Listen to a weekly roundup of Irish views and stories presented by Brian Byrne and Trish Whelan which is broadcast from Vancouver on the Celtic Voices programme carried by Canada's largest independent radio network, Fairchild. You can stream it at 28k or 56k, or download to listen to later. Changed every Sunday.
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 Tom Dowling's KNN Racing Tips: The Guineas
Hoorah for Henry! That could well be the cry at the Curragh this weekend where master trainer Henry Cecil has strong claims of recording a big double with Enrique in Saturday’s feature and Wince in the fillies Classic 24 hours later. More |
Ministerial nostalgia at launch of Moat Club funding programme
 NAAS, 21 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. Launching the local fundraising campaign last night for a new theatre complex at the Moat Club brought back many memories to minister for finance Charlie McCreevy TD, but one in particular. “I came to my very first dance here, at Christmas 1965,” he told me. “In fact, I can remember the first girl I danced with here.”
And did he get a kiss from her? (Pause for reflection) “No,” he said eventually. But that small disappointment didn’t sour him on the Moat, because there can be no doubt that his representations to his ministerial colleague in the Department of Arts Heritage Gaeltacht & the Islands were helpful in getting a grant of £750,000 for the £1.2 million project.
If an organisation needs a lift out for a major project, it probably helps to have a minister for finance in the town. But the Moat Club is an organisation that richly deserves any such help because, as the minister said himself, it was always ‘an oasis for the arts, synonymous with excellence, when many other such groups were doing very little of note’. “When the project committee came to me for advice some time ago, I told them one thing,” he said last night. “Aim for something higher than you think you need for Naas, because you’ll only get one crack at this.”
So they did. The Moat Club redevelopment will incorporate a 200-seat state-of-the-art theatre, a new foyer and exhibition area, rehearsal/meeting rooms, dressing rooms and workrooms. It will be completely disabled-friendly. “We don’t see this as just a theatre for the drama group, but as a centre for all organisations in the town,” said Moll Fullam, chairperson (pictured above with minister McCreevy). “We already have a list of other groups who are interested in using the facilities, including the Nas na Ri Singers, the History Group, various arts groups and drama teachers ... and it will also be a venue for the travelling theatre groups.”
 She complimented the work of the project committee, Michael Broe, Catherine Daly and Pat Conlan (the latter two are pictured left) and also said it is an ambition of the Moat Club to start a Youth Theatre, because there has been strong interest expressed by many young people in their mid-teens who cannot be accommodated in the current Moat drama activities.
At last night’s function, Naas UDC Cathaoirleach Paddy Behan reaffirmed an allocation of £200,000 from the UDC towards the project. The balance will be raised locally, and the fundraising programme kicks off in June with a Table Quiz in Lawlors Hotel on the 10th and a Race Night in the Town House Hotel on the 25th.
Long-standing Moat man Tom McLoughlin, the pal who brought the young Charlie to that first dance, recalled that the Moat Club incorporated the Naas Table Tennis Club at the time, and that was how many people got involved in drama. “You came to play table tennis and ended up being dragged upstairs to take a part in a play, or paint a set,” he said. Given the expansion of organisations who will use the new facility, a far wider range of people will probably get the same treatment in the future.
 TIM CONWAY & CO - ACCOUNTANTS
Basin Street, Naas
We offer all accounting services including financial advice, taxation, company information etc. Contact 045 876492 or email at timmyconway@tinet.ie
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THINKING OF RETURNING TO IRELAND?
ARTHUR E MACMAHON, solicitors in Naas, can represent you in all your legal, conveyancing, and commercial needs with professionalism and confidentiality. Email us or phone +353 (0)45 897936; fax +353 (0)45 897615
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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 KNN is a completely INDEPENDENT professional news service for County Kildare, with no affiliations to any network, authority, group, party or other organisation. The service is operated by Telling Tales Ltd, Naas, Co Kildare, under the editorial direction of Brian Byrne and Trish Whelan. It is our policy to report accurately and fairly on any subject, and we offer right of reply to anyone who has differing opinions to those expressed in any story. Any such opinions published on KNN are not necessarily the views of KNN's proprietors or any network on which we are hosted or to which we may be linked.
Email us at KNN , or phone 045 481090; fax 481091.
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FG candidates sign up for poll
COUNTY HALL, 21 May 1999: The Fine Gael contenders for the county council elections filed their nomination papers this week at County Hall in Naas. The party’s candidates are as follows: Fionnula Dukes, Michael Spike Nolan and Allen Foxe (Kildare/Newbridge); Brian Mullarkey and Mark Clinton (Celbridge); Jim Reilly and Brendan Weld (Clane); Senan Griffin (Maynooth/Leixlip); Billy Hillis and Pat O’Reilly (Naas). Christy Murphy, Brian Maginn and Michael Spike Nolan are contesting the Newbridge Town Commission and Denis Logan, Conor O’Keefe and Pat O’Reilly are running for Naas UDC. |
The most delicious of gifts from our finest Irish chocolates range are selling around the world from here.
