What it Says in the Castlebar and Mayo Papers

4th of September 2000

Connaught Telegraph

The Mayo News

The Western People

Thousands come out to greet the Queens of Mayo, a story in The Connaught Telegraph this week.

As the Mayo ladies senior football team crossed the Shannon for the second year running with the Brendan Martin Cup, thousands and thousands of the great red and green followers came out to greet their heroines. It proved to be a homecoming that the ladies team richly deserved as they proved on Sunday last that last years first historic win was no fluke and that they are the cream of ladies football. As the team crossed the Mayo/Galway border, bonfires were lit all along the route to the final welcoming home reception in Claremorris. When they arrived in Claremorris shortly after 11 p.m. thousands had gathered from all around the county to greet them. Last night the team members continued on their journey around the county, and are hoping to have visited the entire county with the cup by the weekend.

Lights out? The Connaught Telegraph this week.

A community has expressed fears that heritage guardians will block their carefully laid plans to floodlight a 9th century Round Tower. Turlough Development Association, near Castlebar, has been preparing for a spectacular pre-Christmas 'switch-on' of powerful floodlights which would highlight the prized local landmark. But Dúchas, the National Heritage Council, has expressed serious reservations about the project. The venture, which also involves floodlighting the Church of Ireland on the main N5 approach route into Castlebar, is being generously supported by the National Millennium Committee to the tune of £14,000. Now the news that Dúchas is reluctant to allow the Round Tower, a listed National Monument, to be 'interfered with', has come as a bombshell to the local community. Mr. Dick Geraghty, Chairman of Turlough Development Association, said last night "We have been working tirelessly on this project for over two years. If we cannot proceed to light the Round Tower it will be absolutely devastating. It was the wish of the entire community that the Tower, which is in a magnificent state of preservation, be lit up at night. If illuminated the Tower would be seen for miles. Taken in conjunction with the lighting of the nearby Protestant Church, the impact would have been stunning".

£1 million Oireachtas festival boost The Connaught Telegraph this week.

Halloween is traditionally a quiet time visitor-wise in Castlebar, but all that will change spectacularly this year. Up to 12,000 people are expected for the Oireachtas na Gaeilge Festival which will focus on Irish culture and traditions. The additional financial spin-off for the town has been estimated at £1 million with the hotel, restaurant and bed and breakfast sector particularly benefiting. Speaking at the official launch of the Millennium Halloween Oireachtas na Gaeilge Festival in the Welcome Inn Hotel last week, the Chairman of Castlebar UDC, Councillor Johnny Mee said that such a major cultural Festival represents a significant economic boost to the west at the end of the tourism season. "Greater efforts should be made by tourism interests to attract other festival events to western towns in the off-season", Mr. Mee stated. It has been confirmed that the Irish Ambassador to the U.S., Mr. Sean O hUigínn will deliver this year's Oireachtas na Gaeilge lecture during the Festival of Sean-Nós (Nov. 2^nd - Nov. 5^th). The theme of this lecture will be "The philosophy of Irish Tradition within the Peace Process".

More power to Castlebar is one of the leading articles in The Mayo News this week.

The five-turbine wind farm project now nearing completion at Lenanavea, Burren, near Castlebar is led by Mr. Jim O'Malley of ENTRAC consultants, based in Sligo. It will produce enough electricity annually to power two thousand homes. The wind turbines are each rated at 400 KW and have been manufactured by the Belgian Company, Turbowinds. The project has been part-funded by an EU grant because of technical innovation in these wind turbines. Said Mr. O'Malley "This is the culmination of three years work from day one when landowner, Martin Crean and I, together erected the wind monitoring mast". The wind farm is expected to be fully operational shortly. Plans are also well advanced for the construction of a larger wind farm on an adjacent site at Raheen Barr by Pat Brett of Ecopower. The development will consist of 22 turbines, each rated at 660 KW by Danish manufacturer Vestas. They will produce enough electricity annually to meet the domestic needs of a town the size of Castlebar. The wind farm site is leased from 24 owners, many of whom live locally. Said Mr. Pat Brett "The wind farm will bring benefits to both the locality and the county. The wind in Mayo is an abundant source of natural power that can provide clean, green electricity while further enhancing the county's reputation as an environmentally - friendly county".

Growing anger over Mayo's ' Third World' road access The Mayo News.

