News

National Heritage Week is planned for 13-21 August 2022, and all communities in Ireland are invited to submit plans for events and activities. The closing date to notify county councils and thus obtain promotional support is soon – 7 July.

This year there is a special emphasis in sustaining heritage into the future, and on biodiversity.

Plans are being sketched out for a possible day of events in Kilfenora, probably a Saturday, highlighting our local monuments, including

• the work done by the Tidy Towns Team to create a biodiverse garden by the Holy Well
• opening up our ancient cathedral for a day, potentially for an arts and crafts exhibition, and for a possible concert and entertaining lecture
• music and dance activities around the village, including at the Burren Centre
• guided walks and cycle tours around the village and local area.

The intended audience is not just visitors but members of the community, by ensuring that what we do is entertaining and informative even for locals. We have so much to be proud of.

If you are a community member and have a suggestion for an activity, and/or are willing to help in any way, please send an email to [email protected] or leave a note asap addressed to Kilfenora Development at O’Gorman’s shop, preferably with your phone number included.

Also if you are an artist or craft maker and wish to have items displayed (and potentially sold!), please write in asap as above.

We need replies by 6 July at the very latest in order to inform Clare Council about what is planned.

Other villages and bodies will no doubt be putting together plans, so let’s try to make what Kilfenora has to offer really stand out!

Just a reminder that there are 3 days left before the official deadline (10 June) to respond to the proposals for a greatly expanded visitor complex at the Cliffs of Moher (CoM).

For those who are unaware, UK consultants Haley Sharpe were hired in 2019 by Clare County Council with Fáilte Ireland on a €400k contract to develop a plan to enhance the current CoM visitor centre. When opened in 2007, at over €35m this had been Ireland’s biggest tourism project. In recent years, a rapid expansion of visitor numbers comprised largely of day-trips has created problems of congestion while bringing revenue to the Centre but relatively little to the N Clare region.

What is now proposed is likely to cost €80m, and could take 5 years to complete. The key elements are:

• constructing a new larger visitor centre with expanded coach/car parking on the land-side of the road, with a pedestrian bridge over the road to access the site
• increased use of park-and-ride from nearby areas to try to constrain traffic
• re-purposing the existing visitor centre mainly as an ‘interpretation experience’
• seeking greater revenue per head to help pay for the investment by greatly expanding shopping and restaurant areas (similar design to airport terminals), hosting events and providing some entertainment, and promoting CoM branded goods in-shop and online
• creating a ‘rewilded’ park area to incorporate new cliffs viewing points
• meeting various environmental and safety objectives.

These plans are described in a detailed consultation document available here. This also contains a review of an earlier phase of consultation in 2021, which is said to have influenced the plans.

An attractive picture is painted of what the end result could be, once the land rights and official permissions are achieved, and the finances found. It stresses the importance of the Cliffs as a local employer and the need for improvements if it is to remain a ‘magnet’ for visitors.

However these are some of the concerns expressed by community groups and businesses, both in 2021 and about the latest consultative document.

• The plan talks of trying to encourage overnight stays, but essentially the CoM would remain a drive-through attraction that does not serve to increase tourism income across N Clare.
• The intention to create a ‘one-stop shop’ experience with all the best of local crafts etc seems designed to threaten the market position of other local tourism businesses.
• The vast expenditure projected at the Cliffs contrasts with tiny investment across N Clare. Official promotional spend is just concentrated on ‘signature attractions’ such as the CoM and Wild Atlantic Way.
• A ‘theme-park’ style expansion may harm the Burren’s image and threaten its Unesco Geopark status.
• The offer of buses to connect with Burren villages would be welcome, but not if the purpose is mainly to drive business towards the Cliffs visitor complex.
• The consultants urge that the CoM should work collaboratively with local communities and tourism businesses; yet the 2021 consultation revealed widespread scepticism and mistrust.
• It has been pointed out that there are no community representatives on the project steering group; the members are all from CoM, Clare Council and Fáilte Ireland, bar one.)
• There is no connection discerned between this ‘strategy’ and any plan to regenerate N Clare economically and socially.

As the plan’s purpose is to develop the CoM as a single internationally competitive attraction, there is no discussion about developing the Burren region as a rival to Kerry, Connemara, West Cork etc as a destination for a holiday. More staycationing would bring much higher visitor income, enjoying the great variety of things to see and do – including visits to the Cliffs – and reducing the current prevalence of day-tripping in and out of Clare.

The CoM plan talks of increasing the appeal to independent travellers as opposed to just coach tourists, as they spend far more. However, all research points to the preference of the more discerning visitor for varied, authentic and ‘different’ experiences (N Clare has many of these) rather than crowded spaces such as the CoM Visitor Centre, Bunratty etc. Ironically there is a distinct danger that this type of development will struggle to cover its cost because it may put off the most desirable customers.

Undoubtedly the decisions made will have a major impact over time on the future prospects of communities across North Clare, even for those not directly involved in tourism.

So what is your view? Are you persuaded by the imaginative suggestions in the CoM proposed plan? Or do you share the misgivings expressed so far by local communities and businesses?

Your options to comment are to write an email with views to the consultants leading the exercise on behalf of Clare Co Co and Failte Ireland – [email protected] OR there is also a short questionnaire – download here or fill in online – although this does not cover many of the important issues at stake.

And do also let us know at Kilfenora Development what you feel, to add to the views we have already received – write to [email protected]

A very special event will take place in Kilfenora Cathedral on Sunday 22 May at 4pm.

The new Anglican bishop for the diocese that includes Kilfenora will be enthroned to mark the taking up of his responsibilities. This follows hard on the heels of the installation of Bishop Michael Duignan as Bishop of Galway and Apostolic Delegate to the Catholic bishopric of Kilfenora.