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Insurance demand kills swings
NAAS, 21 May 1999:
Dear Editor,
Just a note to let people know that the last set of swings and slides in the town of Naas is to be removed this weekend. These are currently located in Kingsfurze estate in the town. They were put in over thirty years ago by the people of that estate and have been lovingly maintained ever since. They are used by people all around the town but soon will no longer be there. Why? insurance. The premium this year is quoted at £3,000. The residents haven't got that sort of cash and are afraid that if they leave them there they could be sued. For the same reason the goal posts are being removed from the pitches and the tennis court in the public area may be under threat.
 We hear our politicians bleating on about the celtic tiger and the expansion of Naas, the fastest growing town in Europe. But where are the facilities for the children in this town to play? At the moment the UDC are spending a lot of money placing a tree and associated fencing in the middle of popular square (blocking up parking spaces of which there are a shortage of in the town). It makes you wonder about where priorities lie. A tree versus a child's playing facility.
 15 years ago the UDC undertook to develop a park and a play area in the Monread triangle. This has still to happen.
John A Kavanagh |
Material contraventions passed
KILCULLEN, KILASHEE & COUNTY HALL, 21 May 1999: by Trish Whelan. Kildare Councillors have unanimously agreed a material contravention of the 1985 County Kildare Plan to allow for expansion of the Link Business Park (above) on the Naas Road in Kilcullen, which is owned by local businessman Pat Dunlea. The material contravention was proposed by Senator John Dardis.
Members also unanimously agreed a material contravention to make way for a new hotel and conference centre at Killashee, outside Naas, formerly a house and school. Cllr Spike Nolan proposed the process for Glenwave Developments Limited. However members were warned that a material contravention does not change the zoning. Senior planner Philip Jones explained this was a ‘stand alone’ application.
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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PROFESSIONAL COUNSELLING
Noreen McCabe, MNAPCP
Anxiety, depression, loss, phobias, childhood trauma, eating disorders, relationships, personal growth, coaching for work-related stress. Strictly confidential.
Moorefield Clinic, Newbridge. Phone (045) 432111 or call Noreen at (045) 431936; mobile 086 2496823; email dmccabe@tinet.ie
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NAAS BAPTIST BIBLE CENTRE
Everyone is invited to study God's Word, the Bible, with us, Sunday evenings 6.30, 45 Jigginstown Park. We are presently studying the life of Christ. Contact Rev Roger Parrow 045 894771. (Advt.)
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by Liam Cahill
The seminal account of the Limerick Soviet
Available here
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Naas Planning Alliance launches candidates
NAAS, 20 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. The Naas Planning Alliance candidates for the local UDC elections are Mary Cahill and Anthony Egan, who will be basing their campaign on tapping the growing sense of unease recently evident about the rapid growth of the town and the effects on the population’s quality of life. Their key concerns are that the people of Naas have not been getting adequate information from their current councillors on serious issues, and that there are inadequate infrastructures for the existing population, let alone a massively expanded one.
Anthony Egan lives in Caragh Court and has been involved with NEDI and other community activities, including his local residents associations, and he says the local politicians ‘are not representing the ordinary people who are paying their mortgages and trying to live’. “Their agenda is set outside Naas, driven by something that they don’t seem to have any control over. We’re not against planning as such, but we favour a gradual and organic growth and a 56% increase over a very short period of time is unrealistic. As it is, people cannot get their children into schools, and the health service is Dickensian. Year after year, particularly at election time, we get promises that things will be fixed, and they aren’t. Before adopting a new plan we should concentrate on getting the previous plan right ... we need the time to for the town to develop as a community and not just a big monstrosity houses and houses.”
Mary Cahill is a member of one of only three families in the town which still have third generation businesses in the town - the Glennons. “I’m in a unique position in that I was born and bred in the town, left here for ten years to work in Dublin, then came back in 1986. I have the benefit of being able to see the changes, a lot of which are very good, but I was quietly seething at the sudden, unprecedented development going on in the town, without any corresponding infrastructure.
"Why are all the councillors so committed to all this development in the face of so much opposition? I don’t understand it, because if I was a councillor and 3,000 people wrote in to object, I would think that a third of the population had some point. Older people in particular feel completely alienated about what’s happening in the town, and I’m confident that they too will be out voting for me on the day. At least we’re an independent voice and we will communicate with people, let them know what’s happening - which hasn’t happened up up to now - and respond accordingly.”
