Minutes of the February Meeting of Kilkee Town Council
held on Monday 4th February 2008 at the Sweeney Memorial Library, Kilkee

Cathaoirleach sa Cathair:

Cllr. P.J. Linnane

I Láthair:

Cllr. Tom Nolan, Cllr. Michael McGrath, Cllr. Claire Haugh, Cllr. Lily Marrinan Sullivan, Cllr. Michael Martin, Cllr. Carmel Deloughery

Apologies:

Cllr. P.J Lardner, Cllr. Brian Keane

I Láthair:

David Timlin, Director of Service & Town Manager
Derek Troy, Executive Engineer
Eamon O’Dea, Senior Executive Engineer, Kilrush
Siobhán O’Keeffe, A/Town Clerk

1. Minutes of the January monthly meeting of Kilkee Town Council held on Monday 7th January 2008 at the Sweeney Memorial Library, Kilkee.

Siobhán O’Keeffe, A/Town Clerk confirmed that there is no change to the status of Lisdeen Transfer & Recycling facility in terms of introducing charges for recyclable goods at present.The minutes of the January monthly meeting of Kilkee Town Council held on Monday 7th January 2008 were then adopted having been proposed by Cllr. Claire Haugh and seconded by Cllr. Tom Nolan

2. Review of Kilkee Traffic Management Plan

All elected members present voted in favour to receive a deputation from Railway Road/Ball Alley Lane without notice. Cllr. Linnane welcomed Jimmy Furlong and Cormac O’Shaughnessy and invited them to address the meeting.
J. Furlong thanked the members for allowing him to address the meeting. He said that the residents of Railway Road / Ball Alley Lane still objected to the double yellow lines but stressed that they were open to discussion with the council. He asked that before any final decision was made that the council would revert back to residents with any proposed changes. He concluded by saying that they were interested in a neighbour friendly solution.
Eamon O’Dea, Senior Executive Engineer introduced himself to the meeting and referred members to a report that had been circulated together with a copy set of all submissions received as part of the consultation process.

Report presented by Eamon O’Dea, Senior Executive Engineer

Twenty-one written submissions were received on the review of Kilkee TMP. Based on the submissions received the Council intend to look at the following areas:

• Provision of traffic calming measures on Esplanade, Strand Line and Marine Parade
• Carrigaholt Roundabout and the car park opposite St Senan’s Terrace.
• A seasonal one way system on Circular Road between Corry Lane and Carrigaholt Roundabout
• Jimmy’s Hill parking layout.
• Location of Pedestrian Crossings on O’Connell Street.
• Upgrading of Well Road Car Park.
• Seasonal nature of peak traffic flow in Kilkee.
• Concentration of Traffic Management Plan on arterial roads and streets in Kilkee
• Time limits on parking in commercial areas of the town.
• Long Term Issue of link roads from West End to Doonlickey Road to Carrigaholt Road.

Report Ends

Eamon O’Dea informed members that as a next time step it was proposed to hold a joint meeting in committee between members of Kilkee Town Council and Kilrush electoral area. This had been discussed at the electoral area meeting and the date for such a meeting had been agreed as follows:

• Tuesday 19th February at 2pm in Kilrush Golf Club.

Eamon advised that subsequent to that meeting, follow on meetings can be held with individual groups to discuss changes to the traffic management plan.
David Timlin, Town Manager welcomed the round table discussion between town and area councillors and said that this was a good starting point. He said it was probable that a number of options could be tried out this summer and stressed that the council was prepared to be flexible. Cllr. Lily Marrinan Sullivan asked that in the context of a pedestrian crossing on O’Connell Street that consideration would be given to a zebra crossing on the strand line. Cllr. Nolan said that the council should not be afraid to go down the road of one-way systems, which have worked for other towns. He said that pedestrian safety was key.

3. Notice of Motion submitted by Cllr. Tom Nolan

“That a footpath for pedestrians be provided as a matter of urgency in respect of health and safety on the Dunlickey Road, to complete the ‘Cliff Walk’ circuit.

Cllr. Nolan said that he had brought this notice of motion forward in the context of Kilkee being an amenity area with the cliff walk being one of its most important aspects and the main reason some people come to Kilkee. He said that at present, the road surface is dangerous, passage of trucks is dangerous and consequently Kilkee is losing attractiveness to visitors.

Response submitted by Derek Troy, Executive Engineer

A short section of footpath (continuation of existing footpath) has been included in proposals for funding 2008 Special Block Grant for the provision of new footpaths and repairs to existing footpaths in former town commissioner areas. Dunlickey Road (L2008) is included in the Clare County Councils 2008 & 2009 Roadworks Programmes. This will include road reconstruction/strengthening and surface water drainage. The provision of a footpath will involve major land acquisition/boundary setback and may be considered in future Roadworks programmes. Boundary setback and footpath provision will also form a condition on any future planning applications along this route.

Response Ends

Cllr. Nolan said he was against more money being spent on this road due to the damage being caused by traffic serving the Quarry at Moveen. He said that the road would be wrecked again in no time. He referred to the narrow footpath at Cappa, Kilrush as an example of how a footpath can be accommodated on a narrow stretch of road. Cllr. Martin asked how much money had been spent on this road over the last 10 years and said that improvements would only give trucks a licence to speed. He didn’t agree that the road was too narrow to provide a footpath and that we should not forget that the cliff walk is one of the nicest walks in Ireland. Cllr. Marrinan Sullivan agreed said there was a serious health and safety risk to pedestrians on this road at present referring to an incident where a pedestrian was recently hit by lose stones coming up from the road. Eamon O’Dea, Senior Executive Engineer advised that the reason this road was included in the roads work programme was for this very reason, to make it easier to use this amenity. He also said that Clare County Council (CCC) is looking at the provision of signage re walking safely. Eamon also said that he would personally write to the Garda Supt. and request that their mobile weighing unit is brought to this area in the near future to weigh trucks. Cllr. Nolan concluded that this was a walk long before it was a walk and that it urgently requires attention.

