West Clare

  WORK on the adventure playground in Labasheeda is due to start in the next fortnight. Quite appropriately a number of local children on half-term break turned the first sod this week. Niall O’Connell Construction will carry out the groundworks with Matthew Flanagan Electrical carrying out the electrical work. The main contractor is Crawford Playgrounds from Wexford who will be on site from the first week in March. The overall development will cost in the region of €140,000 and Leader funding has been secured for 75% of the overall cost. That means that the playground committee has to raise €35,000. “Due to the great local support, we have already raised €25,000. Over the coming months, we hope that a number of fundraisers will help us to raise the remaining €10,000,” Labasheeda Adventure Playground chairman, David Neylon, explained. “One way of supporting the fundraising efforts is to buy a brick for the playground. Each brick will have an inscription on it,” …

INSTANCES of what have been referred to as “serious pollution” to the River Fergus in Kildysart were highlighted at Monday’s meeting of the six Kilrush Electoral Area councillors.

AN iconic 4ft high rock, which has been used as a diving platform by generations of swimmers in Cappa, Kilrush has disappeared. The fate of The Rock, as it is known, was discussed at a recent meeting of Kilrush Town Council.

DAN Worrall, regarded as the leading expert on the social history of the Anglo-German concertina worldwide, will present a lecture on the origins of Anglo-German concertina playing this Friday evening.

A CLARE County Councillor is appealing to the local authority to take in charge a housing estate in which the sewage treatment plant overflowed four times in the last 18 months.

A ROUND-TABLE discussion will be held in Kilrush on Tuesday, February 19, as part of the public consultation process for the preparation of the Draft Kilrush Town and Environs Development Plan 2014 – 2020.Members of the public are being urged to participate in the World Café-themed event at Kilrush Youth Centre at 7pm, which will be hosted by planners and officials from Kilrush Town Council.A year-long public review of the 2008 Development Plan for Kilrush, due to expire in 2014, is due to conclude on Tuesday, March 12, which is the deadline for receipt of written submissions or observations.Mayor of Kilrush, Mairéad O’Brien, is urging members of the public to review the draft plan.“This is the only plan that deals directly with the future development of Kilrush Town and therefore, it is important that the people of the town have their say in its formulation. Kilrush is at a crossroads in terms of how decisions we make today will have …

CLONDRINAGH National School senior infants and second-class teacher, Ailish O’Neill had her father, John, sitting in her class recently. Both are past pupils of the school, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last weekend. “When we heard that The Clare Champion was coming out for the photos, we said why not try and get a few past pupils in? When the school opened, Dad would have been in fifth class. He moved up from the old school in Pitfield, which is just down the road,” Ailish explained. Although her father was only in class for a short period, Ailish was reasonably content with how he behaved. “He was an A pupil. He was eagerly sitting in the front desk and nobody distracted him. He was very good,” she laughed. She was confident that if John had been in class for longer than a few minutes, he would have continued to excel. “I think he would have been. He was a great …

ORGANISERS are expecting approximately 600 walkers and runners for this Sunday’s 15th West Clare Mini-Marathon, which raises money for cancer care in the region.