite protest in Ennis when politicians were warned that their seats could hang in the balance if redress isn’t provided soon. They could also face a further challenge in the form of election candidates standing on the issue of pyrite redress. Deputy Cathal Crowe told The Champion the frustration of homeowners was “very understandable”. “We have to respect where they are coming from,” he said. “They’re slowly watching their homes fall around them and with each month, the structure of their home deteriorates further.” In relation to a meeting with Minister Darragh O’Brien which was cancelled, at short notice, last week, Deputy Crowe was confident it would be rescheduled. “I’m in constant contact with Minister Darragh O’Brien and also with the redress group here in Clare,” he said. “Minister O’Brien made a firm commitment in Mary Hanley’s front lawn in August last year and he stands over …

SHOCKING video footage of attacks on homes and cars in Ennis, understood to be linked to an ongoing feud, circulating on social media in recent days, have been condemned as an “absolute disgrace”. Calls are now being made for more resources to be made available to gardaí in Clare, as well as for the re-establishment of an Ennis specific Joint Policing Committee (JPC). Videos of car windows being smashed and a home being targeted in the county capital were shared across social media. Other footage shows a high-speed car chase with a vehicle on the wrong side of the road. Chair of the Clare Joint Policing Committee Councillor John Crowe commented, “It’s an absolute disgrace and as a community and as a county we can’t stand for the likes of this carry on.” He continued, “It’s getting out of control, not alone in Ennis but all over the county. I know the powers that be are doing the best they …

ENNIS students have raised more than €4,000 for charity, while also highlighting barriers to education which have left some youngsters ‘Locked Out of Education’. Gaelcholáiste an Chláir Transition Year students recently presented the St Vincent de Paul with a cheque for €4,259.45, the proceeds of a fundraising and awareness raising campaign last December. The campaign highlighted that many young people face being ‘Locked Out of Education’ because of rising rents and other costs while also raising funds for the St Vincent de Paul and was organised as part of their Young Social Innovators project. As part of their fundraising, the students camped out for a night at the school, and operated the St Vincent de Paul shop in Ennis for a day. Gaelcholáiste an Chláir Transition Year Co-ordinator Martina McNamara has expressed appreciation to all of those who supported the students in their fundraising efforts and awareness campaign. She explained that the students were moved to act when they discovered …

THE heat has been turned up considerably on Clare’s politicians over the level of support for homeowners affected by pyrite. As the Department of Housing continues to liaise with the Council over an application for access to a State grant scheme, emotions are running high for affected homeowners. More than 200 people marched through Ennis on Saturday afternoon in what was described as “the first of many” protests. The assembled politicians, including most of Clare’s Oireachtas members and several councillors, were warned that action is expected if they want to keep their seats. Dr Martina Cleary said Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG) is ready to field candidates in the local and general elections if they don’t secure access to an adequate grant scheme. “We didn’t create this, it’s their lack of legislation over decades that has created this,” Dr Cleary told the assembled media. “They better get their priorities right… Sure they’re only politicians, we can get rid of them …

THE Ennis St Patrick’s Day parade will be going ahead this year, the Ennis Municipal District have confirmed. The last time a St Patrick’s Day parade was held in the county capital was 2019, with the annual celebrations cancelled since then due to Covid-19. The theme for this year’s parade will be ‘Coming Together’ with full details of the event set to be released in the run up to the parade. According to the local authority the parade will be a celebration of Irish heritage and social networks, particularly communities. According to a spokesperson for the council, “Ennis Municipal District with the assistance of other agencies is organising the 2022 St Patrick’s Day parade in Ennis, in accordance with the public health guidelines at that time. “The Mayor of Ennis Municipal District, Councillor Ann Norton, is delighted to announce the theme of this year’s parade is ‘Coming Together’, a celebration of our Irish heritage and social networks, especially our communities. …

OVER 200 people marched through Ennis this afternoon (Saturday, January 29) in what was described as “the first of many” protests by homeowners with defective concrete blocks.  Members of Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG) were supported by campaigners from Donegal and Mayo – the only two counties currently covered by the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme; as well as homeowners from Limerick and Sligo. Speaking in the shadow of the O’Connell monument at The Height, campaigners from other counties pledged their support while homeowners here spoke of their frustration.  “The Minister for Housing visited my house on August 27 and he was such a lovely man,” Mary Hanley of CPAG told the crowd. “He was so pleasant, he was so nice and he was feeing so sorry for me. I said to him, ‘If this grant isn’t given soon, I’ll be six foot under’. His answer to me was, ‘Oh, not at all Mary no, a couple of weeks’. Now, …

AIR pollution levels in Ennis were higher than in Beijing at the weekend with the EPA’s air quality monitoring station showing a significant spike in pollutants, despite a smoky coal ban being in place in the county capital since 2011. Fears this “very harmful” pollution will result in “significant adverse health impacts” has sparked renewed calls from a former Mayor of Ennis for the establishment of an Ennis Clean Air Strategy. On Sunday evening at 7pm the EPA recorded a sharp rise in the levels of particulate matter associated with the burning of solid fuels, almost ten times higher than the EPA’s daily limit. Particulate matter (PM) are minute particles of dust, soot and smoke and the daily limit for PM10 is 50 ug/m3. PM10 of 485.38ug/m3 and PM2.5 of 467.58ug/m3 was recorded in Ennis on Sunday along with sulphar dioxide measuring 67.22ug/m3. On the same day, China’s capital city experienced moderate to good levels of air pollution. Councillor Johnny Flynn …