The ceremony will take place during a celebratory service of evensong – with choir – with refreshments to be served in the Cathedral after the service.
Everyone in the Kilfenora community is welcome to attend this historic occasion.

This event last took place in 1981, when Bishop Walton Empey (later CoI Archbishop in Dublin) was enthroned. The special chair constructed to mark that occasion will be used again.

The new bishop is the Right Reverend Michael Burrows, whose diocese has just been expanded to encompass Tuam as well as Limerick and Killaloe.

He was previously Dean of Cork and Bishop of Cashel, Ferns and Ossory. He is Chair of the Church of Ireland’s Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue, Chair of the Board of Governors of the Anglican Centre in Rome, Co-Chair of the Church of Ireland-Methodist Covenant Council, and Patron of the Irish Guild of the Church (Cumann Gaelach na hEaglaise) – the Irish language society of the Church of Ireland. He is married with four grown-up children, and a keen railway enthusiast and organist.

 

More details about Bishop Burrows and his appointment can be read here.

The Pope has appointed a new Apostolic Delegate to the bishopric of Kilfenora.

Bishop Michael Duignan was recently installed as Bishop of Galway and Kilmacduagh and the Pope’s representative for Kilfenora. He is 52 and a native of Athlone.

Bishop Duignan will also continue in his previous role as Bishop of Clonfert.  This is apparently the first time in Irish Catholic Church history that a bishop administers 2 dioceses simultaneously. It has been emphasised that the two dioceses are not being amalgamated.

At the installation ceremony in Galway Cathedral, there were many Church dignitaries including Cardinal Sean Brady. The Pope was represented by a Papal Nuncio Archbishop, and there were representatives from all parts of the diocese including Kilfenora, and from the Church of Ireland. Methodist, Presbyterian and Islamic communities.

See here for more details, as reported by the Clare Champion under the heading “Kilfenora Bishop makes church history”.

The Clare County Development Plan sets the priorities and investment plans for many years to come.

The current plan runs from 2023 to 2029, and contains a short section on Kilfenora. (Click the link – we have included the index at the front.)

Click here to see a short list of issues we propose to seek Council support for, following discussion at the Kilfenora Town Hall meeting on 15 March. Please tell us by Sunday 27 March if you agree with this list and/or if you to wish to suggest any additions – email [email protected]

The public consultation closes on 28 March 2022.

The plan for West Clare as a whole can be accessed here. (Note that the plan for Kilfenora was not discussed with anyone in the community that we are aware of.)

Kilfenora’s own strategy document that has been circulated recently to the community has also been updated since our public meeting.  If you have views on that please also send them to [email protected]

A significant meeting of Kilfenora residents took place on 15 March to discuss Kilfenora’s future.

This was the first good opportunity to review a range of positive developments since the pandemic started and Kilfenora Development community group was formed (December 2020), and to focus on what should happen next – especially as consultation on the Clare county development plan closes on 28 March.

John Howard welcomed attendees and described how the Community Hall had been refurbished with grant aid from Clare Co Council.

 

 

 

 

 

Councillor Joe Garrihy stressed that it had been essential that Kilfenora formed an overall community group so that the village could speak with one voice to the Council and obtain public funding. And now Kilfenora is also represented on a new North Clare strategy group, a collaboration between the various communities to press for more investment and better policy making for the Burren.

Joe Killeen summarised how Corofin had benifitted from forming its community group. The other two North Clare councillors – Shane Talty and Liam Grant – also attended to show Kilfenora their support.

Stephen Hegarty talked briefly about the formation of Kilfenora Development and its work, and asked the community to read the draft strategy and plan for the village and give feedback.

Rev Kevin O’Brien (CoI) gave an update on work needed to repair and re-open Kilfenora’s historic Cathedral. The Council is helping to obtain Government funding – as neither Kilfenora nor the CoI have the resources. Going forward, the community needs to take over management of the Cathedral and generate funds for its upkeep, eg through concerts and other activities, in what will remain a consecrated building. He expects that both the Catholic and Anglican bishops will visit soon.

Dena McGrath gave an overview of the first year of the reconstituted Tidy Towns group – eg road and graveyard clean-ups, flower and bulb planting, the biodiversity garden at the Holy Well, working with the School – and of plans for 2022. The village needs volunteers to maintain their efforts.

Claire Collins explained what is being done to refresh both the soon-to-be renamed Burren Centre Café, and the craft shop – including an online dimension. She asked those not already shareholders to consider joining (only €10), noting that shareholders would be briefed at an upcoming meeting on the major investment in a re-designed exhibition – critical to bringing visitor spend to the village.

Eva Hegarty of the new Sustainable Energy team explained that a study is planned will help the community towards cleaner and cheaper energy sources – badly needed given huge price rises.

Thomas Coyne, the new National School Principal, described developments including a focus on technology skills, a new sports area, Irish language teaching, a composting workshop by Tidy Towns, and music classes with Brid O’Donohue following a gift of 50 whistles by Kilfenora CCE branch – seeking to maintain the village’s historic music tradition.

Carol Gleeson (Clare CoCo) explained that a Burren village signage scheme is needed to retain the Burren’s Unesco Geopark status – she showed the design that Kilfenora has helped to pilot. The Geopark is also helping to develop a badly needed Kilfenora visitor information sign.

John Lynch encouraged the community to support these various efforts to develop Kilfenora. The Kilfenora Céilí Band is continually flying the flag for the village, and will help where it can.

Andy Lambert, Secretary of Kilfenora Development, asked everyone to focus on what Kilfenora should seek to be included in the County Development plan to move the village forward – the key information is on www.kilfenoraclare.com and input can be made to [email protected]

The meeting concluded with informal discussion with the various contributors over tea and biscuits.