Tag Archives: kilkee

By Peter O’Connell ONE of Clare’s best-known GAA supporters passed away recently. Kevin Stapleton, who was 92, was born in Limerick and reared in Kilkee but lived and worked for 46 years in England. Resident in Ennis since his return to Ireland in 1989, he was a regular at Clare hurling and football games. He was also a colourful contributor to The Clare Champion letters page. In an interview with The Clare Champion in October 2012, Kevin recalled growing up in West Clare. “I was born in Limerick but I was in Kilkee at nine weeks old. My mother died at birth, so I never saw her,” he recounted sadly. Kevin and his twin brother, Thomas, were reared by their grandmother, Bridget Stapleton, whom they treated as their mother. She was a woman with straightforward convictions, as evidenced by Kevin’s name change around the time of his confirmation. It turns out his name was not actually Kevin. “When I was christened, …

By Seamus Hayes GAA clubs across the country will agree it has become increasingly difficult to get volunteers to take on club officer roles and it has almost become the norm that some clubs fail to fill some executive posts at their annual meetings. Eventually, most manage to get someone to take on a specific task. Despite the fact that St Senan’s Kilkee have, so far, failed to find both a chairman and secretary, outgoing chairman Peter Muldoon is satisfied the club’s future is secure and that the posts will be filled. The positions remain vacant after the AGM and a further meeting failed to find candidates for the posts Outgoing officials Peter Muldoon (chairman) and John Lynch (secretary) signalled well before the end of last season that they would not be seeking re-election. Muldoon completed four years in the post, while outgoing secretary John Lynch has been the face of the West Clare club for the past 40 years. …

THE wait for a sewage treatment plant in Kilkee looks like it’s going to enter its ninth year at the very least. At Monday’s meeting of Kilkee Town Council, Councillor Lily Marrinan Sullivan asked for a “complete update regarding the status of the new sewage treatment plant, promised since 2005.” In reply Anthony McNamara, senior executive engineer with Clare County Council, said that responsibility for the progression of the scheme now rests with Irish Water and not with the local authority. “The Kilkee and Kilrush Sewerage Schemes were included in the Department of the Environment Community and Local Government Invest Programme 2010-2013. At the time of the transfer of the local water services function to Irish Water, this scheme was at a stage where the preliminary report had received approval of the Department of the Environment. The next step was to procure a site investigation contract, phase one of the wastewater treatment plant and phase two of collection systems,” Anthony …

THE damage caused to coastal areas by the recent  storms may leave a question mark over the future status of Blue Flag and Green Coast Awards locations, it has emerged. Clare’s Blue Flag beaches are Cappa, near Kilrush; Kilkee,  White Strand, Doonbeg; Fanore, in addition to Ballycuggeran and Mountshannon on Lough Derg. The issue will be high on the agenda  will be discussed at the annual Blue Flag and Green Coast Award conference in Dublin, on Wednesday. The conference will be attended by coastal  local authority representatives, as well as Blue Flag and Green Coast Award jury members. Annabel FitzGerald, coastal programmes manager, An Taisce said, “There are some serious concerns for some candidate Blue Flag and Green Coast Award beaches that have been left devastated by the recent storms particularly where infrastructure such as access roads, carparks and other amenities have been destroyed.” These are among the 32 imperative criteria required to achieve Blue Flag status. She added, “Local Authorities work …

IN a somewhat ironic twist in view of the devastation caused by the weekend’s storm,  “Towards a Better Kilkee: A Town Improvement & Economic Development Strategy 2014-2024,” was launched last night at the Culturlann Sweeney Library. Prepared by Clare County Council, in association with Kilkee Town Council and various community groups, the  key focus of the 10-year strategy is to generate new employment opportunities in a town that has a 36% unemployment rate, promote the local tourism product and enhance the physical appearance of Kilkee. The latter presents a huge challenge, now that the much core element of the seaside infrastructure has been so badly damaged. The short and medium-term priorities outlined in the strategy include carrying out a branding and marketing exercise for Kilkee, establishing contact with owners of all opportunity sites, promote the existing coastal walks by upgrading signage and information, conducting a survey of derelict sites in the town, carrying out upgrading works to the bandstand, producing a comprehensive …

A NEW  strategy aimed at guiding the promotion and development of Kilkee over the next 10 years will be launched at Cultúrlann Sweeney on Monday next. Prepared by Clare County Council, in association with Kilkee Town Council and various community groups, ” Towards a Better Kilkee: A Town Improvement & Economic Development Strategy 2014-2024”  is expected to reinvigorate the resort  town. The short and medium term priorities outlined in the strategy include a branding and marketing exercise for Kilkee, establishing contact with owners of all opportunity sites, promoting the existing coastal walks by upgrading signage and information, and a survey of derelict sites in the town. The plan also proposes upgrading works to the iconic seafront bandstand, a comprehensive scheme of street and lane signage, and a database of accommodation linked to a comprehensive new website for the town.    

GARDAÍ targeting the sale and supply of controlled drugs in the Kilkee area,  yesterday discovered two separate cannabis cultivation operations. Gardaí searched a house in Lislanahan, Kilkee, where approximately 200 cannabis plants with an estimated street value of €160,000  were discovered. A man and woman, both aged 23 years, were arrested and detained at Kilrush Garda station under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. In the second operation, gardaí searched a property in Tullaroe, Kilkee, where approximately 300 cannabis plants with an estimated street value of €280,000 were discovered. A man in his 50s was arrested and detained at Ennis Garda station under the provisions of Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996. These finds follow on from from a cannabis “grow” find in Carrigaholt area last week.