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TIM CONWAY & CO - ACCOUNTANTS
Basin Street, Naas
We offer all accounting services including financial advice, taxation, company information etc. Contact 045 876492 or email at timmyconway@tinet.ie
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THINKING OF RETURNING TO IRELAND?
ARTHUR E MACMAHON, solicitors in Naas, can represent you in all your legal, conveyancing, and commercial needs with professionalism and confidentiality. Email us or phone +353 (0)45 897936; fax +353 (0)45 897615
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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Kilcock vote ignores Meath zoning possibility
KILCOCK & COUNTY HALL, 20 May 1999: by Trish Whelan. Kildare County Council has opted not to take into account future developments in the Meath end of Kilcock, when setting future population projections for this North Kildare town. On Monday councillors voted to rezone 120 acres of land despite a warning from senior planner Philip Jones that up to 60 acres are to be rezoned for residential use by Meath County Council on its side of the town. Kilcock is the only town in the county to straddle a county border.
A submission by Kilcock and District Community Council had asked councillors not to adopt the town plan until the entire regional guidelines are adopted by central government and a final decision made on housing densities. They also wanted the town’s population target of 6,000 to be reduced to 4,600 so as to take into account future housing developments across the Meath border. Mr Jones said if councillors want to take this into account they should reduce the amount of land zoned residential by the same amount ‘but if you feel that 6,000 population is OK then leave it - it depends on the size of the town you want’.
He said there is a good arguement for higher densities in certain areas of the town, such as the Square - but not around the edge of the town. He also said Kilcock has potential for development and has not yet reached a sustained population.
Cllr Sean Reilly said he didn’t see any reason to change the population figures as Kilcock is in need of a boost. Cllr John McGinley said this needs to be a 'planned boost' taking into account what’s happening in County Meath for a balanced approach. He proposed they reduce the 120 acres to 70 and this was seconded by Cllr Catherine Murphy but the proposal was defeated by 13 votes to 4. |
CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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Naas faces traveller 'challenge'
NAAS, 20 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. Naas has a ‘poor record’ in the matter of dealing with traveller issues, a founder member of a support group in the town said this week. The occasion was the official opening of an exhibition in Naas Library by Athy travellers which detailed the culture, craftsmanship and language uniqueness of a section of the community which is ‘often ignored’ despite its richness.
“Naas faces a challenge to make space for travellers in this community,” said Sean Hanrahan of Naas Equality for Travellers (NET). “The provision of services to one family currently parked in the town is the first time that Naas authorities have done anything officially for travellers.” He noted that NET, formed last September with support from Action South Kildare (ASK), is itself also helping this family by providing regular tuition in an education programme which the organisation hopes to expand later.
Included in the exhibition, which runs until the end of the week, are photographic and drawings displays, history, examples of traveller sewing and copper crafts, and a full-size roadside tent which many of the travellers present at the opening could remember having slept in. “These were hard times, and not times we can be proud of,” one of their number noted. Pictured above at this exhibit are Sean Hanrahan, Patrick McInerney (child), Mary Gallagher, Rosie McInerney, Lizzie McInerney, Mary Carty and Eileen McInerney.
 Marion Browne (pictured here with Sr Rosario of the Athy Travellers Club) the Department of Education officer with responsibility for traveller education in Kildare, outlined the history of the traveller community, which was recorded as being part of Ireland’s population back as far as the fifth century. The advent of the industrial revolution in the 30s and 40s meant their traditional livelihoods faced economic ruin and they had to reorganise their mainly rural lifestyle. “We saw a mass exodus to the cities and towns in the 50s, and after that successive governments saw them as ‘a problem’,” Ms Browne said. “The solution, they thought, was to get them all settled and it wasn’t taken on board that their life and culture was a distinct part of the community.”
Fortunately, these attitudes have changed at Government level, she noted, and now the policy is to work WITH travellers rather than work FOR them. “In Kildare, this policy has been greatly helped by the Inter-Agency Committee set up with the help of the council,” she said, detailing how it involved garda, education and other agencies working together. “At this point a lot of good has been done, but there’s a long road to travel. The goal is that every member of the traveller community will be involved in every aspect of Irish life.”
Sr Rosario of the Athy Travellers Club said the women of the club had worked for 12 months to put this exhibition together - it has already been shown in Athy and Ballitore and will be travelling to the Eigse festival in Carlow next month. She noted, however, that the biggest problem still facing travellers is discrimination. “We hope to bring the exhibition to schools later, so that young people can see there is a worthwhile culture in this part of the Irish community.”
