Shannon.ie - Town Council Meeting Minutes May 2007

In attendance : Mr. Gerard Dollard – Town Manager, Nora Kaye – Housing Officer, Tony McNamara - Senior Executive Engineer in Housing and Tomás Mac Cormaic - Town Clerk

Proposed by Cllr. Flynn, seconded by Cllr. McKee and resolved; "that the minutes of a special meeting between the Town Council and residents of the Cronan Estates held at 6.00 p.m. on Tuesday April 3rd 2007, having been circulated, be adopted and signed by the Meara Bhaile."

Proposed by Cllr. McCarthy, seconded by Cllr. Flynn and resolved; "that the minutes of the April monthly meeting of the Shannon Town Council held in the Shannon Town Hall at 6.30 p.m. on Tuesday April 3rd 2007, having been circulated, be adopted and signed by the Meara Bhaile."

Proposed by Cllr. McLoughlin, seconded by Cllr. McKee and resolved; "that the minutes of a special meeting of the Shannon Town Council held in the Shannon Town Hall at 7.00 p.m on Wednesday April 11th 2007, having been circulated, be adopted and signed by the Meara Bhaile."

The housing officers gave both a verbal and written report on plans to refurbish 48 houses in Inis Ealga and 53 houses inherited from Shannon Development Co. It is hoped that this program can commence in October of this year. There are some problems with approval from the Department of the Environment on the design of the complex to replace the apartment blocks in Tradaree Court. Pressure is being put on the DOE stressing the urgency of redeveloping this complex

Proposed by Cllr. McCarthy, seconded by Cllr. Hillery and resolved ; "that the 2007 Annual Meeting of the Shannon Town Council be held in the Shannon Town Hall on Tuesday June 26th at 6.30 p.m. and that the July monthly meeting be brought forward one week to be held immediately after the Annual Meeting."

The original proposal for this scheme was estimated to cost €55,000 with €37,000 being grant aided and the balance of €18,000 being recovered from the sale of timber. This scheme is now being reviewed and will not proceed without consultation with residents of Tullyglass

Cllr. Flynn reported that the project to erect information maps in selected areas is ongoing and he would hope to present estimated costs for the project at the next meeting. He has recruited two new members to the M.P.C., Derek Barrett representing the Chamber of Commerce and Paddy Halton of True North Mapping. The Newsletter is almost ready but he would prefer to put a hold on it’s distribution until after the general election because of the amount of election documentation currently being delivered to homes. Cllr. McLoughlin asked if advertisers listed on the Shannon Website who had not paid to be listed would be removed, and if not, would those who had paid have their money refunded. He was told that only those who had paid for advertisements would remain on the site

Cllr. Duff reported that he hoped to have a financial statement on the St. Patrick’s Day Parade expenses and income at the next meeting and also a report on the "community initiative."

A verbal account was given by the Manager on items relevant to Shannon Town discussed at the April Area Council Meeting . Minutes of this meeting are available on the Shannon Website

Proposed by Cllr. Flynn, seconded by Cllr. Duff and resolved; "that the Town Manager inform Shannon Town Council what effects the decision by Clare County Council to discontinue the role of Development Officer will have on Shannon and the environs of Shannon." The manager acknowledged the contribution of the Development Officer over the past four years but pointed out that it was never intended that the position be permanent. Arrangements have been made for the orderly handover of the Development Officer’s functions to other Council Staff. It was then proposed by Cllr. Flynn, seconded by Cllr. McLoughlin and resolved; "that Mr. Alec Fleming, Clare County Manager, be asked to meet a delegation from Shannon town Council to discuss the decision to terminate the post of Shannon Area Development Officer and also to discuss the inadequate staffing of Shannon Civic Offices."

Proposed by Cllr. Flynn, seconded by Cllr. McLoughlin and resolved; "that Shannon Town Council show leadership and vision by putting forward a plan for a Truck Parking Facility in Shannon to alleviate the problem of trucks parking in housing estates."

Proposed by Cllr. Duff, seconded by Cllr. Flynn and resolved; "that Shannon Town Council call on Clare County Council to erect signs prohibiting driving, except for emergency services, along the boreen from the rear of Tullyvarraga Crescent to Rosbracken." The proposer of the motion explained that on occasions some reckless and dangerous driving takes place on this road. When it was explained that this is a public road it was suggested that the matter be referred to the County Council to find a resolution to this dangerous use of a narrow road."

Proposed by Cllr, Hillery, seconded by Cllr. McMahon and resolved; "that this council request an update from the Town Manager on the present works on the pathway at the rear of houses 161, 160, 159 and 158 Finian Park with specific reference to security fencing."

Proposed by Cllr. Flynn, seconded by Cllr. Lambert and resolved; "that Standing Orders be suspended to allow the meeting continue until 8.45 p.m. in order to complete the Clár Oibre."

Proposed by Cllr. McMahon, seconded by Cllr. Lambert and resolved; "to request Clare County Council to repair dangerous areas of footpaths in Aidan Park Area to a safe standard and outline what program is in place for all the old footpaths in the area." This program has been decided in consultation with the members of the Town Council and already circulated to all members."

Proposed by Cllr. Duff, seconded by Cllr. Hillery; "that Shannon Town Council having previously taken steps to prevent the dumping of Supermarket Trollies, recognise now that these steps have failed and that there is a need to discuss other measures to address the ongoing problem." It was agreed to seek a further meeting with representatives of Tesco, Dunnes Stores and Lydl

Proposed by Cllr. Hillery, seconded by Cllr. Lambert and resolved; "that some safety controls be installed at the junction of Bothar Bri and the entrance to Skycourt Multistorey Car Park."

Proposed by Cllr. McMahon and seconded by Cllr. Flynn. "that Shannon Town Council request the following information from the Chief Ambulance Officer in relation to the provision of an ambulance base in Shannon; (a) the actual date when the service will be provided, (b) where the base will be located, (c) is the service regarded as a priority and (d) explain the delay since the announcement of the proposed service."

The following amendment was proposed by Cllr. McLoughlin seconded by Cllr. Hillery and resolved; "that Shannon Town Council ask from the Chief Ambulance Officer clarity in relation to the provision of an Ambulance Service or an Emergency Service Response Unit for Shannon."

Proposed by Cllr. Lambert, seconded by Cllr.McLoughlin and resolved; "that Shannon Town Council requests the Gardai to ensure that motorists do not park on footpaths around the town, forcing pedestrians to walk on roadways."

Before the meeting closed the Town Clerk announced that the dinner to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Local Government in Shannon would probably be held in the Oakwood Arms Hotel on a date in June to be decided in consultation with the Meara Bhaile. Confirmation of the date and time would be circulated in due course

Signed: ___________________________ Meara Bhaile

Dated: ________________________

Signed: ___________________________________ Cleireach an Bhaile

Dated: May 3rd 2007