Work to begin shortly on path and crossing for Clare village

WORKS on a new footpath and pedestrian crossing for Clooney will begin in a matter of weeks and the local community development group will be informed shortly about the time-frame, writes Fiona McGarry.

The matter was raised at the July meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District when Councillor Pat Hayes tabled a motion seeking an update.

The Fianna Fáil member noted that Clooney and Quin had been added to the East Clare district in recent years and that Clooney now has an active community group.

“The group are proposing to create a sense of a centre for Clooney,” Councillor Hayes said.

“They have raised issues around paths and crossings and I would like to thank the Killaloe district team for their efforts to move this up the line and get greater funding opportunities for the works,” he said.

“The works will clearly show the commitment of Clare County Council to the community of Clooney. The council should always embrace efforts of communities, and in this case they’ve done that in spades.

“This is Phase 1 of a bigger plan for Clooney and will work to create a centre and avoid the sense of people speeding through,” Councillor Hayes added.

The motion was seconded by Cathaoirleach, Councillor Joe Cooney. “Trojan work has been done over last two years by the community group, they’re not long in existence,” the Fine Gael member said.

“We are all aware of the amount of traffic going through Clooney. These works will be fantastic and credit is due to the Killaloe team. The sooner these works start the better.”

Senior Executive Engineer (SEE) Niamh Madden noted that the project has moved as quickly as possible.

“This project went through both a Part VIII planning process and procurement process in recent months,” she said.

“The Killaloe Municipal District is pleased to confirm that a contractor for the works is due to be appointed imminently and the project is scheduled to commence within the coming weeks.

“The MD will liaise with the community group in Clooney again once the exact start date has been confirmed.”