Tag Archives: Cyril Feeney

CLARITY has once again been sought over the use of CCTV to convict those involved in illegal dumping, in light of concerns raised the Data Protection Commissioner about remotely-operated cameras. A question was tabled at the November meeting of the local authority by Councillor Alan O’Callaghan, asking whether or not footage could be used in prosecutions. The Fianna Fáil member noted that the issue had come up at the most recent meeting of the Joint Policing Committee (JPC). He said he had been “taken aback” by the advice given there. “It seems that the Data Protection Commissioner has highlighted issues,” he said, “however, we all watch programs where Gardaí make appeals for dashcam footage. It’s very frustrating. We are trying to battle dumping and littering issues across Clare.” Councillor O’Callaghan noted that his party colleague Councillor Cillian Murphy had drawn his attention to an article reporting that 64 littering fines were issued in Tipperary thanks to the use of CCTV …

AN alternative to repeated lockdowns, in response to the pandemic, could lie in the promotion of ventilation and air filtration systems in homes and businesses, according to a West Clare member of Clare County Council. Addressing the November council meeting, Councillor Cillian Murphy asked the authority to undertake a campaign and to contact other councils “to build awareness at a national level of the impact better indoor air quality has in reducing the spread of Covid-19”. His motion was seconded by Councillor Patrick O’Gorman. Noting a written response from Senior Engineer Cyril Feeney saying that responsibility lay with the HSE, Councillor Murphy urged the authority to consider what it could do to promote the message. “To-date the health promotion message had focused on social distancing, hand washing and mask wearing, but there is now an increasing understanding of air-borne transmission and proper ventilation of buildings,” the Fianna Fáil member said. “Clare County Council has been instrumental in delivering HSE recommendations …

A ROAD in Doolin has been described as “an embarrassment” by North Clare county councillor Richard Nagle. The construction of badly-needed footpaths linking the two parts of the North Clare village was discussed at the West Clare Municipal District meeting in Kilrush last week. During the discussion, council engineer Cyril Feeney calculated that it could cost €250,000 to pay for the footpaths, excluding the purchase of land. However, Councillor Nagle said the road should be repaired as well. “One of the worst pieces of road in any village in North Clare is from Fitz’s Cross to Fisher Street. The surface is absolutely shocking. It’s an embarrassment for any premier tourist village to have that road surface. Why was it left that way? Because every time a motion was put down, requesting the upgrade of the road, we were told that we had to wait because we had to do the footpaths and the lot. The result is that absolutely nothing …

CLARE County Council is still waiting to find out how much, if any, funding will be provided for repairs to infrastructure damaged in the February storm. Most of the damage from both the January and February storms occurred in the West Clare Municipal District but more than seven months on, the council is none the wiser on how much money it will receive from Government. At the recent district meeting, Councillor Michael Hillery asked when repairs to Spanish Point beach would be completed, following the January/February storms. Tom Tiernan, Clare County Council’s senior engineer responsible for transportation, responded in writing outlining the work completed in Spanish Point to date. He said decking and access steps were rebuilt and some retaining walls were constructed. Footpath and bridge works were carried out and replacement of railings is continuing. “Outstanding works include kerbing and other relatively minor concrete works, fencing and more than 100m of retaining wall. The retaining wall is the single largest …