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LOCAL county councillors around Ennis this week had numerous calls from business owners upset at the new rateable valuations they had received. “It’s causing an awful lot of stress on businesses and employees in businesses,” said Fine Gael’s Johnny Flynn. “You may recall at the budget meeting last year I voted against the 3.8% increase in the rates for a number of reasons. “One was I believed it was premature until the revaluation was carried out, it was kind of taking advantage before ratepayers were informed how that would impact on them. “Between that increase and the revaluation a lot of ratepayers have contacted me. Also, since this Council was elected I’ve seen the budget to run the Council go from €117 million in 2019, to €128 million in 2020 to €131.5 in 2021 and for this year it was €138.6 million.  It’s a very significant increase and the ratepayers are carrying about a third of that.” He said that …

A DECISION to rename an Ennis laneway ‘Shepherd’s Lane’ following a ballot of local residents has been described as “positive news” by the Mayor of Ennis Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy, as well as being welcomed by other members of the Ennis Municipal District. As previously reported in The Clare Champion the residents of St Flannan’s Terrace had called for a proper name to be given to a back lane which had been known locally as ‘The Laneway’ and ‘The Car Road’. A residents’ association was formed earlier this year and a ballot of all 46 houses in the area was undertaken to determine a suitable name for the site. The results of the ballot saw Shepherd’s Lane come out as the favourite by the majority of the people who responded to the survey. Prior to 1912 the site on which the houses were built was known as the Shepherd’s Field. This month’s meeting of the Ennis Municipal District was told …

THERE are 17 times the number of properties in Ennistymon on Airbnb than are available for long term lets. This huge disparity of 627 Airbnb properties compared to 36 long term lets was highlighted by Clare senator Roisin Garvey. Addressing Minister of State at the Department of Housing Peter Burke, Ms Garvey asked for action to limit AirBnB’s impact in Clare, while she said the means of calculating what areas are Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) is flawed. Regarding AirBnB, Ms Garvey said, “I draw the Minister of State’s attention to figures I gleaned from Airbnb and Daft.ie. I put in 16 October and looked up Ennistymon, one of the closest towns to where I live. There were 627 places for Airbnb but in all of County Clare, there were only 36 places to rent. “To be clear, Airbnb has a very important part to play in the tourism sector but at the same time, we need to find a balance …

RETAIL businesses in Ennis will close if new rateable valuations on businesses are implemented, a number of traders in the town have claimed. Last week saw a number of businesses receive letters about future rates bills, which left some of the traders shocked. Barry O’Driscoll of Precious Pets said the bill he is facing is set to increase from €8,000 per annum to €14,500. “When I found out what the formula was I realised, ‘Oh my God, my rates have gone up by 82%. Then I started phoning other retailers and I found they were in the same position, or even worse. We got together then, because quite frankly it is very serious and there will be no shops left if this stands.” He said that if there is no change he will go out of business. “This kicks in on January 1, 2024 and I cannot trade with these catastrophically high rates unless something radical is done.” John O’Connor …

A LETTER from a major international company supporting an application for a communications tower in north Clare has warned service will suffer if planning is not granted. Vodafone has supported the planning application by Vantage Towers Ltd for a 30-metre mast at Gortaclob, Doolin. The telecommunications giant said it plans to use the structure if it is granted planning permission and in its supporting letter stated that failure to progress it “could have a negative future impact on network subscribers enjoying future technologies”. Vantage has sought permission for a 30-metre lattice telecommunications support structure, with antennae, dishes and associated equipment at Gortaclob, Doolin.  In the application Vantage Towers said the proposal would improve the service in the area. “There is a clear deficiency in basic 4G coverage especially towards Doolin to the southwest of the proposed site, and the surrounding regional road network, with substantial areas of fair and fringe.” The company claimed current customer demand is not being met …

ENNIS is in the running to be named Ireland’s Friendliest Place for 2022. The people of Clare, and further afield, are being urged to show some love for Ennis by voting for the town to take the coveted overall title at this year’s Retail Excellence Awards. The county capital has made it to the top five, with Ennis now vying against Ashbourne, Carrick-on-Shannon, Monaghan and Moynalty to be named Ireland’s Friendliest Place. Voting for the awards will be accepted between now and October 17 at https://strawpoll.com/polls/YVyP2px1kgN. The winners of the awards will be named at a gala event in the Galmont, Dublin on November 12. A spokesperson for Retail Excellence has urged the public to have their say on which place should take the title. “Five of Ireland’s best and brightest towns have been nominated for our prestigious Friendliest Place award, but who deserves it most? We want to hear from residents and tourists alike all across the country. “Get …

RESEARCH shows connecting is one of the simple things you can do as part of your daily life to protect your mental health the Ennis Mental Health Association have highlighted ahead of Mental Health Week. With this in mind the local association are hosting a Connect Café in Ennis this Monday at 10.30am in glór, as well as encouraging people to host their own cafe, among many other free events organised to mark Mental Health Week running from October 10 to 15. “The goal of Mental Health Ireland’s ‘Connect Café’ concept is to open conversations, strengthening the connection with ourselves, with others and with our communities. We encourage you to organise a Connect Café event in your own workplace, home, or community,” said a spokesperson for the local organisation. “To help you to do this, you will find a free downloadable toolkit & additional resources at www.worldmentalhealthmonth-mhi.ie. Alternatively, we invite you to join Ennis Mental Health Association for conversation and …

A MEMORIAL site dedicated to Clare’s war dead has been damaged and littered in recent days with one “disgusted” local councillor describing those behind it as “cowards”. One of four stone benches which have been installed at Clare’s World War 1 memorial in the Clare Peace Park near glór has had a piece broken off in recent days. Rubbish left in the area has also become “an ongoing issue” according to Dr Keir McNamara of the Clare Peace Park Committee. Efforts are now being made to repair the damage to the stone bench ahead of the annual remembrance service for those who lost their lives in World War 1 this November. Fortunately the glass memorial itself was not harmed. Councillor Mary Howard, a member of the Clare Peace Park committee, hit out at those behind the damage at a meeting of the Ennis Municipal District this week saying she felt “disgusted when this happened”. She continued by describing the culprit …