Road users and development bodies throughout Mayo are becoming increasingly frustrated with the appalling condition of the roads from Strokestown right down to the Mayo border. Hauliers are also likely to target it as part of their ongoing campaign against Government, while tourism bodies privately concede that it is a serious deterrent to the growth of Mayo tourism. One haulier said the access into Mayo on the main road from Dublin was "Third World, and better could be found in parts of the African bush". It is a most serious indictment of those in charge of road-making and development in Mayo and Roscommon County Councils. The question has to be asked "what have the County Councillors in both counties been doing about the problem or are they aware of just how bad things are?" The urgent need to upgrade the road is certain to be put forward as a priority development when the £3.2 billion investment programme aimed at revitalising the Western half of the country is approved by Government and other agencies, probably at the end of the year.

Little room for supermarket giants in Westport The Mayo News this week.

A demand from Westport Chamber of Commerce almost certainly means that national and international supermarket giants will not look for business in the Clew Bay tourist town. In a development plan to cover the period up to 2005 the Chamber insists that all retail development must be a continuation of the existing town centre in order to keep the the heart of the town alive, both economically and socially. This demand reflects a concern that when new relief roads are laid around Westport, they could encourage some of the supermarket chains to consider developments on the outskirts of the town where car parking space could be easily provided. Ironically, because of urban boundaries, it would almost certainly mean that Mayo County Council rather than Westport Urban Council would be the planning authority to consider such an application for development, though it would undoubtedly take advice - non-binding - from the Westport Council. The demand by the Chamber for retail development to be a continuation of the existing town centre in effect all but vetoes major supermarket development there. There is no town centre site available to accommodate such development, though ample opportunity exists for the development of smaller enterprises.

Mayo - The Promised Land - with no rail service! The Western People this week.

The strike by train drivers may be over but there is no comfort from Iarnród Éireann for passengers from Roscommon and Mayo using the state monopoly service. Over the winter months people using the service from Dublin to Westport and Ballina can 'look forward' to continuing bus transfer from Athlone, according to Mayo Deputy Michael Ring. Deputy Ring has complained to the Business Development Manager for the region, Mr. Myles McHugh about the continuing failure of the company to guarantee access to Mayo and Roscommon. "People getting on a train in Dublin do not know whether they will arrive in Mayo on the train, on a bus or by donkey and cart. That is the level of service people in Mayo and Roscommon are getting from Iarnród Éireann and now the company do not have striking drivers to blame", complained Deputy Ring. Deputy Ring has been informed that the inability by Iarnrod Eireann to guarantee a service results from the Company's "On track 2000" Investment Programme which involves laying new track on the Mayo Route during October. "Moses led the Israelites in and out of the Promised Land in less time than it takes Iarnrod Eireann to lay a few hundred yards of track. The people of Mayo are convinced they live in the Promised Land because all they get from Iarnród Éireann and the government is promises," said Deputy Ring.

Plans to house 28 refugees in Castlebar The Western People this Tuesday.

A meeting has been held by the Department of Justice to advise and discuss with interested parties plans to house 28 asylum seekers in a hostel on Thomas St. in Castlebar over the coming weeks. Cllr. Aidan Crowley, who attended the meeting as a public representative and member of Castlebar Urban District Council, said that there was a positive feeling at the end of the meeting but that three negative issues had arisen. The first was the fact that the location where the asylum seekers were to be housed had been chosen by the Department without the decision being discussed with the residents of the area. Cllr. Crowley said that he felt that this was not "a good idea" and was unfair on the people in the vicinity. The second issue to arise was that of the suitability of the premises. One public representative said that it was especially unsuitable for children, as the front door of the hostel opened onto a main street and there was no back garden. In reply, a representative from the Justice Department, said they had asked for and received a report from the housing authority of Mayo County Council. The report had suggested that the hostel was suitable for up to 40 asylum seekers and it was from this they made the decision to house 28 people. The third issue was the fact that under law, all those who are placed in the hostel are obliged to remain living there until their application for Irish citizenship has been processed. The implications of this are that if any of the residents are offered a job, they cannot accept it.

Major investment of £3.2 billion for BMW region The Western People this week.

A major investment package worth over £3.2bn is planned for the B.M.W. region over the next seven years. It represents the largest investment package ever in the region, coming under the B.M.W. Regional Operational Programme. The package includes road infrastructure, rural water, e-commerce, tourism, small enterprises, forestry, agricultural programmes, childcare and youth initiatives. The implementation of the various measures will be carried out by various government departments, state agencies and local development bodies.

Go to Castlebar