Galway Lotto player is Ireland’s newest millionaire!

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November 21, 2021

Galway Daily news Planning permission for co-working offices in Galway City

Planning permission has been granted for a new office development in Galway City, meant to provide co-working space for startups.

Comhoibriú CLG (Trading as CREW) has received approval for a two storey office block a the Cluain Mhuire GMIT campus on the Wellpark Road.

This development is meant to be a flexible, multi-unit co-working space for startup and fledgling companies.

The office block will be served by 17 car parking spaces, two of which will be outfitted with electric vehicle charging points.

There are 44 trees located on the site, and it is intended that 21 of these will be removed to make way for the office project, 15 of which CREW proposed to replace.

The council stipulated that six native trees beyond what the developer intended to must be planted on the site, and any additional trees taken out of it must be replaced.

Creative Enterprise West (CREW) was established as a joint initiative between partners including GMIT, Galway Film Centre, and Western Development Commission, meant to support the development of digital enterprises in the west of Ireland.

Last year over €6 million in funding was allocated by Enterprise Ireland, GMIT, and other partners for the establishment of a hub for the CREW initiative.

There were no objections or any other third party submissions made to the city council concerning this project.

Planning permission was granted by the city council for the development with a total of 13 standard conditions attached.

Mack delivers a €10,000 ultimatum on Ros na Rún

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November 21, 2021

Galway Daily television Mack delivers a €10,000 ultimatum on Ros na Rún

Mack pulls no punches getting his money back, Briain is now a complete outcast, and Caitríona might just be jealous of Vince in Ros na Rún.

Caitríona despite herself, is bothered that Vince is out socializing, while he is loving her apparent jealousy of his new found freedom, will he regret his brazenness.

Mack delivers a €10,000 ultimatum to Dee, demanding that she return the money she took from him, or suffer the consequences, whatever they may be.

Thanks to Briain, Berni now feels unsafe in her own home and uneasy around men. She even takes a lump out of her friend Laoise when she tries to pull Berni out her slump.

Has Briain gotten the better of her or will Berni find the strength to move forward?

While she doesn’t feel safe in her home, Briain has none of his own after the video of him attacking Sorcha gets out, and contemplates leaving Ros na Rún as he’s now a pariah in the village.

For her part, Caoilfhionn feels desperately guilty about releasing the video, as it may end of costing O’Shea her job.

Hoping she can rectify things. Caoilfhionn admits what she did to O’Shea, and is willing to take full responsibility for her actions. But will O’Shea let her?

Catch up on all the latest in Ros na Rún this week in a double feature omnibus on TG4 this Sunday at 7:30pm.

Five day roadworks to disrupt N17 traffic

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November 20, 2021

Traffic on the N17 in the north of Galway will be disrupted by five days or roadworks taking place next week.

Galway County Council is carrying out work on the N17 between Tuam and Milltown starting next Monday.

The roadworks will take place from 8:30am to 6:30pm each day, Monday – Friday, November 22-26.

A Stop and Go system will be in place to manage traffic during these hours.

Motorists are advised to leave themselves extra time for journeys if travelling on the N17 next week.

Galway United coach departs for high performance FIFA job

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November 20, 2021

Galway Daily sport Galway United coach departs for high performance FIFA job

Galway United has lost an important member of their backroom staff with the departure first team Head Coach, Lisa Fallon for a job at FIFA.

Lisa, who joined United ahead of their highly successful 2021 season, is taking up a post with FIFA in the High Performance department of the Technical Division.

She came to Galway having previously worked with Chelsea FC, Northern Ireland’s men’s national team, Cork City FC, and the Dublin GAA senior men’s footballers.

Speaking to Galway United’s media team, Lisa said that she “loved every minute” of working with the club, and is confident they’ll make it back to the Premiere Division.

Galway placed second in the first division this year, finishing six points behind Shelbourne United on the table.

A 1-0 loss to Bray Wanderers in the playoffs at the start of this month put an end to United’s hopes of getting back into the Premiere Division this year.

“We’re very disappointed that we didn’t achieve that goal this season, despite finishing second, but so much great work has been done by so many people this year and I have no doubt the club has everything it needs to get back to where it belongs.”

“I’m really grateful to John (Caulfield) and the Board for the opportunity to be head coach at this great club and also to all of the management team and the players who have been an absolute pleasure to work with this season,” Lisa added.

She said that the Galway fans “really are a different class” and made a huge difference when they came back to Eamonn Deacy Park to cheer on the team.

