Tag Archives: Councillor Ian Lynch

LIGHTING on piers in West Clare is critical to supporting what remains of the county’s fishing industry, a local councillor has said. At this month’s meeting of the Municipal District committee, Councillor Cillian Murphy described the issue as “close to his heart”. “As someone who was involved in the fishing industry, I know the importance of having proper services on our piers,” he said. “Fishing crews have started to gear back up and I’ve had contact in relation to both of the piers in Carrigaholt. But, equally, I’m making the call on behalf of fishermen using all of the district’s piers, lights must be operational on all of them. For the want of a few bulbs, we could be making these areas a lot safer. There was no light at all on either of the Carrigaholt piers at one stage. We have little enough left of our fishing industry at this stage and this would go some way toward supporting …

A KILRUSH-based councillor is to make efforts to extend street lighting between the Shanakyle Road and St Senan’s Graveyard. Independent member of the West Clare Municipal District, Ian Lynch, tabled a motion calling for the extension and seeking details on options and costs for new lights. “St Senan’s Graveyard Group contacted me to see if they could get the lights extended out about 200 metres,” Councillor Lynch told the January meeting of the district committee. “The isolation that people are experiencing through Covid is prompting many to get some bit of comfort out of visiting the graveyard to see their loved ones. Sometimes people have gotten caught in the evening times, on the short evenings. The group asked me to put in this notice of motion. Pre-empting the response, I was trying to get a feel for the cost of putting up these lights. It’s a motion that’s come up several times throughout the municipal district, especially around schools, and …

A NUMBER of roads in West Clare are to be considered for inclusion in the schedule of works for this year, following representations to the local district committee. At their most recent meeting, councillors heard an appeal for action on a route described as “the gateway to Doonbeg”. Councillor Gabriel Keating asked that issues with a section of the R484 from Knockalough Crossroads to Kilmihil be addressed as a matter of urgency. “That particular roadway from Knockalough to Doonbeg was on the three-year programme that ends this year,” he said. “It’s in a bad state, there’s no doubt about that. Everybody’s asking me. There’s one really bad bend on the road at Michael Ryan’s and all it needs is something that drivers can see as they approach the bend. Mr Ryan has lost two or three piers and had to replace them himself. This road is the gateway to Doonbeg and to facilities like the golf club and it’s a …

THE plight of a family of seven, living in a two-bedroom apartment has been highlighted by a West Clare councillor. Councillor Ian Lynch told the January Municipal District Meeting he knew of a number of families whose children had been hoping Santa would give them a new home for Christmas. The Independent councillor secured figures showing a total of 704 people in the area on the housing list, with the greatest level of demand in Kilrush (135), Ennistymon (105), Kilkee (68), Corofin (61) and Miltown (53). “In response, the only housing that we’ve come up with is 57 new houses and 33 vacant units,” he said. “Matching that reality with peoples’ expectations is a huge problem. I have a number of families that are in desperate, desperate need of a large house. I have a five-child family in a two-bedroom apartment who are crying out for assistance. They recently applied for a three-bedroom house, but were told it wouldn’t suit …

A WEST Clare councillor has called for equality for his area, saying that many people have the impression that the local authority’s unofficial title is ‘Ennis County Council’. Councillor Ian Lynch made his remarks at the January meeting of the West Clare Municipal District when he called for the area to have its own plan to rival the recently unveiled Ennis 2040 blueprint. “What I’m looking for is equality among the municipal districts,” he said. “This came up at the county council meeting when we were told that Ennis 2040 is not just a municipal district plan, it’s a county-wide plan. Well, I take a bit of offence to that. That plan was put together by the hard work of the municipal district in Ennis. We are a municipal district with the same size and the same clout as Ennis, and in this motion, I’m requesting that we have a strategic plan, broken into two distinct areas. There’s very strategic …

COMMUNITY playgrounds are facing huge hurdles in securing insurance cover, with the county council being urged to step in to support them. The matter was raised at this month’s meeting of Clare County Council, where Councillors Cillian Murphy, Ian Lynch and Joe Garrihy tabled a motion calling for new playgrounds and those whose policies had lapsed to be taken in under the council’s policy. “We could soon be looking at two-tier communities,” Councillor Murphy said. “Those who have community playgrounds and those who don’t, if this situation isn’t resolved. This is a grossly unfair and utterly risible situation.” The Fianna Fáil member said he was aware of two community groups who would not be able to draw down their core funds for playground facilities, if they are unable to get insurance cover. “In one case a group has spent €275,000 and is ready to go, but the playground has to have insurance cover,” he said. “Significant time and energy has …

TOURISM in Ennistymon is set to take a major step forward as a number of enhancement projects are ear-marked to tie in with the development of its status as a Fáilte Ireland Destination Town. Last December, the tourism body announced that €500,000 would be issued, in two rounds, in order to boost the town’s attractiveness to visitors. The aim is to capitalise on the huge numbers travelling to North Clare attractions like the Cliffs of Moher and to entice them to spend more time and money in the town. At the June meeting of the West Clare Municipal District, Councillor Shane Talty urged the council to tackle the “low-hanging fruit” and examine projects that might be completed in conjunction with the Destination Town works. “The Fáilte Ireland funding will deliver a very welcome post-Covid boost for Main Street, Ennistymon, later this year,” the Fianna Fáil member noted. As an example of a project that might be tackled, Councillor Talty highlighted …

WEST Clare must stand ready to capitalise on the opportunities coming its way, despite the challenges of Covid-19, according to the new Cathaoirleach of the Municipal District. Councillor Joe Garrihy said that while 2020 would be a difficult one, in light of the pandemic, there was strong potential to develop West Clare if members work together on strategically important projects. “It is a challenging time for the district in terms of tourism, agriculture and the overall recovery from the impact of Covid-19,” the Fine Gael member noted. “We have a great team, but we will need help from central government and strong representation. We will also need to diversify and end our over-reliance on tourism.” Councillor Garrihy, who was elected last year as a first-time member of the local authority, identified opportunities in the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the investment in climate change projects. “Sustainable energy projects will be possible across West Clare,” he noted. “A new town …