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KILCULLEN ESSO AND XL STOP 'N' SHOP
Open 7am-10pm for Fuel, Groceries, Toiletries, Flowers, Newspapers, Deli Food, Fresh Coffee and more.
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Former Intel boss honoured
LEIXLIP & MAYNOOTH, 20 May 1999: The former general manager of Intel Ireland, Frank McCabe, has been conferred with an honorary doctorate by the National University of Ireland, Maynooth, in recognition of his outstanding work in the industrial and educational spheres.
The conferring ceremony was held in the Renehan Hall, NUI Maynooth, and the degree was conferred by the Chancellor of the National University of Ireland, Dr Garret FitzGerald. Mr McCabe has already been conferred with an Honorary Doctorate from Dublin Institute of Technology and has been made a Life Fellow of the Institution of Engineers in Ireland. He will also shortly receive Honorary Life Membership of the Royal Dublin Society. |
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The most delicious of gifts from our finest Irish chocolates range are selling around the world from here.
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 VIOLET'S FLOWERS
Do you need to send flowers home for that special remembrance? Station Road, Kildare - Registered Teleflorist - Phone 045 522210
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ONE OF THE KILDARE WILD GEESE?
 Are you involved with any Irish organisations or groups abroad? Let us know where you are and what you're at by emailing KNN. And find out about your fellow wild geese.
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Parties 'having difficulty' in getting election candidates - Tanaiste
KILDARE GENERAL, 19 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. The difficulties of getting candidates to run for local authority membership were noted by Tanaiste Mary Harney when she officially introduced the Progressive Democrats candidates for County Kildare this week. “All the parties are having the same problem,” she said. “It may be partly due to a cynicism with politicians because of situations currently coming out, or it may be that when times are good people don’t feel as strong a need for the work of politicians.” She particularly regretted that the party had not been able to find a candidate to contest the Athy UDC elections, where she was sure there was a seat for the Progressive Democrats.
The candidates presented (pictured above with the Tanaiste) were Senator John Dardis and Cllr Timmy Conway for the County Council elections, both sitting members, and current member of Leixlip Town Commission Annette O’Toole. Cllr Conway is also seeking to retain his seat on Naas UDC. Newcomer to the electoral fray is Meda Carey for Newbridge Town Commission.
Senator Dardis commented that electoral boundary changes were having their effect, and he personally had lost Kilcullen and Allenwood, both areas where he enjoyed significant support, and he was this time particularly relying on Newbridge voters. He also noted that despite long-standing perceptions that the party was ‘going out of business’, it was in fact larger than both Sinn Fein and the Greens, and that in the last general election it had achieved 12.5% of the vote in Kildare South, the highest level in the country.
Cllr Conway said he was basing his campaign in Naas on his support for the Naas Town Development Plan, of which he was a main promoter ... he said that ‘hype’ being generated against the plan was a result of ‘the people not understanding it’ and he said he was confident that he would be able to survive the opposition to it. “I’ve been on the council for 25 years and have always been reelected,” he said.
Annette O’Toole said that the prime issues in Leixlip were parking and street cleaning, with a requirement for 400 public parking spaces urgently needed in the North Kildare town. “Traders are losing out to Liffey Valley and Blanchardstown as people just drive on instead of trying to find parking,” she pointed out.
Meda Carey, who has a strong record of commitment to Newbridge through the Tidy Towns and the Newbridge Access Group, said her canvassing showed a strong feeling that the Town Commission ‘should reflect the people who are now living in the town’. “It’s clearly a time for change on the commission,” she said.
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TIM CONWAY & CO - ACCOUNTANTS
Basin Street, Naas
We offer all accounting services including financial advice, taxation, company information etc. Contact 045 876492 or email at timmyconway@tinet.ie
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THINKING OF RETURNING TO IRELAND?
ARTHUR E MACMAHON, solicitors in Naas, can represent you in all your legal, conveyancing, and commercial needs with professionalism and confidentiality. Email us or phone +353 (0)45 897936; fax +353 (0)45 897615
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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Study highlights linkage opportunities for Kildare firms
MAYNOOTH, 19 May 1999: by Trish Whelan. Small enterprises in Kildare need marketing and joint marketing resources and greater support in these areas should be offered by the County Enterprise Board, according to a new study launched yesterday by minister for science, technology & commerce Noel Treacy TD. Kildare Linkage Study - An Analysis of Opportunities in Five Sectors was commissioned from the Centre for Local and Regional Studies at NUI Maynooth by the enterprise board as part of its original Action Plan, to see if there were opportunities for Kildare businesses in supplying components and services to large companies operating in the county.