4. Notice of Motion submitted by Cllr. Tom Nolan

“ That water and commercial rates be applied to Holiday Homes in Kilkee which have benefited from Tax Incentive Schemes”.

Cllr. Nolan said that holiday home owners who are renting their properties in Kilkee are operating this as a business and are not paying water charges.
David Timlin, Town Manager said that individual holiday homes are not liable for rates and that this was a matter for national legislation. He said that there was no provision at present for such charges and that Clare County Council is applying national rules. Cllr. Nolan said that many holiday homes are commercial premises and that it is up to Clare County Council to implement this aspect of the law. This was supported by Cllr. Haugh and Cllr. Marrinan Sullivan. Cllr. Nolan said that there was no reason why Clare County Council cannot have discretion on this matter and that water is becoming a critical issue. A number of Councillors indicated that they were not targeting individual holiday houses that were not rented out, but used solely by their owners on a longstanding basis. David Timlin agreed to consult with the water services and finance section to get confirmation on this matter.

5. Notice of Motion submitted by Cllr. Tom Nolan

“That the Town Engineer reveal plans and timetable for work at Burns’ Cove”.

Response submitted by Derek Troy, Executive Engineer

Quotations have been requested for the proposed works at Burns’ Cove, (as put forward at the December monthly meeting). I would estimate the cost would be in the region of €18,000 to €20,000 due to the accessibility difficulties with the site. There is no funding currently available to proceed with these works. All future funding opportunities will be explored as they arise. When all quotations have been received, a request for use of development contributions will also be made to the Planning Section. As this location falls inside a special area of conservation (SAC002264 – Kilkee Reefs) Clare County Council will refer all proposals to the National Parks & Wildlife Service (NPWS) which is part of the Department of the Environment Heritage and Local Government.

Response Ends

Cllr. Nolan thanked Clare County Council for the railing that was in put in place at Burns Cove and now called for the job at Burns Cove to be finished.

6. Notice of Motion submitted by Cllr. Claire Haugh

“ That the beach maintenance staff P.J McNamara & Michael Geary commence work on the 1st April this year”.

Response submitted by Siobhán O’Keeffe, A/Town ClerkIn 2007, PJ McNamara & Michael Geary were contracted to work for the period from 20th April to 13th September inclusive (21 weeks). While wages are paid directly by Clare County Council, wages are recouped from Kilkee Town Council. Any extension of these seasonal contracts has not been provided for in the wage allocation of the Kilkee Town Council Budget 2008. The tendering process for the grass-cutting contract in Kilkee will begin next month. Subject to favourable weather conditions, Clare County Council will consider commencing this contract earlier this year. (The first cutting in 2007 was on the 13th April 2007).

Response Ends

A/Town Clerk clarified that wages and materials for the seasonal contract workers is provided for in the Kilkee Town Council budget but that the cost of grass cutting was not and that this was a annual contract paid for by Clare County Council. She said she would work with her colleagues in CCC to bring forward the tendering process for the grass-cutting contract so that grass cutting can commence at the start of April and that this should assist the seasonal workers.

7. Notice of Motion submitted by Cllr. Claire Haugh

“ That a sign be erected in the sea front area in relation to the ‘drinking laws”.

Response submitted by Derek Troy, Executive Engineer

Signage may be erected to reflect the current ‘Control and Regulation of the Consumption of Intoxicating Substances in Public Places Byelaws 2006’ in the sea front area. These byelaws cover all public places within the town boundary. Therefore the provision of such signs should be carefully considered in this context.

Response Ends

It was agreed that the beach was the problem area and so it was agreed to start with one pictorial sign around the beach area.

8. Notice of Motion submitted by Cllr. Claire Haugh

“ That the necessary equipment i.e. extension ladder and lawn mower be made available to the beach maintenance staff”.

Response submitted by Derek Troy, Executive Engineer

Any necessary equipment required by the beach maintenance staff will be made available if requested through area supervisor and approved by the town engineer subject to funding. Please note that Kilkee Town Council did purchase a ride-on lawnmower in 2006 at considerable expense.

Response Ends

9. Correspondence

• 9(a) Correspondence from Clonmel Borough Council was supported.
• 9(b) Correspondence from Passage West Town Council was noted.
• 9(c) Correspondence from Portlaoise Town Council was supported.

10. A.O.B

Storm Line in connection with Convent Development

Cllr. Lily Marrinan Sullivan said that a lot of people are upset about the unsightly new pipe coming right onto the centre of the beach and felt that the beach amenity was being damaged to facilitate development and that this was not right. hese concerns were supported by Councillors Haugh, Linnane, Nolan and Martin. Cllr. Nolan stated that planning should not have been granted and that this would not only be storm water / rain water. The said that the connection had not yet been made and so it should be stopped. Cllr. Marrinan Sullivan raised concerns re jeopardising the blue flag status of Kilkee Beach which had been compromised in the past. She said that it was not acceptable that storm water from a private development would flow onto a public amenity and that it should be diverted into an existing system. Derek Troy, Executive Engineer said that it would assist to alleviate flooding in some of the areas around the Carrigaholt road. It was proposed to hold a special meeting of Kilkee Town Council to discuss this matter in more detail. This would allow executives of CCC to review the planning permission granted and reports etc. The meeting was agreed for Tuesday 12th February at 5.00pm in the Library. It as agreed that this would be the only item on the agenda.

As there was no further business the meeting concluded.