Tag Archives: clare

AN estimated €1 million is expected to be spent on the provision of a proposed new off-street car park in Ennis’ town centre, it has been revealed. Full details have yet to be released, however Ennis Town Council have confirmed that the council proposes to acquire additional land in the county capital for the car park. According to Ger Dollard, Ennis town manager, “The council proposes to acquire additional land for off-street car parking in the town centre area and the estimated costs of acquisition and development of this land are of the order of €1 million. A report will be presented to council when contracts have been signed for the purchase of the site.” In relation to the future of parking improvements for the town, Mr Dollard added, “The council will continue to improve and enhance car parking facilities throughout the town. These improvements will include new parking provisions, upgrading existing car parks and associated equipment and capital investment …

LAST week Mick O’Dwyer revealed that he had definitely occupied his last inter-county sideline. The eight time All-Ireland winning Kerry manager, who also managed Kildare and Laois to Leinster titles, guided Clare in 2013. It turned out to be his last inter-county job. “We were a bit unlucky,” Micko said this week of his year with Clare. “We lost a lot of our players to injury. Even Gary Brennan, who’d be one of the best players in the country, he struggled all year. We tried to play him full forward in the finish and he was the mainstay of our team. There was about four or five other top class players in Clare that weren’t able to perform last year. But we went to the last game in the league and if we had beaten Limerick we’d have gone up. So we were there or thereabouts,” the four time All-Ireland winning Kerry footballer told The Clare Champion this week. He …

St Flannan’s, Ennis 4-9 Laurel Hill, Limerick 0-8 ST Flannan’s College, long known for the prowess of its hurling teams, added a new dimension to their sporting achievements on Saturday afternoon. The senior camogie team are in the limelight following their Munster Colleges A title victory, a first for the school. A solid defence, the ability to take scores when needed, plus outstanding goalkeeping by Doireann Murphy, saw St Flannan’s in control throughout and return from Ballybricken/Bohermore GAA grounds with the silverware. With the underfoot conditions soft, St Flannan’s opened the scoring in the fourth minute through midfielder Aoife Keane. Laurel Hill’s Kate Mulqueen levelled matters when she converted a free just over a minute later. St Flannan’s won the resulting puckout and with the ball laid off to Amie Wiley, the Clarecastle youngster made no mistake as she split the posts to grab the lead for the Ennis school, a lead that was not relinquished. Aoibhean Malone raised the …

MARTIN Sixsmith, the journalist and author, whose book inspired the critically acclaimed and Oscar nominated film Philomena, will appear at the Ennis Book Club Festival just days after the Academy Awards ceremony. He is just one of many well known authors and personalities who will visit the town in March for the popular festival. Ciana Campbell of the Ennis Book Club Festival voluntary committee said they are delighted to welcome Sixsmith to Ennis, along with the other participants. “It’s all taken off for him; it’s been brilliant so we are looking forward to welcoming him. In fact he seems very enthusiastic about coming here. He will be here just after the Oscars ceremony, but Oscar or no Oscar the success has been phenomenal for him,” she outlined. In 2009 Sixsmith wrote The Lost Child of Philomena Lee about the forcible separation of a Limerick mother and child by the nuns of an Irish convent during the 1950s, and the subsequent …

JUST shy of €71 million was spent on residential property in Clare last year, an analysis of figures from the Residential Property Price Register shows, While the average price was €118,472.56, the majority of sales (310 of the 598) were for less than €100,000. The register shows that there were 598 transactions during the 12 months. The second half of the year was busier than the first, with 238 transactions in the first six months and 360 from July to December. July was by far the busiest month, with 89 sales. Interestingly, the end of the year also saw a spike in sales, with November (62 sales) and December (65 sales) the second and third busiest months of 2013. There was just one seven-figure purchase in the county last year, with €1,462,500 paid for Tinerana House, Ogonnolloe, Killaloe. This was more than 12 times the average price. Another 17 properties were sold for prices in excess of €300,000, meaning that …

CLARE has been “blacklisted” when it comes to job creation according to Ennis councillors, who this week criticised the IDA for not bringing employment to the county. Councillor Tommy Brennan has demanded that Ennis Town Council write to both Minister Richard Bruton and the IDA to ask “what they have against County Clare”. Councillor Johnny Flynn commented that the IDA should change its name to “Industrial Development for Dublin, Cork and Limerick”. This week’s meeting of Ennis Town Council saw Councillor Flynn call for an Ennis and District Economic Taskforce to be set up in preparation for the upcoming abolition of Ennis Town Council. He urged that the taskforce should target unemployment, job creation and implement the actions of the Clare County Council Enterprise Strategy. The councillor stated that despite recent jobs announcements by the IDA, “unfortunately Ennis doesn’t seem to be getting any of these”. He went on, “Ennis should be standing up and forming a group to look …

ENNIS Town Council is facing legal bills totalling more than €500,000 defending two separate High Court challenges to national legislation and regulation. A case involving a challenge to the Ennis Casual Trading Bylaws 2011 has resulted in an overall cost of €147,000 to the council. A separate challenge regarding the deregulation of taxis, currently awaiting decision in the High Court, is expected to cost around €400,000. The figures were released during this week’s meeting of Ennis Town Council to agree its budget for 2014. Town manager Ger Dollard stated the council is “seriously concerned regarding the number of cases falling to the council to defend but representing a challenge to national legislation and regulation”. Following a number of High Court hearings, the council secured a settlement in relation to the case taken regarding the Ennis Casual Trading Bylaws 2011, which represented a challenge to the Casual Trading Act 1995 and, in particular, the status of casual trading vis-a-vis market rights. …

Clare League              2 Desmond League     0 IT was mission accomplished as Clare’s junior soccer squad secured a quarter-final place in the Oscar Traynor inter-league competition, accounting for Desmond League at the County Grounds on Saturday evening. The win sealed the team’s place at the top of the group, which puts them into the last eight of the competition. The victory could have been much greater margin had they converted all the chances created, a fact team manager Liam Murphy attributed to Clare being uncomfortable in the role of favourites. Desmond League, already out of contention, travelled to Doora with just 12 players and were forced to make a change shortly before half-time when John Kelleher was introduced in place of the injured Kieran Trander. The visitors almost took the lead in the very first attack of the game. After just 30 seconds, Clare goalkeeper John Mulready was rather casual in clearing his line and almost paid the price. Seconds later, …