“We found a number of specific difficulties,” co-author of the study Professor Jim Walsh said at the launch, “in particular we noted that very large companies who require sophisticated components rely on global suppliers for these. At a more local level we found that issues of quality, guaranteed delivery times and competitive costs came into play. And we also found that Kildare sub-supply companies could face competition from larger companies in the same sectors based in Dublin.”
The study identified specific sectors where there were significant opportunity possibilities, including the equine and haulage industries.
The minister congratulated the authors on their work, and also congratulated the enterprise board on its success over the past few years. “Up to the end of last year it has assisted in the creation of 327 full-time and 28 part-time jobs in 205 projects. It is the ‘shining star’ in the enterprise initiative across the country which has already achieved double the national target 8,000 jobs for a full five year period.”
The minister also launched a new ‘soft support’ publication, A Guide to Starting and Running Your Own Business in County Kildare. |
CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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NEWS OR VIEWS?
Something happening in your community that's bothering you? Or do you simply want to share the news from your village or town in County Kildare? You can, by emailing us at KNN
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For Ireland's best motoring news and reviews, visit MotorWeb
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YOU COULD BE GETTING YOUR MESSAGE ACROSS HERE TO A SOPHISTICATED (AND RAPIDLY GROWING) KILDARE AUDIENCE AT HOME AND ABROAD
Email us at KNN for full details, or phone 045 481090
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Anti incinerator group settle in for a long fight
KILCOCK, 19 May 1999: by Trish Whelan & Brian Byrne. The people who are opposed to the prospect of a hazardous waste incinerator in Kilcock are preparing for a long term fight. North Kildare/South Meath Alliance against Incinerators are in the process of forming a limited liability company to fundraise and manage their campaign against a project which they say has absolutely ‘no logic’ attached to it.
Fintan Hurley, a barrister who lives with his family in a listed converted church directly opposite from the centre of the proposed site at Boycetown, told KNN that while the proposed plant would technically be in Kildare, emissions could cause serious illnesses such as cancer, as well as birth defects, damage to the reproductive system and to the livers and kidneys of people in the immediate locality of both Kildare and Meath and across Dublin City, whose centre is just 18 miles from the site. Mr Hurley and a neighbour Pat O’Brien recently organised a public meeting against the controversial project which attracted up to 800 angry and concerned people from a population of 1,500 in Kilcock.
The £65m project has been submitted for planning approval by Thermal Waste Management (Ireland) Ltd on property which was last year rezoned by a material contravention for light industry use. According to Mr Hurley there is no similar plant using this design yet built anywhere in the world. “We’re guinea pigs for an unproven technology,” he said, “and it’s important to stress that it is TOXIC waste they will burn.”
He noted that at the going rate of £600 per tonne for disposal of toxic waste, the project would be a goldmine with its capacity of 100,000 tonnes a year. “Currently Ireland exports some 50,000 tonnes of such waste each year and there’s no knowing how much else is being stockpiled rather than being sent away,” he said. He also didn’t rule out the possibility that the availability of the plant could mean that Ireland could be importing hazardous waste from other countries for disposal.
A key concern of those opposed to the plant is the effect on young people in schools in the area. “It is my understanding that President Clinton in the US has pushed through legislation which prohibits the siting of an incinerator within a mile-and-a-half of a school. In this area alone there are five schools within that distance.” (Including Scoil Dara, pictured below.)
The project has led to political discord in the area since it became public and at this week’s meeting of Kildare County Council Fianna Fail and Fine Gael councillors roundly condemned remarks by local Labour TD Emmet Stagg which intimated that FF Cllr Liam Doyle had prior knowledge of, and supported the project. Their remarks were supported by county manager Niall Bradley who said emphatically that no councillor, council officials or staff had been aware this would be proposed for Kilcock. Mr Hurley said local people were concerned that An Bord Pleanala would give permission even if Kildare County Council refused it, as the Bord is not bound by the Kildare County Development Plan.
The campaign committee are approaching local stud farms and bigger businesses in the area for support. Fintan Hurley said the political aspect of this is crucial as the promotors have alleged that both minister for the environment and local government, Noel Dempsey TD and finance minister Charlie McCreevy have given it their full backing but minister McCreevy’s press office have denied that any such assurance was given at a meeting with the company’s people. |
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THINKING OF RETURNING TO IRELAND?
ARTHUR E MACMAHON, solicitors in Naas, can represent you in all your legal, conveyancing, and commercial needs with professionalism and confidentiality. Email us or phone +353 (0)45 897936; fax +353 (0)45 897615
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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KILCULLEN ESSO AND XL STOP 'N' SHOP
Open 7am-10pm for Fuel, Groceries, Toiletries, Flowers, Newspapers, Deli Food, Fresh Coffee and more.
