Tag Archives: O’Callaghan’s Mills

It’s a particularly big weekend for sports enthuasiasts in the parish of Kilkishen and O’Callaghan’s Mills. The senior hurling team from the parish play their neighbours, Broadford on this Saturday evening with a place in the county senior championship quarter-finals at stake. On Sunday morning, the focus will switch to the European Athletics Championships in Zurich when Kilkishen’s Sean Hehir will compete in the men’s marathon. A member of Rathfarnham AC, Hehir, who played underage hurling before concentrating on athletics, has had a tremendous year. Last October, he won the prestigious Dublin City Marathon, becoming the first Irish winner of the title in 20 years. He described that success as “the stuff of dreams” and went on to pay tribute to the Marian club in Ennis, where he began his athletic career. A primary school teacher in Scoil Mhuire Gan Small in Inchicore, Dublin, Seaan, who is coached by three-time Dublin marathon winner, Dick Hooper, said after his October success that …

PLANNING permission has been refused to extend Kiluran Graveyard in O’Callaghan’s Mills, arising from the discovery of “significant archaeological features” at the site. The Kiluran Graveyard Committee submitted an application to Clare County Council, seeking to extend the existing graveyard, which is presently accessed by a right-of-way from the public road, with all associated site works, in February of this year. This week, Clare County Council refused the application on the basis that “it is considered that to permit the proposed development would injure or interfere with the historic remains and setting of the adjoining archaeological monuments”. On the file, Clare’s architectural conservation officer and archaeologist, Risteard Ua Cróinín, outlined that the existing graveyard is a recorded archaeological monument as an ecclesiastical complex. He highlighted that this complex included the remains of a medieval church, medieval graveyard and bullaun stone. He explained that under the Monuments Acts 1930 to 2004, no development may take place near the monument without the …

Joe Cooney (FG) is the first county councillor to be elected in the County Clare Local Election. With 2,843 votes, which is expected to be the largest vote in the county, Councillor Cooney’s vote was 1,258 over the 1,585 quota. Speaking following the announcement he said, “I’d a brilliant performance. I didn’t expect a performance like that”. He put the performance down to the hard work he has done for his electorate over the past five years. “I worked hard for the people in those five years. I think the vote today is a true reflection of that,” he said. As counters begin assigning his 1,258 surplus votes, Joe believes his two party colleagues Pat Burke and Joe Arkins will net the benefit of these, “both have done well, I think they stand a great chance and I think both of them will get elected”. Announcing details of the celebrations to follow in O’Callaghan’s Mills, Cooney said, “We’ll have a …

Nine East Clare community and Tidy Towns groups have benefitted from a once-off funding allocation, totaling €34,000, under the Public Area Enhancement Scheme, to improve their own locality. The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government is providing 75% of the finance, with the remainder being matched by Clare County Council. Scariff Community Council’s project to carry out improvement works to Riverside Park, and Sixmilebridge Development Association/Tidy Towns’ proposal to develop a Slí na Sláinte Walk Route have benefitted from most of the funding available, each receiving €6,000. Further to this, two East Clare groups will receive €5,000 under the fund. They include Kilkishen Development Ltd, which aims to develop a Kilkishen Castle Bog Walk, while Tuamgraney Development Association will also benefit from this funding, which will be used to carry out improvement works to the approach road to Tuamgraney from Bodyke. Aistear Iniscealtra Mountshannon have been awarded €3,000 in funding to upgrade the public park, while, in a …

MORE than €240,000 is necessary to deal with damage caused in non-coastal flooding in the county, following the recent storms, and of that, €80,000 to €100,000 is estimated to be required at Dooras, O’Callaghan’s Mills. According to a revised report issued at a meeting of Clare County Council last week, the estimated cost of repairs for non-coastal storm-related flooding remained at €240,000. However, additional costs are expected due to continued monitoring of flood levels, management of interim defence pumping facilities and construction of sandbag defences until early February. This process, according to the report, is continuing due to ongoing intensive rainfall events and very elevated river systems. In outlining the works required for the areas of non-coastal flooding, county engineer Tom Tiernan highlighted in the report that Dooras, O’Callaghan’s Mills has been cut off from services and the wider community since just before Christmas, due to flood inundation of the access road to them. He states the requirements involved at …

Despite the cold weather conditions, there were big entries for competitions at Lahinch over the Easter period.