A petition of 3,500 signatures requesting county councillors to halt plans to build on two riverside car parks in Ennis, was presented to Ennis Mayor, Pat Daly at Clare County Council buildings this morning.
This was following a silent march of over 200 townspeople and business owners who marched from the Abbey Street car park to Clare County Council’s buildings on the New Road. The atmosphere on the morning was convivial with a number of marchers holding a large inflatable elephant to symbolise the potential of the proposed development becoming a ‘white elephant’.
The march was organised by the Save Ennis Town voluntarily group who are opposed to the council and Ennis 240 DAC proceeding with plans to build on the two car parks. The group says the move would deprive the town of vital civic and amenity spaces and view such plans as “destructive”.
Joan Duggan, a concerned citizen with limited mobility delivered the red petition box to Councillor Daly and a number of those taking part were invited into the public gallery to view the start of the Ennis Municipal District meeting where the petition was mentioned first on the order of business, and officially handed in by Cllr Johnny Flynn.
Save Ennis Town say redevelopment plans for the area will remove nearly 200 scarce parking spaces by shutting down, and building on, the riverside car parks at Abbey Street and Parnell Street. Parking, taxi ranks and riverside amenities, it claims, will be replaces with large, multi-story buildings, of uncertain commercial viability.
Sharon Dolan D’Arcy covers West Clare news. After completing a masters in journalism at University of Galway, Sharon worked as a court reporter at the Sligo Weekender. She was also editor of the Athenry News and Views.