A radical new design concept has been put forward for the first phase of a planned re-vamp of Ennis’ market. Phase one of the redevelopment of the market will begin at Garraunakilla, the site of the current Farmer’s Market. The plans involve creating a ‘covered’ market, with the first phase part of a wider scheme of improvements to the entire market area. Consideration had been given to having ‘umbrella’ style covers of the market. However, the new design unveiled this week involves the creation of a permanent roof for market goers made of patent glazing or plexi-glass. The concept includes the creation of a landmark entrance from a new pedestrian forecourt in a highly visible location on the boundary between Market Place and Garraunakilla. The new enclosure design features a covering of the entire public circulation areas of the market with the permanent roof with retractable awnings giving cover to stalls on market days. It is proposed that the space …

Just two weeks after his gentle voice hushed an audience in Glór, County Clare has been paying tributes to literary giant Seamus Heaney. The 74-year-old Nobel Laureate died in hospital in Dublin on Friday after a short illness. He was in Clare with friend and fellow poet Michael Longley as part of the Merriman Summer School last month. Clare Labour TD Michael McNamara paid tribute to the late poet, saying his death is a loss for Ireland. “However, he will always live through his poetry and his ability to speak to the heart with compassion and the understanding of a seer,” he said. Deputy McNamara also spoke about the impact of the poet and his work on him personally. “Seamus Heaney influenced generations of young people who studied him at school or who read his poetry for other reasons. When I once had occasion to meet him as a student, I found him kind, warm and considerate with none of …

KILRUSH Community School principal Rock Kirwan has expressed his frustration at Education Minister Ruairí Quinn’s education cutbacks, which he feels will have serious, long-term implications. “I have met Ruairí Quinn and I found myself unable to speak to the man. If I did, I wouldn’t stop. I’m absolutely appalled that a Minister for Education in this country would feel that something as fundamentally important as history or indeed geography, would be almost a superfluous option for students under the age of 15,” the principal of the 38-teacher West Clare school told The Clare Champion. Mr Kirwan said he has particular concerns over paring back the teaching of history and geography. “I didn’t think I’d live to see the day. I think it’s quite incredible that he would ask people to justify why history should be taught. The modular approach he’s talking about is not, in my view, sufficient. This was tried in England and they are now waking up to …

WHEN John and Mary Kelly married, it was a few months before the assassination of JFK and around the time of Beatlemania. They tied the knot in Luton on September 7, 1963 and their golden anniversary was celebrated in August, a little bit ahead of the exact date. The couple have seven children and Mary says the celebrations were moved ahead to make sure all the family were in Shannon for it. “The reason we had the anniversary then was that we have a son, Michael, who is working in Africa. He happened to be at home so we had it then. We wanted us all to be together.” Michael is actually based in the north but is in Africa as part of his job. However, the rest of their children are all relatively nearby. As well as their seven children, they have 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild, who is a daily visitor, according to Mary. “The great grandchild would …

THE number of YouTube hits for a song written by a young Killaloe man jumped from 300 to 33,000 in just 24-hours. Eighteen-year-old Noel McInerney, who lives in the Millstream Housing Estate in Killaloe, did not envisage his tribute song to the Clare team’s hurling efforts The Banner’s Road To Croker would prove to be an internet hit. At the time of writing, the number of hits was at an impressive 59,728. The song is set to feature on the RTÉ News this Thursday evening, while it is expected a clip will also be played on Up for the Match on Saturday night. A casual conversation with his father Willie, who is a caretaker at the local Waterman’s Alzheimer Respite and Day Care Centre, about the All-Ireland semi-final between Clare and Limerick got Noel thinking about a song for the final. Within minutes, he had the chorus written down on his phone and composed the entire song within two hours. …

The first ever celebration of Polish heritage, history and culture in County Clare will be held later this month. The three-week long Polish Festival will take place at Clare Museum in Ennis from September 20 to October 12 and is being targeted at the region’s significant Polish population. There are more than 2500 Polish people living in County Clare with an estimated 19,000 other Poles living in the surrounding counties of Galway, Limerick and Tipperary. Amongst the free public events being hosted at Clare Museum will be lectures on Poland’s World War Two experience, Polish film screenings, an exhibition of Polish modern art, and a lecture by a Polish descendant of two Clare men who were shipwrecked in the Baltic Sea coast during the 17th century. The Festival is being supported by Clare Local Authorities and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. Jakub Kacprzak, organiser of the Polish Festival, said, “We are very excited about hosting the upcoming …

PEOPLE in Ennis are being urged to get active as a new brand for the promotion of sports, leisure and recreation facilities in the town was launched this week. The new Active Ennis brand and website was officially launched on Monday and according to Michael Byrne of Acton BV website developers, the www.activeennis.ie site is already proving to be a success with more than 1690 visitors to the site in the past month. He explained that the website, with details of six facilities under the Active Ennis brand, not only provides information but also acts as a promotional tool. Speaking at the launch he said, “It’s a real thrill to be a part of trying to tell people what’s out there, here in Ennis.” Mayor of Ennis Mary Coote-Ryan joined community representatives and members and officials of Clare Local ­Authorities at the launch of the Active Ennis brand and website. All facilities managed by Active Ennis are owned and developed …

ALMOST 3,600 Clare national school pupils are in classes of more than 30, according to official figures. Latest statistics from the Department of Education show 27% of national school pupils in the county are in classes of 30 or more. More than 90% of Clare pupils are in classes of 20 or more and 14% are in classes of under 20. The increase in overcrowded classrooms has been described as a “wake-up call” by INTO vice president Seán McMahon, who urged Education Minister Ruairí Quinn not to increase class sizes in the forthcoming Budget. His call coincides with a pre-emptive strike by the INTO  against proposed cutbacks of up to €100 million by. A public meeting has been organised for all interested stakeholders, teachers, parents, Oireachtas members and public representatives at a venue to be decided on September 19. This is being supported by the establishment of a new National Alliance for Primary Education, comprising representatives from management, parents, teachers …