“The noise, the passion, the energy they bring is absolutely brilliant and the atmosphere for the last home game will be something that will live long in my memory.”

Manager of Galway United John Caulfield praised Lisa for her work “raising the standards” in the team this season, and said that she, her work ethic, and her expertise will be greatly missed.

“It was a pleasure to have her as part of our team and head coach. We wish her success in the next fantastic challenge in her career.”

COVID-19: Just under 6,000 cases reported today

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November 20, 2021

Galway Daily news Galway hospitals see COVID cases double in recent weeks

There have been a further 5,959 confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported by the Department of Health today.

As of this morning the number of people hospitalised with the virus has increased to 640 in Ireland.

Of these patients, 121 have been admitted to intensive care units for treatment.

A walk-in vaccination centre at St. Brigid’s in Ballinasloe has been open today for people aged 12 and over.

This comes as Chief Medical Officer Dr. Tony Holohan had urged the government not to subsidise the use of antigen tests, which are being adopted as a plank of the latest plans to manage this wave of COVID-19.

The CMO reportedly expressed concerns that people would misuse the tests, which are less accurate than the PCR tests that require a lab to process.

Of the more than 200,000 tests by appointment carried out in the past week, more than 15% are now coming back positive.

Appeals lodged against planning permission for Bohermore Hostel

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November 20, 2021

Galway Daily news Fresh plans to replace Bohermore pub with new hotel

Plans to demolish a long-standing bar in Bohermore and replace it with a substantial hostel have been appealed to An Bord Pleanála.

Peadar Tonery, owner of Tonery’s Bar in Bohermore, was granted planning permission by the city council to demolish the pub and the adjoining garage.

In its place he planned to build a 163 room hostel and commercial unit, consisting of a building with three floors above ground level, and with a further two storeys below ground level.

The city council approved this development for the most part late last month, aside from ordering the top floor of the hostel removed from the plans.

That decision is now being appealed by Galway Cycling Campaign, which objected to changes to the existing pedestrian connection between Bohermore and Forster Court on the site.

They say that the plans as approved by the council “will damage the convenience, directness, and coherence of the current pedestrian link to Forster Court, and will not be accessible for those using wheelchairs, pushing buggies, walking with bicycles and non-standard cycle, and those with limited mobility.”

They asked for the plans to be redesigned to make them more accessible to avoid people having to take long detours.

A first party appeal has also been lodged by Peader Tonery against Condition No. 3 of the planning permission, requiring the top floor of the building to be removed from the plans.

This says that the new building will only be one storey higher than what it currently there, and will not negatively impact the area.

There was a large number of submissions made to the city council concerning this project, roughly two-thirds of which were letters of support.

Other concerns raised by local residents included possible overflow of cars due to a lack of parking in the proposal, and the loss pedestrian access to Bohermore from Forster Court.

An Bord Pleanála is due to make a ruling on the appeal by March 9 of next year.

GMIT holding virtual Open Day today across all campuses

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November 20, 2021

Galway Daily news ATU Languages Competition for secondary schools returns for 2nd year

GMIT is holding an online open day across all five campuses of the IoT this Saturday, for up to date information on the wide array of courses available.

The event on will focus on the range of CAO programmes offered at GMIT, as well as apprenticeships and part-time, upskilling, Continuing Professional Development, and postgraduate courses.

The event will run from 10am to 4pm on Saturday, November 20 at openday.gmit.ie.

Over the course of this six-hour open day, participants can listen to career experts and engage directly with GMIT staff.

This will allow them to get all the latest information on crucial topics like how to apply to GMIT, employment opportunities for graduates, student supports, career options and student life.

Lorraine Cunningham, GMIT Schools’ Liaison Officer, said “While we would love to all be meeting you on site for our Winter Open Day, the next best thing, considering safety guideline, is that we invite you to join our event through an online platform.”

“We have found this very useful and it has opened many doorways for everyone, allowing greater access for new students both near and afar.”

“With each virtual event we are learning and growing, and this Five Campus Winter Open Day event is set to be even bigger than before.”

There will be two two live-streams running concurrently throughout the day, one focused on focused on general preparation for college, and the other on the many disciplines available.

Topics will be covered in panel talks, and staff, students, and past graduates will also be available for screen chats live for those interested.

“In addition to all the live streams, we have student experience videos, virtual campus tours, giveaways and new to this year’s event we have a selection of virtual booths for further one-to-one text Q&As,” Lorraine Cunningham said.

Along with the school and campus booths covering their respective courses, the many different services at GMIT such as the Students Union, Access & Disability (DARE), Careers Office, Sports, and more will also be on hand.

