News

WITH remote working having changed the property market, the coastal area around Lahinch is seeing a property boom despite the pandemic, with a huge increase in the number of people looking to move to the North Clare area. While it is very good news for those trying to sell property in the area, the strength of the market is seeing landlords sell up, and with a deficit in the stock of property for long-term rental, some people are being forced to leave the area entirely. One local property went on sale for €295,000 recently, but ended up selling for €420,000, illustrating how strong the local market is right now. Ennistymon auctioneer Peri Griffin said that the current market is reminiscent of the Celtic Tiger years. “At the moment supply is low and demand is high. We don’t have a house for everyone, we could have 20 or 30 people after one house and that’s driving prices through the roof.” She …

ANYONE who makes contact unexpectedly and requests personal information such as bank details are not to be trusted, gardaí in Clare have warned in the wake of further reports of people becoming victims of scams. Clare Victim Liaison Officer Garda Siobhán Madden has revealed details of two frauds reported to gardaí recently, while offering advice to the public to be vigilant. The first incident saw a man receive a phone call for a person pretending to be ringing from his bank. “The caller alleged that he was an employee of the bank and stated that he had observed suspicious activity on the injured party’s account. The injured party confirmed that he did not carry out any transactions on this date and whilst on the phone a text message came through to the his phone, he believed it to be from bank, the message was an authentication code, which the injured party called out to the caller, the injured party then …

THE Clare County Board will closely monitor its senior hurlers over the coming week after two members of the Wexford hurling panel tested positive for Covid-19 this week, writes Dan Danaher. Wexford GAA chairman, Micheál Martin has confirmed that two players within the panel have tested positive for the virus. A spokesman for the Clare County Board confirmed that Croke Park had not directed the board to test its senior hurlers following Wexford’s confirmed cases. However, the board will closely monitor Clare hurlers and will request a Covid-19 test without delay, if this is deemed necessary at a later stage. It is understood the fact the match was played outdoors is regarded as low risk in terms of transmission. At the time of writing, there seems to be no doubt hanging over Clare’s vital clash with Laois in Portlaoise next Sunday. Clare hurlers complete a Covid-19 questionnaire and follow all the relevant protocols to limit the spread of the virus …

THE government has been urged to prove its commitment to rural Ireland by moving the department responsible for it out of Dublin. At the May meeting of Clare County Council, there was widespread and cross-party support for a motion tabled by Councillor Gabriel Keating calling on the authority to ask the Department of Rural Affairs and Community Development to decentralise “as an indication of their commitment to Our Rural Future policy document”. The Fine Gael member referred to the publication last month of the new strategy document, which runs to 122 pages. “Clare is a mostly rural county and we lead the way in terms of rural development,” he asserted. “We were the first authority to have its own rural development strategy. Now that 80% of public servants are working remotely, this may be our best chance to get a government department and it would mean a huge amount to this county.” The Fine Gael member urged Clare’s seven Oireachtas …

CLARE’S first citizen has spoken of how moved she and her family were by the gestures of sympathy extended by her Council colleagues on the untimely passing of her sister, Bríd. Cathaoirleach Mary Howard said it had been “a very strange time to lose someone and a very difficult time,” as she thanked members for a vote of sympathy to herself and to Councillor Gerry Flynn on the recent passing of his brother, Michael. Proposing the motion, Councillor Pat Hayes extended sympathy to Councillor Howard on “the sad loss of Bríd at such a young age” and the difficult time her family are going through. On behalf of the Fianna Fáil members of the authority, Councillor Hayes also extended sympathy to Councillor Flynn and proposed a 15-minute adjournment of the monthly local authority meeting. Seconding the motion, Councillor Ann Norton sympathised on behalf of the Independent members. “It must be an extremely difficult time to lose someone so young, and …

THE estimated 1,800 people living with heart failure in Clare are being urged to embrace a wide range of supports to help them manage the chronic condition. The Irish Heart Foundation is at the centre of a national drive to provide vital back-up to patients who need help coping with the illness. “People often feel shock, trauma and isolation after a diagnosis of heart failure, but with the right supports, it is manageable,” said Lucinda McNerney, the Irish Heart Foundation’s Heart Failure Programme Manager. “We want to let these patients in Clare know that we are with them on that journey, in terms of counselling, online meetings, a Nurse Support Line, exercise classes, newsletters, a podcast series and peer-to-peer support to help them to keep well, both physically and mentally. “We have patients in our network aged 30 and above, whose daily lives have changed – their work status, having to take medication, dealing with lower energy. All this can …

THE Mayor of Ennis reflected on “an extremely strange year” in his last meeting in the chair of the Ennis Municipal District. Councillor Paul Murphy described the past year as sometimes being “frustrating” adding, “I think we’ve all found that, but that’s what happens when you have a pandemic around us. It’s been a learning curve for everybody.” The Clarecastle native praised the executive and staff of the municipal district for their support during the year, and made a special mention of appreciation for the outdoor staff who have “been front and centre of the temporary mobility plan” and “taken a bit of abuse on the streets for that matter”. Councillor Murphy said that, in terms of Covid while, “we are not out of the woods yet, hopefully we are getting there.” He thanked his Council colleagues, particularly Deputy Mayor, Councillor Mark Nestor. “I thought I would get an opportunity at some stage in the year to give you the …

DEVELOPERS of a proposed housing estate for Tulla have offered a number of reassurances to the Council following concerns about site drainage, boundaries and the proximity of monuments of archaeological significance. DRM Construction was asked to provide further information (FI) to Clare County Council after submissions, including one from a government department, which flagged concerns about the presence of monuments in the area, including an ancient cooking pit, or fulacht fiadh, dating back to the Bronze Age. The company applied, at the end of last year, to build eight detached two-storey homes on a site opening onto the R462. The lands is zoned for low-density residential housing under the current county development plan. Among the submissions on the project was one from The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. Concerns were expressed by the Development Applications Unit (DAU) about the proximity of archaeological monuments. The DAU urged planners to seek FI, including a professional archaeological assessment. A …