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HOUSE prices in Clare fell by 1.6% in the last three months of the year, according to Daft.ie. It found that while Clare house prices were still 5.7% higher at the end of 2022 compared to a year earlier, they had dropped by 1.6% in the final quarter of the year. The average house price sought in Clare on Daft.ie in the final quarter of last year was just over €234,000, almost twice the amount sought at the low point of the crash. In Clare the average price sought for a one bedroom apartment now stands at €99,000, 14% greater than at the end of 2021. At the other end of the spectrum the average price sought for a five bedroom detached house is €299,000, down 1% on the end of 2021. Writing in the Daft.ie report, economist Ronan Lyons said that supply and demand may be beginning to align. “During the 2010s a pattern emerged of what the academic …

A SENIOR medical consultant has broken ranks by describing the removal of 24-hour casualty cover from Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals in April 2009 as a “very significant mistake”. His comment comes as University Hospital Limerick (UHL) struggles to cope with surging Emergency Department admissions after its declaration of a major internal hospital incident. The controversial removal of round the clock casualty cover from Ennis and Nenagh, which has been consistently criticised by the Mid-West Hospital Campaign has been thrust back into the political agenda following the intervention of a senior medic. Professor Declan Lyons told RTÉ Radio One on Monday morning that some problems affecting healthcare in Limerick are separate to winter surges. “Unfortunately, we’re in the unenviable position where we’re almost characterised as a national basket case at this stage,” he said. He outlined that overcrowding issues date back to 2009 when the medical reconfiguration of hospitals saw a “very significant mistake made at that time when direct access …

AFTER five years in operation, local designer Laura Vaughan has announced the closure of her design studio and gift store in Ennis. The independent business is to close the doors on its store on O’Connell Street, however the business will continue to trade online, Laura has confirmed. Taking to social media this week where she revealed the impending closure, Laura expressed her gratitude for the support she and her business has received over the years. “A big heartfelt thank you to all the lovely people, friends and family who have supported the shop over the last five years. “I have enjoyed every minute of it and loved all the sincere chats and connections made along the way. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to have my own shop, but it’s time for a change of direction. “The bricks and mortar shop will close, but I will continue to design and develop my own range and continue making …

AHEAD of a major public meeting  to discuss the granting of permission for a biogas plant in Gort, campaigners described the news as an “absolute disaster” for South Galway.  At the end of last month, An Bord Pleanála granted permission for the facility which will be less than one kilometre from the town centre, covering a ten hectare site. While Galway County Council turned down proposals from Sustainable Bio Energy Ltd, the appeals board overturned that decision and has given the green light, subject to 22 conditions.  Gort Biogas Concern Group organised a public meeting on Wednesday (January 4) to examine options, including a judicial review. “In terms of health issues, traffic issues, environmental issues, we have grave concerns,” group member Ciarán O’Donnell said ahead of the gathering. “The main thing is that this is a 25 acres massive industrial plant, 900 metres away from Gort town centre, ten metres from Gort river. It’s 100 metres from the nearest resident …

Non-critical patients can now be transferred directly by ambulance to the Medical Assessment Unit in Ennis Hospital as part of a new pilot project to ease chronic overcrowding at University Hospital Limerick. Paramedics were left with no option but to transport all Clare patients directly to UHL via ambulance following the controversial removal of 24-hour casualty cover from Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals in April 2009. The Mid-West Hospital Campaign has been informed this new emergency pathway will be accessible from Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays. The patient must meet agreed clinical criteria and has to be accepted by the MAU physician in Ennis Hospital. The Mid-West Hospital Campaign has welcomed this announcement as a “stepping stone in the right direction” towards its desired objective concerning the return of around the clock emergency cover at Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals. A spokesperson thanked all the people involved in the Friends of Ennis Hospital, “Nenagh …

AN APPEAL has been lodged against the Council’s refusal of a small-scale social housing development, proposed for a site on the Limerick Road in Ennis.  The plans for five additional homes at Hogan’s Place, which would be operated by the Cluid Housing Association, were lodged in October by Kilshane Investments Limited.  Local authority planners turned down the plans in November, stating that the homes would encroach into existing public open space and would contravene conditions set out when permission was granted for the existing homes at the site. They said the additional housing would “seriously injure the amenities of the dwellings” there. Planners also found that the site is located in an area of high flooding risk, where homes are classed as “high vulnerable developments”. They said that notwithstanding a Flood Risk Assessment submitted with the planning application, the proposed development would be contrary to government guidelines on flood management.  An appeal to An Bord Pleanála has just been lodged …

ENNIS remains among the cleanest towns in Ireland with the county town claiming a top five spot in the national IBAL litter league. The final litter survey of 2022 by business group Irish Business Against Litter shows Ennis in fifth place in the ranking of 40 towns and cities nationwide. Three quarters of Ireland’s cities and towns were deemed ‘clean’ in 2022, compared to just over half in the previous year. Naas was again top of the rankings. An Taisce conducts the surveys on behalf of IBAL. Its report for Ennis stated, “A very strong performance by a former IBAL Winner – the location of the IBAL sculpture is the impeccably presented and maintained at Abbey Street Car Park. “Other top-ranking sites included the three approach roads and O’Connell Street, Market Place / Market Street Lower and Monastery Park.  Gort Road Business Park and Ennis Bus / Train Station were very much deserving of the top litter grade this time …

A NEW centre for housing refugees is to be opened in Shannon, despite local elected representatives and residents having been left uninformed about the matter. The OPW confirmed to the Clare Champion that it had made Unit 153 in Shannon Business Park available to the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, and that it is currently being adapted for emergency accommodation. Prior to Christmas, in a briefing document, Maurice Buckley, chairman of the Office of Public Works said that the OPW “has made a large property in Shannon available to the DCEDIY (Department of Children, Equality, Disability Integration and Youth) which is currently being adapted for emergency accommodation.” After coming upon this the Clare Champion contacted the DCEDIY, but it made no comment. The OPW was also contacted and confirmed that Unit 153 had been handed over. The Clare Champion spoke to Deputy Cathal Crowe on Wednesday afternoon and at that stage he was unaware that a building …