News

CLARE County Council has officially launched a new heritage plan and design guide for one of north Clare’s most important towns. The plan for Lisdoonvarna sets out proposals to inform and guide the town’s future development and ensure the conservation of its rich heritage. The Lisdoonvarna Heritage Plan and Design Guide proposes numerous upgrades, public realm improvements and developments. A Heritage Trail is proposed to connect the many heritage sites in the town, including the Spa Wells, bridges, significant buildings and views, which, alongside an audio guide, can highlight local stories, folklore and history along the trail. Other proposed upgrades include public realm improvements for the Main Square, Lower Main Street and Tivoli Terrace, along with conceptual drawings for the town’s arrival points, the Twin Wells, Rathlaun Wells, and the viewpoints at the Spectacle Bridge, Gowlaun Spa and Maryville House. The Heritage Plan and Design Guide also makes proposals for the Spa Wells complex. The Lisdoonvarna Spa Wells holds a …

THE development of Clare’s first MRI unit is being planned for Ennis by a leading provider of diagnostic imaging. At the moment patients in need of MRI scans have to travel outside Clare, with the nearest units in Limerick and Galway. Alliance Medical is seeking planning permission to allow for the development of an MRI diagnostic unit at the newly opened Primary Care Centre situated at the former Braid’s site on Station Road. The planning application seeks a change in use of an already permitted ground floor cafe/coffee shop unit, which is currently vacant, to medical use. The company has been given permission by the site’s owners Valley Healthcare to make the planning application to Clare County Council. A planning statement prepared by Coakley O’Neill on behalf of the applicant and lodged with the application outlines that Ennis, as the county’s key town “is ideally suited” to provide these facilities and “within Ennis, the newly opened primary care centre is …

EXTRA information is being sought by Council planners on an application for 16 new homes in the village of Quin. Abbey View Quin Property Development Ltd applied last November for the homes on a site of around one hectare which spans Maigh Dara and Ballyhannon North. The application also requests permission to amend an access road and ancillary services granted in 2017. It seeks permission too for a temporary access route from the public road at Ballyhannon North. This is for building purposes only, in order to avoid having machinery accessing the site through the existing Maigh Dara estate. In a letter sent to the developer on January 19, planners sought Further Information (FI) on nine aspects of the plans. Given the proximity of the site to the Poulnagordon Cave and Old Domestic Buildings Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), the developer has been instructed to carry out a screening assessment to determine the potential impact. The document must include a …

ERIN Hooban is the new chair of Shannon Chamber’s Human Resources Forum. Ms Hooban is Group HR manager with Enva, and has significant experience working within manufacturing environments and is vastly experienced in interacting with a diverse range of clientele from business leaders to operations including a global HR team. She has been a member of the Chamber’s HR Forum since its formation in 2017 and replaces Caroline O’Brien chief people officer with Shannon Engine Support (SES) Ltd., who held the chair in 2022. The purpose of the forum is to create the space, time, and an environment to support the thinking, reflection, sharing of ideas, best practices, and planning for the future of strategic HR. Shannon Chamber CEO Helen Downes said, “Ms Hooban has the ideal credentials to steer the HR Forum in 2023. She is conversant with strategic and operational HR activities and will use her unique leadership skills to take the forum on a new trajectory. “With …

FOLLOWING last Saturday’s meeting in the Town Park 22 people came forward for the formation of a committee to represent concerns in the community about the development of Unit 153 in the Shannon Busines Park as a centre for emergency accommodation. “We’re going to have a meeting, look at what people want. I think we’ll want to look at meeting with public representatives, look at getting answers with regard to the plans, what services and amenities will be put in place for the community with the backdrop of a proposal to use a significant sized building,” said Elaine Kingston Durbin, one of the organisers of Saturday’s meeting. She said there is a belief that several hundred refugees will be housed there, but it’s still unconfirmed. “This is a 137,000 square foot building, it’s not small. If they were going to bring in a smaller amount of people they would bring in a smaller building. “Based on other buildings around the …

THE establishment of the North Burren Community Group has been hailed as an example of what small rural communities can achieve when they unite under a new umbrella organisation. Niamh Wiley, Rural and Community Development Officer (RCDO) provided an example of a “partnering of parishes” approach operating in North Clare at a recent West Clare Municipal District (MD) meeting. The setup and growth of the group was aided through the work of the RCDOs. Following a series of local consultation and engagement, the North Burren Community Group was formed last year, consisting of active stakeholders from all the various parishes, selected with specific skill sets. The group represents the parishes of Carron and Noughaval, Belharbour, New Quay, Finavarra Peninsula and Aughinish Island, spanning a radius of 30km, to include approximately 1,000 residents. This partnership of parishes model was adapted by the group because of the need to address the lack of shared community and enterprise space in this area of …

AN extension of planning permission to allow for the completion of a new multi-storey block and a multi-deck car park at Westpark has been refused by Clare County Council. FGPO Ireland Limited Partnership had sought to extend the appropriate period of planning permission for the development of what would have been Block 6000, a mix-used multi-storey block. The plans were for a building with a gross internal area of 12,045 square metres, with offices on the three upper floors and data centre/light industrial/storage/Research & Development uses on the bottom two floors.  It also included plans for an ancillary, multi-deck car park, located to the south of Block 4000, within the campus. This was to have 580 spaces and was intended to replace two existing car parks. A document submitted as part of the application said that much work has already been completed within the Westpark campus. “Extensive and substantial works have been completed in respect of the wider campus with …

ANGELA Coll attended last Saturday afternoon’s meeting in Shannon Town Park and has subsequently become involved in running a Facebook page entitled Shannon Fáilte, which favours using the Shannon Free Zone property as emergency accommodation. While favouring more refugees being housed in Shannon, she said the approach being taken by the State is flawed. “I’m a member of Fianna Fáil and I’m not happy with the Government, they are not communicating with the people of Shannon, Cathal Crowe knows nothing, the councillors know nothing. And that’s very bad form. “But at the same time these are people who desperately require some form of accommodation. They’re kitting out a factory for them, it’s less than ideal, but it’s better than having people sleeping on the streets. That’s how we would be looking at it. “We should be working with the Council to try and get as much facilities in place and as much support as possible for both the community and …