Tag Archives: clare county council

A 20-year strategy to guide future upgrades at the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience is currently in development, with all works to be dependent on the availability of funding. Clare County Council, supported by Fáilte Ireland, is currently undertaking the Cliffs of Moher Strategy 2040 that will set out the future plans, including an architectural masterplan for the site and economic delivery plans for the wider hinterland of County Clare. UK-based tourism lead multi-disciplinary consultants Haley Sharpe Design are midway through the project schedule, which is due for completion in quarter one, 2021.  A separate contract running concurrently with the strategy has been signed with internationally renowned Dublin-based architects Henchion Reuter, with a value of €1.93m over a number of years, to design key infrastructural requirements. This contract will dovetail with the strategy to inform the wish list of developments that could be delivered over the long term.   The package of works for design include required upgrades to the waste water …

The innovative work carried out by the staff of Clare County Council during the Covid-19 crisis will be highlighted on #YourCouncilDay, which takes place on Wednesday, July 1. Clare’s swift reaction to the demands of lockdown saw the Library Service introduce several initiatives including a contact and collect service, a cocooning book delivery service and more than 40 online story-time, drawing and craft workshops for children. The library also offered its 75-piece toy and sensory collection to parents of children with complex needs, and distributed 500 wellbeing packs to those that are cocooning. A writing competition for children and teenagers was launched on May 4 and more than 100 entries were submitted under the theme ‘County Clare 2020: A Day in My Life’. The competition was offered as an alternative creative activity for children and teenagers by the Clare Library Service after the schools were closed on March 15. The winning and highly commended stories were selected by award-winning children’s …

Funding of €182,000 recently allocated by Minister Shane Ross will extend the EuroVelo cycling route into County Clare. EuroVelo 1 stretches from Norway to Portugal via Ireland and targets long-distance cyclists but also provides routes for users of all abilities as the criteria for inclusion specify lower-trafficked roads as well as Greenways. The route forms part of a network of 17 long-distance cycle routes throughout Europe and it enters County Clare via counties Galway and Limerick. The route in Clare is approximately 317km long and comprises six daily sections, that is sections which typically can be cycled in one day. In some parts the route ties into cycle routes already in operation, for example, the Doolin and Loop Head cycle routes. The roll out of the route will include the provision of EuroVelo signage, bike repair stands, information boards and cycle racks. Carmel Kirby, Director of Physical Development, Clare County Council, said: “This project will be a stimulus for economic …

THE Clare Economic Taskforce held its inaugural meeting at Áras Contae an Chláir, Ennis, today (Friday). The taskforce was convened by Pat Dowling, Chief Executive of Clare County Council, to inform and guide appropriate economic measures that will stimulate job creation in Clare. The group comprises public and private sector leaders and is chaired by retired Ambassador Noel Kilkenny, former Consul General of Ireland in New York. The Clare Economic Taskforce will assist Clare County Council to: Identify the immediate priority actions required to maximise the area’s local and regional economic potential; Develop future resilience in the local and regional economy. The Taskforce will progress medium and long-term projects and actions; The Taskforce will examine how Clare, as part of the Mid-West region, can facilitate and enable decentralised employment opportunities; The Taskforce will examine how national, EU and international capital investment opportunities can underpin Clare’s future economic growth; The Taskforce will build economic confidence in Clare and the Mid-West region; …

CLARE County Council has approved the commencement of work on the complete refurbishment of all toilet facilities within the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre. Clare contractor Jada Projects Ltd has been appointed to complete the project. Clare County Council signed the contract, which is valued at €208,444 ex VAT, earlier this month. The improvements include a full refit of the toilets on the ground floor and first floor. The works will see the unisex model that was in place revert to separate male and female toilet facilities. It is expected that the works will be completed in July. Mayor of Clare, Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy, said: “The toilet refurbishment will be a welcome improvement to facilities at the world-class visitor attraction. With 1.6m visitors to the cliffs in 2019, it is crucially important to maintain high standards of accessibility, convenience and hygiene in Visitor Centre facilities – perhaps now more than ever, given the public health requirements to combat Covid-19.” …

Concern has been expressed about the scale of a €30 million overdraft for Clare County Council, which was approved at a recent local authority meeting. This comes as the council has to deal with a potential deficit of €19.7 million as a result of the collapse of economic activity during the Covid-19 pandemic. Having raised questions about the financial impact of Covid-19 on the local authority’s income, Councillor Pat Hayes said the size of this overdraft showed how the authority’s finances are under serious threat. Councillor Hayes is concerned the council will lose a lot of income as a result of the lockdown from commercial rates, the Cliffs of Moher and parking, which should result in equivalent funding from the government to prevent cutbacks. He said continuing with a €30 million overdraft over the coming years is not sustainable on an ongoing basis without additional government financial support. “There is a major headache for local authorities in the future in …

ENNIS’ Market Building could be used to create a ‘socially distant’ community space where locals and visitors can sit down and enjoy food and beverages, it has been suggested. Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council Councillor Clare Colleran-Molloy believes that the building could be used to support efforts within the town to promote social distancing in a bid to prevent the spread of Covid-19. The transformation of the Ennis Market would also provide a boost to local restaurants by providing additional seating. The idea is now set to be brought to the stakeholders group involved in the Temporary Ennis Town Centre Mobility Plan for review. Councillor Colleran-Molloy proposed the idea for developing a seating area in the market at a meeting of the Ennis Municipal District. She explained, “As it will be a while before we will be back up and running, and based on contributions received from the public, I would ask that the Market Building be utilised as a …

GRIEVING families are “distraught” and feel their deceased loved ones are being “forgotten about” after being buried in part of Drumcliff cemetery. While reports of items disappearing from graves in the older section of the cemetery has been condemned as “appalling and upsetting” sparking calls for CCTV cameras to be installed. Councillor Mark Nestor, speaking at a meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, urged works are needed to improve the layout of the burial ground and provide greater connectivity between the old and new sections. He pointed out that there is a row of trees acting as a barrier between two sections. He outlined that people who have family members buried in Drumcliff are “in a very, very bad way and are very distraught at the layout of the graveyard.” He said, “Those who have people buried in the new section feel very much they have been forgotten about and left out. If you look at the whole row of …