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'Safe home' plan for children launched by Kildare's parents
 KILDARE GENERAL, 18 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. A unique and innovative initiative to guard against attempted abductions of their children has been launched by the Kildare Parents Association in asociation with the National Parents Council. The ‘2 for Safety’ scheme involves placing notices on utility poles outside schools to remind children to go home in groups of two or more, and so discourage the kind of predator which has been increasingly reported in the last year.
“The problem seems to have become more serious, if we are to go by the increased reports,” says Paddy Byrne, chairman of the Kildare Parents Association (pictured above presenting a sample of the signs to Catherine O’Rourke, representing the Convent of Mercy in Naas). “We had a think about how it could be addressed, and this is the idea we came up with.” The scheme is the first of its kind, and will be backed up with talks by teachers and garda liaison personnel in schools throughout the county. It was launched at a meeting of teachers and other interested parties which was attended by representatives from the Department of Education, the National Parents Council and gardai.
 “We’ve sent around 1,000 of the signs to the 90-plus primary schools in Kildare,” says Paddy Byrne. “The whole scheme has cost us around £1,000, which we have funded from our own resources. It would be nice if we could get somebody to contribute to the support of the scheme.” Pictured on left is Daithi Cearbhallain, representing Scoil Ui Dalaigh in Leixlip, receiving a sample of the signs in Irish from Kildare Parents Association committee member Joe Conron.
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The most delicious of gifts from our finest Irish chocolates range are selling around the world from here.
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CORRESPONDENTS WANTED
Due to service expansion, KNN requires community correspondents in the following areas: Athy, Monasterevin, Rathangan, Kilcock, Maynooth, Leixlip, Clane and Ballymore.
Email us at KNN , or phone 045 481090; fax 481091.
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Kildare target population upped by 50 per cent in 'premature' move
 KILDARE & COUNTY HALL, 18 May 1999: byTrish Whelan. Kildare town's ‘target’ population has been raised to 12,500 following the adoption of a submission by Kildare Chamber of Commerce by a majority decision at a special meeting yesterday. The adoption of the submission means that between 97 and 267 additional acres of land in the town will have to be rezoned when members revisit the Kildare town plan, according to senior council planner Philip Jones, who told the meeting that there is no shortage of already zoned land in the town and to increase the population target implying that future land is to be zoned, was ‘foolhardy.’ He pointed out that a survey in November 1997 had shown some 248 acres zoned residential had remained unused and said it was‘inconceivable that this has been used up’.
However FF Cllr Sean O Fearghail urged the adoption of the submission, despite the view of the county manager that such a proposal was ‘premature.’ He said there was an ‘understanding’ to revisit the Kildare plan in the aftermath of providing the Kildare by-pass. He pointed out that Kildare is one of the few centres where there is substantial support FOR development, but councillors were effectively debarred from looking at housing targets by virtue of the population target in the county development plan. “Please don’t deprive those of us who want the opportunity to develop,” he pleaded.
His proposal was seconded by Cllr John O’Neill, while Cllr Catherine Murphy warned to go from 9,000 to 12,500 population ‘will certainly develop a climate for resentment’. “It’s far too much as far as I am concerned,” she said. Her view was echoed by Cllr J J Power, who said 9,000 people was more than enough for the town of Kildare. “But I can see that if you are in business or an auctioneer ... or a builder ... then you would want this”.
Philip Jones pointed out that the population target in the plan is set at 8,220 and not 9,000 as suggested, and he said that the members were not talking about complying with national guidelines - but ‘turning them on their heads’. “In my opinion, it would be very wrong at this stage to be assuming extra zoning until you see what’s going to happen with land already there.”
County manager Niall Bradley said members must decide what size they want the town to grow and he said it’s an issue which requires a lot of investigation, to which Cllr O Fearghail replied: “I’m afraid we can’t wait another 14 years to be able to amend the situation.” The proposal was carried with councillors Murphy, J J Power and Tony Lawlor voting against.
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Welsh choir entertains in Kildare
NAAS & THE CURRAGH, 17 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. A three-day tour in Ireland this weekend brought the rich tones of 60-plus Welsh male voices to Dublin and Kildare as the Brythoniaid Choir made their first trip to Ireland. The visit was organised by Ray Lowney and Tony McAllister of Meritor Ireland and Joe O’Sullivan of Rathbride, and the concert venues included St David’s Church in Naas and the Stand on the Curragh Hotel.
The choir was started in Blaenau Ffestiniog 35 years ago by Meirion Jones (below left), who still conducts it today. The concert on Saturday night was arranged in conjunction with the Reverend Michael Wooderson of St David’s Church and included a talk on the history of the church by local historian Liam Kenny.
