West Clare

A SCATHING attack on the slow pace of repair works on local roads has been launched by an Ennistymon-based councillor. At the January meeting of the West Clare Municipal District, Councillor Shane Talty described the Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) as “unfit for purpose”. The scheme involves the council drawing down national funds to repair privately-owned roads, and levying a contribution on those using the routes. According to figures given to Councillor Talty, the scheme has only addressed a fraction of the demand for works over the last three years. “I’m sure that like myself, other members are inundated with queries and requests from people who have applications in under the LIS,” the Fianna Fáil member said. “These are applications that – as far as they’re concerned – are in there for years and they’re expecting that a response or a solution is only around the corner. At the current rate of progress, over the last three years, from the figures …

CONSULTATION with landowners will be central in the development of the West Clare Greenway, a senior council official had pledged. Leonard Cleary made his remarks in response to a request from Councillor Susan Crawford for an update on the long-awaited trail which will run through Ennis, Corofin, Ennistymon, Lahinch, Miltown Malbay, Quilty, Doonbeg, Moyasta, Kilrush and Kilkee. At the January meeting of the municipal district, Mr Cleary said that landowners and the farming community would be consulted at every stage. In response to the motion from Councillor Crawford, Seán Lenihan, Senior Engineer with the council’s Project Management Office (PMO) said that technical advisors for the Planning and Consent Phase and Detailed Design Phase for a 20km section between Kilrush and Kilkee will be appointed by March. “Following the council’s commissioning of a positive Feasibility Study, we were fortunate to secure €255,000 from the Department of Transport’s Carbon Tax Fund to progress the proposal through the various stages required,” Mr Lenihan’s …

THE plight of a family of seven, living in a two-bedroom apartment has been highlighted by a West Clare councillor. Councillor Ian Lynch told the January Municipal District Meeting he knew of a number of families whose children had been hoping Santa would give them a new home for Christmas. The Independent councillor secured figures showing a total of 704 people in the area on the housing list, with the greatest level of demand in Kilrush (135), Ennistymon (105), Kilkee (68), Corofin (61) and Miltown (53). “In response, the only housing that we’ve come up with is 57 new houses and 33 vacant units,” he said. “Matching that reality with peoples’ expectations is a huge problem. I have a number of families that are in desperate, desperate need of a large house. I have a five-child family in a two-bedroom apartment who are crying out for assistance. They recently applied for a three-bedroom house, but were told it wouldn’t suit …

INSURANCE hurdles stand in the way of the development of another “Grade A” tourism product for the Loop Head Peninsula, members of the West Clare Municipal District have heard. Addressing the January meeting of the committee, which took place online, Councillor Cillian Murphy appealed to the authority to consider taking a newly-created access path into Carrigaholt Castle under its public insurance policy, issued by Irish Public Bodies Mutual Insurances (IPB). The Fianna Fáil members commended the work of the local heritage group who had secured funding for the access route and noted that the insurance for public amenities is a recurring issue of concern. “The community group there have done some Trojan work,” he noted. “It’s taken them a long, long time to get to the bottom of ownership and to get permission from the owners to allow work. They’ve got significant funding from The Heritage Council and it’s the end of a long road, if you’ll pardon the pun, …

A WEST Clare councillor has called for equality for his area, saying that many people have the impression that the local authority’s unofficial title is ‘Ennis County Council’. Councillor Ian Lynch made his remarks at the January meeting of the West Clare Municipal District when he called for the area to have its own plan to rival the recently unveiled Ennis 2040 blueprint. “What I’m looking for is equality among the municipal districts,” he said. “This came up at the county council meeting when we were told that Ennis 2040 is not just a municipal district plan, it’s a county-wide plan. Well, I take a bit of offence to that. That plan was put together by the hard work of the municipal district in Ennis. We are a municipal district with the same size and the same clout as Ennis, and in this motion, I’m requesting that we have a strategic plan, broken into two distinct areas. There’s very strategic …

MOVES to build a centre in Quilty for the promotion of community and sports activities across the parish of Kilmurry Ibrickane, and further afield, have been boosted in recent weeks with the appointment of an architect to draw up a detailed design. The centre, which is proposed for a site at Páirc Mhuire, is tipped to be a venue for sports activities and tournaments, as well as a hub for community gatherings and potentially even local business development. “We’ve been working on this for quite a while,” said Chairperson of the KIB Development Committee and RTÉ presenter, Marty Morrissey. “The lack of a design plan has been a stumbling block to-date and we were literally looking at a blank page in terms of what the centre might look like. We had been down a bit of a cul-de-sac, but soon, we’ll have something that will enable us to move forward. Once we have the plans, which we’ll be consulting people …

DEMAND for property in coastal Clare continues to increase, to the point where the working from home phenomenon has been likened by a local businessman and public representative to a revolution. The potential for remote working created by digital technologies, and introduced out of necessity during the pandemic, is proving to be a game-changer for rural communities which up to last year had been facing the prospect of accelerating depopulation. Now, demand from city dwellers looking to relocate, as well as holiday home owners who have switched their primary residence has boosted the population of coastal communities. A property price survey conducted by The Sunday Times showed that while the median house price in Clare is down from €194,500 to €191,000, coastal property prices continue to rise. Demand for property in Kilkee and Lahinch was aid to be “insatiable” with a three-bedroom semi-detached home in the latter recently selling for €274,000, after multiple bids. “We are at a transition point,” …

HIGHLY-anticipated restoration works are set to get underway shortly at the Vandeleur Walled Garden, where a new interpretative museum is among the developments planned. Located in Kilrush, the gardens are among the jewels in the crown of tourism in West Clare and were visited recently by Clare County Council officials and project stakeholders. The socially-distanced site visit was in advance of the enabling works getting underway for the restoration and renovation of the old stable block. The tendering process is complete and Custy Construction Ltd, a Clare-based construction firm, has been appointed to this project. The restoration works are funded by the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, under the Department of Rural and Community Development. Additional match funding has come from the council. The main works, due to begin early this year, will include an interpretative museum and new gardeners’ building, along with the development of a new visitor experience design and approach for the complex. “I very much welcome …