Regional

  ***The year in review*** IN February, Clare Fine Gael TD Pat Breen refuted claims that he didn’t spend sufficient time tending to issues in West Clare. At the official opening of the refurbished Kilkee library, a number of protestors greeted TDs, county and town councillors on their way into the building.Carrigaholt-based Pat Gavin was one of the protestors. He expressed anger at the fact that his autistic daughter has to travel a 130km daily round trip to Ennis to continue her education. His daughter received her primary school education at the autistic unit at St Senan’s National School in Kilrush.“I’d prefer to see these guys that are coming here to open the library, opening an autistic unit for my child, who’s travelling 130km a day to go to school. She’s doing that for the last three years. “This crowd that are in power now promised me when Fianna Fáil were in there that they’d open it when they got …

A young future rugby star from Ennis got to meet his heroes when he paid a visit to a Munster rugby training session recently.

COMMERCIAL rates and car-parking charges have been frozen in the local authority’s plans for next year, with town manager Ger Dollard describing the preparation of Budget 2013 as “particularly difficult”.

Ennis is set to host the second annual Irish Christmas Tree Throwing Championship on January 5, it has been announced.

GALWAY County Council has yet to submit an environmental impact statement (EIS) to An Bord Pleanála for a new flood-relief scheme for the Dunkellin River and the Aggard Stream.

LAURA Cullen, a member of the Quin Taekwon-Do Club has become the sixth woman in Ireland to be promoted to fourth-level dan black belt at the Irish Taekwon-Do Association’s (ITA) black belt testing held in Ennis recently.

A REDUCTION in the carparking charge in Ennis to €1 would result in a loss of income of more than quarter of a million euro to the local authority.At a recent meeting of Ennis Town Council, Councillor Johnny Flynn urged that the council reduce the standard parking charges of €1.30 to €1 and plan to bring it down further within the next three years.According to Councillor Flynn since the introduction of the €1.30 charge there has been an annual loss in revenue to the council of €100,000. “Residents and visitors to Ennis are looking for value, and where you add value you increase and maintain turnover,” he said.Councillor Flynn stated, “Every other business in the town has had to reduce its prices, if we continue in this way we will lose another €100,000 if we don’t and that’s irresponsible.”He was supported by Councillor Mary Howard who said that the parking charges are deterring shoppers from coming to Ennis. “There is …