Their repertoire ranged from the Welsh hymn tune Gwahoddiad (Invitation) through Tchaikovsky’s Don Juan’s Serenade to selections from musicals by Richard Rodgers, Leonard Bernstein and Andrew Lloyd Weber.
 
Solo renditions were given by tenor John Eifion, one of the most popular and successful tenors in Wales today. Many of the works were arranged by Elizabeth Ellis, who has been the choir’s accompanist for the last 12 years. A concert in the Royal Hospital, Donnybrook, was held in conjunction with the Dublin Welsh Choir.
In addition to Meritor, local sponsors for the tour were Naas-based Dennison Trailers Ltd and AIB Naas. Stena Sealink helped with transportation. Choir President Elfyn Pugh thanked all those who had helped and made presentations to the local sponsors in appreciation.
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THINKING OF RETURNING TO IRELAND?
ARTHUR E MACMAHON, solicitors in Naas, can represent you in all your legal, conveyancing, and commercial needs with professionalism and confidentiality. Email us or phone +353 (0)45 897936; fax +353 (0)45 897615
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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Back from North Pole trip
 MONASTEREVIN, 17 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. When Monasterevin man John Cullen stood on the North Pole on April 13 last he was fulfilling a long-held ambition. The two-week trek on skis was with an international team (some of them pictured above) comprised of Spanish, British, Italian and Russian nationals, and started out from Siberia.
John (pictured on left standing at the North Pole and below pulling a sled across the ice on the outward part of the journey) is a director of West End Knitwear and is a keen outdoors man, and has climbed mountains, and ski-toured in many countries including Canada. But the extreme -35 degree cold of the Arctic was something well beyond his previous experience, and he said that meticulous attention to small details was necessary to avoid dangers of freezing. Among these was a ‘buddy system’ where two people would take turns to regularly check each other’s faces for signs of incipient frostbite.
The travellers skied for up to 14 hours a day on their trip, and were brought back from the pole by helicopter. KNN has talked at length with John and an audio interview about his experiences will be available on the site shortly.
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'Get tough' levies programme
COUNTY HALL, 17 May 1999: by Trish Whelan. Kildare County Council is to adopt a ‘get tough’ policy in the collection of outstanding development levies that can legally be collected with the appointment of a ‘dedicated person’ to look after the outstanding levies, back as far as 1995.
A report on outstanding levies was recently furnished by the council which showed that of the £12m demanded in levies, some £5.14m was still due to the council. This was revealed in response to a long-time request by Labour councillor Catherine Murphy which was supported by all members of the council.
Cllr Murphy had also sought information on where the levies collected, had been spent. She has long said that levies should be spent where they are collected. |
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New homes a 'commitment to rural communities' - KCC cathaoirleach
TICKNEVIN, 16 May 1999: by Trish Whelan & Brian Byrne. Ten new family homes opened in Ticknevin, Carbury, this week are a clear example of Kildare County Council’s commitment to the maintenance and revitalisation of rural communities, council cathaoirleach Jim Reilly (pictured above with some of the new tenants) said when he officially opened the scheme. “I believe we need to provide more such schemes throughout the county ... it is important that we continue to provide support for rural communities as well as meeting the needs of the larger serviced population centres.”
His theme was amplified by new county secretary Tommy Skehan, who said that ‘if you don’t have communities you don’t have a county, and if you don’t have counties you don’t have a country’.
 The Ticknevin scheme consists of two- and three-bedroom homes, designed specifically for the community by Patricia Ennis of Kildare Architects Ltd and built by Pat Moore of Emo in Co Laois (both pictured left). "In my opinion, the quality of these houses is better than many being built in the private sector," Moore commented. The £540,000 funding for the scheme was provided by the Department of the Environment.
Cllr Reilly, who is running for re-election on the FG ticket in the coming local elections, also noted that the families who were given the houses on the day are contributing to the future security of the local school (below right), and a planned ‘revamp’ of nearby Derrinturn by the council would provide further benefits.
 Meanwhile, with some 2,000 people on the housing waiting list in the county, Kildare County Council has ‘made strenuous efforts to buy land in settlement areas’ according to assistant county manager Terry O Niadh, who recently told councillors that ‘community gain will be a fact we will take into account when we are allocating zonings’. This, he said, can be land for housing purposes.
“It’s very difficult when you bid at auction and are outbid, as there is a flood of money floating around in County Kildare for land purchase,” he said. “We have been looking at buying land which isn’t zoned and hope to be coming to you with a material contravention.” He added that the council has proposals for the next two years to build in excess of 300 houses at a cost of £18 million. “In the last 4-5 years we have tried to spread building around the county but there is a skills shortage in the construction industry just now and this is why some contractors are withdrawing their tenders.”
