Tag Archives: Councillor Alan O’Callaghan

    FORMER Clare County Council Chairman, P J Kelly has been described as a “West Clare warrior” following his sudden death in his sleep at home on Friday night. Fianna Fáil in Clare, communities in West Clare and family members of the late P J Kelly from Lissycasey have left reeling after his unexpected passing. Clare County Council Chairman, Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, who sat beside Mr Kelly in the council chamber for about ten years, said people in West Clare were “shocked” and “devastated” over the death of a “West Clare warrior”. On June 19, the Lissycasey horse enthusiast was one of three councillors in the country with 50 years of unbroken service on a local authority. The other two were Councillor Hilda Mary Kavanagh from Kilkenny and Councillor Declan Bree from Sligo. Opting not to contest the last Local Elections, his departure from the local authority brought the curtain down on his colourful political career, which saw him …

    Motor rallying enthusiast, Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, powered his way to the top of Clare County Council following his election as the new chairman at its annual general meeting on Friday afternoon. After spending ten years on the council, Councillor O’Callaghan increased his first preference share from 1,117 votes in 2019 to 1,475 paving the way for his election in the third count when he exceeded the quota, unlike his previous two elections when he was elected without reaching the quota. The former Fianna Fáil publican, who was elected unanimously without a vote as part of the power-sharing agreement, was proposed by Councillor Pat Hayes (FF) and was seconded by Councillor Pat Burke (FG).   In his acceptance speech at the council chamber, Councillor O’Callaghan recalled he wasn’t sure whether he would be re-elected as a councillor, never mind being afforded the honour of representing Clare as cathaoirleach. The father-of-two paid tribute to his predecessor, Councillor Joe Cooney and …

A MAJOR increase in the number of people using the Western Rail Corridor from Limerick to Galway has proven the case for the re-opening of the train stop at Crusheen, according to a local councillor.  Figures just released show an increase of just over 14% in the numbers using the service in 2022 when compared to 2019, the last full year of figures. “This means that more than 600,000 passengers used the line last year, up from 531,000 in 2019,” Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, Cathaoirleach of the Killaloe Municipal District said. “The Western Rail Corridor remains the fastest-growing rail link in the country.” The figures were also welcomed by Councillor Pat Hayes who called at the November meeting of the Killaloe district for a business case to be made for the re-opening of the rail stop at Crusheen. “To be honest, the members of the travelling public using the Limerick to Galway rail line have made that case themselves,” he said. …

DANGEROUS trees along roadsides in East Clare are to be removed in the coming months, a meeting of the Killaloe district has been told.  The pledge was given on foot of a motion from Cathaoirleach, Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, who raised the issue at the January gathering. The Kilmurry man asked that “in light of yellow warnings for high winds … a survey to be carried out in this MD on roadside trees especially Ash where the die back has set in”. A written reply to the motion from Derek Troy, Acting Senior Executive Engineer (SEE) outlined that following the consultation with members of the public and community groups, the required assessment reports had been completed, and that removal of trees would begin shortly.  “In 2022, Killaloe MD identified a number of trees for Arboricultural Safety Assessment Reports to be undertaken by a Member of the Society of Irish Foresters (MSIF) Certified Arborist,” the response to Councillor O’Callaghan’s motion explained. “These …

A BID has been made to have the local authority take over a sewage treatment plan in Kilmurry so that lands in the village might not be dezoned for development. A motion was tabled by the Cathaoirleach of the Killaloe Municipal District, Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, calling for the local authority to take over the plant for the Ballymulcashel housing estate. “I have talked to a builder,” he told the November district meeting. “Some years ago, a pilot project was undertaken and work done and a whole new system put in. The plant is brand new and fully funded. It is unfortunate that it is still in private ownership. We may need to take it on, or Irish Water won’t entertain it. In my view, it has to come into local authority ownership.” Councillor O’Callaghan explained that under national guidelines informing the forthcoming development plan, lands that will not be serviced in the lifetime of the plan, must be dezoned for …

HUGE community efforts across the Killaloe Municipal District have resulted in increased marks for all participants in this year’s Tidy Towns Competition.  Cathaoirleach Alan O’Callaghan said it was wonderful to see local communities putting so much work into their local areas. “On the back of Covid, many groups were down in funds, so it’s great to see them taking on the challenge again and actually upping their game. Without dedicated Tidy Towns committees across the district, the Council would just not be in a position to maintain the same levels of tidiness. It’s particularly good to see newcomers joining committees and brining in fresh ideas and approaches.” Councillor O’Callaghan, who said he had supported Tidy Towns activities through his General Municipal Allocation (GMA), also welcomed the contribution of local groups to biodiversity. “Once upon a time, the big focus was on cutting everything and making it look orderly. Now, there’s a fresh focus on leaving certain areas to grow wild …

“IF landowners would cut hedges and Council would tar roads, we’d have a great county,” a recent meeting of East Clare councillors was told.  The remarks were made by Councillor Pat Burke, on foot of two motions tabled before the Killaloe Municipal District on the issue of hedge cutting. The topic was brought up by cathaoirleach, Councillor Alan O’Callaghan and Councillor Joe Cooney.  Councillor O’Callaghan said overgrown hedges were a constant concern. “Great work has been done last year by Clare County Council and the farmers who took responsibility and there was a vast improvement last year,” he said. “This year, it looks on the ground as if there’s a lot of regional roads that haven’t been done. Are the contractors there and fulfilling their duty? Are they coming when they’re called or putting it off? A push needs to be done. Some junctions are way behind.” Councillor Cooney seconded the motion and proposed his own. “My concern is that …

THE cathaoirleach of the Killaloe Municipal District has described himself as “baffled” as to the raft of regulations on the installation of traffic calming ramps.  Councillor Alan O’Callaghan made his remarks as he called for ramps to be put in place as a safety measure for those using the school and playground in Kilkishen. In response to his motion, he was told that the installation of ramps at the location would have to meet the requirements of the Road Traffic Act (1994) and involve a public consultation process.  The Fianna Fáil member thanked Senior Executive Engineer (SEE) Derek Troy the “huge work” already done at school in Kilkishen. “Speeding is still cropping up all the time,” Councillor O’Callaghan insisted. “I’m only here since 2014, but I feel that since then, only one speed ramp has been put in. I think there’s a feeling that we’re going to try everything bar a ramp. There are ramps in Newmarket, Sixmilebridge, Shannon, and …