Call for work to be carried out on Avoca ‘eye sore’

WORK needs to be done at the former Avoca store in Bunratty to make it more presentable, Shannon area councillors claimed at their November monthly meeting.
The store, which had employed 35 people, was destroyed by fire in 2007.
In a motion to the meeting, Councillor John Crowe stated, “The Avoca Store adjacent to Bunratty Castle and Durty Nellies, which was destroyed by fire is an eye sore in such a prominent tourist attraction and to have a site left like this is an absolute disgrace and I am requesting that the enforcement section of Clare County Council come after the owners to make it into a temporary car park.”
Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Crowe said the site was “in an awful state”.
“It looks absolutely disastrous and pending a future sale, it’s going to be a while before any real money is put into it,” the Sixmilebridge man added.
He also said the site in question is right next to a hugely popular tourist site.
Independent PJ Ryan said the site was “an absolute disgrace”. He said while hoarding had been put up, most tourists arrive in buses and can see over it. “It’s like something in Beirut,” he commented.
He said there had been some ongoing work to sell the site to a catering business but Clare County Council’s enforcement section should be able to take it over in the interim.
Councillor Patricia McCarthy said the site should be cleaned up and made more attractive. She said the minimum had been done to secure the site and more is needed.
In a written report to the members, engineer Eugene O’Shea stated, “In the course of the year, with representatives of Bunratty Business Association, I met on site with a representative of the Avoca shop, who subsequently arranged to carry out works to render the site more attractive in appearance, pending any future sale.”
While Councillor McCarthy said it may be a matter for the legal department of the county council, director of services Bernadette Kinsella said it would be quicker if an agreement were reached voluntarily.