Responding to a query by FG Cllr Senan Griffin, Mr O Niadh said private sites continue to be part of the Council’s policy. He said the council has built all the houses allocated to it over the past number of years, and has applied to the Department of the Environment to take up any spare allocations from other areas. He also said the minister has indicated there will be an additional allocation of social housing. |
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THINKING OF RETURNING TO IRELAND?
ARTHUR E MACMAHON, solicitors in Naas, can represent you in all your legal, conveyancing, and commercial needs with professionalism and confidentiality. Email us or phone +353 (0)45 897936; fax +353 (0)45 897615
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The Naas twinning trip to Dillingen - full stories are here
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CHAPMANS OF KILDARE
Main Rover, Land Rover and Volvo dealers, Kildare town. Phone 045 521203; Fax 045 521785. See our selection here.
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LOOKING FOR PROPERTY IN LEINSTER?
MICHAEL MCWEY & ASSOCIATES, Auctioneers & Valuers in Kildare town can locate private, commercial and industrial property to suit every requirement
Phone +353 (0)45 521714; Fax +353 (0)45 520186 Email mmcwey@tinet.ie
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IFG Three Day Event showjumping today
 PUNCHESTOWN, 16 May 1999: by Trish Whelan. Today is the final day of the IFG International Three Day Event which has been taking place at the National Centre for Equestrian and Field Sports at Punchestown since Thursday last and which has attracted some of the top event riders in the world to the Centre which is based at Punchestown Race Course, outside Naas.
The event is a qualifier for the Olympic Games which take place in Sydney next year and competitors have come from New Zealand, Australia, the US, Germany, Italy, France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Bermuda and the UK as well as home event riders. Punchestown boasts a new Olympic sized all-weather complex which was used for the dressage and for show jumping events. The total prize fund for the Three Day event is £25,000.
Competitions began with the dressage section on Thursday and Friday followed by the cross country yesterday and today sees the final show jumping phase of the event. Another attraction today is the National Country Fair which features lots of family entertainment including terrier racing, free flying falcons, fly casting and sheep shearing as well as the Gain Hunt Chase and the first ever visit of a Horseball team to Ireland. |
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Fair Green 'should be playground'
 NAAS, 16 May 1999: by Trish Whelan. A portion of the Fair Green amenity area should be converted for use as a children’s playground in Naas according to Ind Cllr Evelyn Bracken who wants community involvement in the project.
She believes the area presently used by the Fire Station would be an ideal site, once the new Fire Station is built on the Newbridge Road. But she hopes the old water tower building, presently home to the fire brigade and a local landmark, will be retained and used as a sitting area for parents and child minders, if they wish. And she has suggested that a small shop be sited in the building, run with community involvement. “I want everybody to come out and work on the project and I believe traders and suppliers will donate materials, free of charge,” she said.
Besides housing the fire service, the Fair Green area provides accommodation for a fairground and circus each year. Another suggestion is that the playground, previously suggested for the lakes area on the Ballymore Road, be moved to green space near the swimming pool.
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The most delicious of gifts from our finest Irish chocolates range are selling around the world from here.
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KILCULLEN ESSO AND XL STOP 'N' SHOP
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Litter fines 'not being followed through' - allegation
LEIXLIP, 16 May 1999: by Brian Byrne. Leixlip FF town commissioner Paul Kelly has called on Kildare County Council to ‘get off the fence’ on the issue of litter and ‘hit litter offenders where it hurts’ - in their pockets. He claims that the council hasn’t been following through with prosecutions on fines being imposed by the county’s litter warden.
"It is over a year since the only litter warden for the county was appointed," he said this week, "and he has spent that time letting people know that he’s around, talking to businesses and school children and generally informing people of the new litter laws. That’s all very well and he’s doing a good job, but until real action is taken on the ground, we won’t see an end to the problem of litter on our streets.”
Cmmr Kelly said he and his colleagues are ‘tired listening’ to town manager Terry O Niadh tell them at meetings that there would be no need for a litter warden if people didn’t drop litter. “That’s the same as saying there’d be no need for Gardaí if people didn’t commit crime. Of course it is some of the people of Leixlip who are littering their own town, but it is the statutory function of Kildare County Council to provide adequate bins and dispose of rubbish and to provide a reasonable street cleaning service. This is clearly not happening in Leixlip despite the town commissioners’ best efforts to supplement the Council’s archaic system."
Cmmr Kelly has asked when Leixlip is going to get the long-promised mechanical sweeper and a seven-day street cleaning service? He also says Leixlip wants a guarantee of an immediate replacement for the regular street cleaner when he is unavailable. “I have been raising these issues for years at town commission level and I will continue to do so until I am satisfied that Kildare County Council takes Leixlip’s litter problem seriously.” |
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