Regional

GORT Cancer Support has announced the return of its Christmas Pop Up Shop which opens today, Thursday December 1, at 6pm, at their premises in Hollyblue House, Garrabeg, Gort (H91 WFP8). The event promises visitors a fabulous array of Christmas decorations, candles, gifts, jewellery, games and much more. It is shaping up to be a great night with the Tierneevin Choir attending to get everybody in the Christmas spirit. Donations of unused, unwanted gifts always gratefully accepted at any time.

KINVARA’S Courthouse is the venue for KAVA’s postcard show, an eagerly-anticipated exhibition.  The show will run for the first two weekends in December and will be open from the Friday to Sunday on both weekends. The artwork is anonymously displayed and all works are for sale for €30. When the artwork is collected by the purchaser, only then will the artist be revealed. Having proven to be great fun and an ideal way to shop local, and find a unique Christmas present for someone special, KAVA is delighted to be able to put on the show again this year. Later opening times are in place to facilitate those who would like to come along after work: Friday, December 2, 3pm – 8pm Saturday, December 3, 3pm – 8pm Sunday, December 4, 12pm – 6pm Friday, December 9, 3pm – 8pm Saturday, December 10, 3pm – 8pm Sunday, December 11, 12pm – 6pm

UNRESOLVED concerns over jet-ski activity on East Clare waterways have been raised at the November meeting of Killaloe district councillors.  Councillor Pat Hayes asked that Director of Services Anne Haugh would take up the matter.  “There are issues around Lough Derg in particular,” he said. “These were not resolved over summer. This time of the year is the time to try to get them sorted out. What has resulted so far is not to the satisfaction of councillors. I don’t know how we deal with it, but I would like to see back on agenda.” Ms Haugh suggested that a meeting be arranged with Cyril Feeney, Senior Engineer at the Environment and Water Department. “That would be welcome,” said Councillor Hayes. “There is a petition in circulation and it is something we can’t ignore.” The petition was launched in August, calling for restrictions to protect swimmers at Knockaphort, a popular bathing spot and launch point for vessels sailing to Inis …

A CELEBRATION of the men and women of Clare who contributed to Ireland’s independence will take place next month in Ennis. ‘Breith (Birth): A Clare Celebration of Irish Independence’ is a production to mark the centenary of the War of Independence in County Clare. The work is the vision of Dr Tim Collins, composer, musician and member of the world-renowned Kilfenora Céilí Band. The event will take place in glór Theatre, Ennis, on Saturday, December 10, at 8pm. This is a fully booked event but will be live-streamed on the night – details will be available on www.clarearts.ie “It is indeed a great privilege to bring together such diverse and illustrious artistic talent to commemorate what is one of the most important events in modern Irish history,” says Tim Collins. “My vision for Breith is to create an artistic space to remember and celebrate Clare men and women who lived through, and participated in, the Irish War of Independence. It weaves their local stories …

REOPENING the rail stop at Crusheen is something that the Green minister for transport cannot refuse, in the view of Councillor Pat Hayes. The Fianna Fáil member is calling for a business case to be made for the reopening of the stop on what he described as “the very successful Limerick-Galway line”. “This is a critical thing that can make a difference in climate mitigation,” he said.  Councillor Hayes highlighted the amount of new housing in Crusheen, Tulla and Quin and said reopening the rail stop offered huge opportunities to give people access to public transport. “We had the transport minister in the county recently for a lovely day of sod turning,” Councillor Hayes said. “There is a lot of debate about transport and this is an issue on doorstep that we need to address ourselves. There was an application to change zoning in this area in Crusheen and we resisted, because we have a real opportunity to improve public …

THE transformation of the site of the former Ennis Boys National School on the Kilrush Road into a new temporary car park has been given the green light by Clare County Council. City Cinemas Ltd have been granted planning permission to provide 156 parking spaces in the town. The car park will include 12 accessible bays and four electric vehicle parking bays. The development will also include minor alterations to the entrances, signage, pedestrian access and internal footpaths and perimeter fencing. Under a condition of planning permission, all vehicular movements leaving the car park are to be monitored in the first six months of its operation. This comes after concerns were raised by the Roads Office of the local authority that increasing numbers of exiting vehicles turning right onto the R475 may cause a safety hazard. After the six months a report is to be submitted to the planning authority and “thereafter, if deemed necessary, the applicant shall signalise the …

MORE than €30,000 has been raised for Bushypark as a result of a fundraising campaign organised by Ennis Lions. When Ennis Lions Club committed to fundraise for the development project at Bushypark a full year ago they sought a project that provided a win for all stakeholders. Led by the success of their colleagues in Galway Lions they chose to undertake the mammoth task of a charity auction to be carried out online and on radio. The principle reason for this choice was that it provided an avenue that gave back to donors as well as providing great value on a broad range of desirable goods to local people. Little did they know their choice would end up being the talk of October 2022 across the county! Project team leader David Goodstein credited this WIN/WIN formula to the huge success of their recent Charity Auction during October which saw them raise a magnificent €30,343 for Bushypark. Back in March the …

FURTHER public submissions are to be accepted on a major private housing estate proposed for Tulla, now that the developers have provided the Council with extra information.  In response to planners concerns, Wiskin Property Developments submitted Further Information (FI) earlier this month. Planners have decided that the the nine points of information provided, as well as updated drawing and reports, constitute “Significant Further Information”. That means that more public submissions will be accepted for a five-week period. The Council has given January 14 as the updated decision date on the estate plans.  Plans for 60 homes on a site at Loughaun South were submitted in August of this year. After an initial assessment, and four submissions from nearby residents, planners questioned several aspects of the proposals. Residents highlighted the rapid increase in housing development in Tulla, and raised concerns over an increase in traffic, parking and road safety.  Planners’ questions, in an FI request, centred on the impact on a …