For those unable to join in today, a recording of the event will also be available online at the same address to browse at your convenience.

GMIT recently received approval to form a technological university together with IT Sligo and Letterkenny IT, which is expected to be created early next year.

Missing person appeal for teenager known to frequent Galway

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November 20, 2021

Galway Daily news Gardaí and family concerned for missing teenager believed to be in Galway

Gardai have issued a missing person appeal for a 16 year old girl who is known to frequent Galway.

Louise Little has been missing from Edgeworthstown, County Longford since Tuesday, November 16.

Louise is described as being approximately 5 foot 4 inches in height, with a slim build, long black hair and blue eyes.

Gardaí say the she is also known to frequent the Ballinasloe area of Galway.

Gardaí are appealing for anyone who may have information that could assist them to come forward.

Anyone with information on Louise’s whereabouts are asked to contact Granard Garda Station on 043 6687660, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station.

No ICU beds free at University Hospital Galway

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November 20, 2021

The number of COVID-19 cases at Portiuncula Hospital has declined sharply in the past few days, after reaching high levels earlier in the week.

There are just five confirmed cases at Portiuncula in the latest figures from the HSE, less than half the number present just two days before.

At University Hospital Galway case numbers have begun to creep back up after declining steadily in the past week, with 20 people hospitalised with COVID as of Friday night.

The number of COVID-19 patients in the intensive care units in Galway remain low, at two each in Portiuncula at UHG.

But despite this are no ICU beds available at University Hospital Galway in the latest figures, and just one at Portiuncula Hospital.

UHG has 14 regular beds available, but Portiuncula had none as of Friday morning.

The health service has been increasingly struggling with managing another wave of COVID alongside regular hospital services, especially heading into the winter.

Nationwide there were 607 people hospitalised with the virus, of whom 118 have been admitted to intensive care units for treatment.

COVID-19: 3,138 new cases reported today

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November 19, 2021

Galway Daily news 25 percent drop in COVID cases in Galway hospitals

The Department of Health has reported 3,138 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 this afternoon.

As of 8am today, 643 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised nationally, of whom 118 are in intensive care units.

Dr Tony Holohan, the Chief Medical Officer, said that people who are going to get COVID in December are not infected yet.

“Their infection is not inevitable and there is still time to prevent it by small changes in our behaviour,” he said.

Galway people encouraged to shop local this Christmas

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November 19, 2021

galway daily news galway chamber galway city council shop local campaign — Pictured (L-R) at the launch for the #SupportLocal campaign – Avril Smith, Eyre Square Shopping Centre and Galway Chamber Retail Committee Member; Patricia Philbin, Galway City Council and Galway Chamber Board Member; Aengus Burns, Grant Thornton Ireland and President of Galway Chamber; Eveanna Ryan, Connacht Hospitality Group and Galway Chamber Board Member; and Brian Carey, Bank of Ireland and Galway Chamber Company Secretary.

A new campaign has been launched encouraging people in Galway to help the recovery of local businesses by shopping local this Christmas.

The campaign, launched by Galway City Council and Galway Chamber, will be featured extensively on iRadio and Galway Bay FM, with advertisements emphasising this message broadcast both stations.

With many businesses having been closed for considerable periods during the various lockdowns over the past two years, the campaign aims to remind shoppers of how they can help boost the local economy during the festive season.

Additionally, ahead of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Galway Chamber will be highlighting a range of exclusive offers made available by Galway businesses.

“By shopping local you are supporting local jobs, the local community and businesses,” said Director of Services for Economic Development in Galway City Council, Patricia Philbin.

“Given all that has happened this year it is so important that we all, as a community, show our support to Galway businesses.

“Remember these are the businesses that are employing our family and friends, our neighbours and colleagues, and perhaps even our customers.”

Ms Philbin said that the survival of these businesses has an impact on all of us, as we are all part of the local economy and the local circle of business in Galway.

“By spending in these local businesses we keep more of that investment within Galway,” she said.

“We all want to see a thriving array of businesses operating in Galway. By shopping local this Christmas we can all do our part in ensuring that continues to be the case.”

Aengus Burns, President of Galway Chamber, said that Christmas is such an important time for local businesses, with many of them earning a significant part of their annual sales during this period.

“It is even more vital this year given the difficult period many of these businesses have been through since the outset of the pandemic as lockdowns played havoc with their normal trading,” he said.

“That is why we are so keen to ensure the success of this campaign. By getting more people to shop local here in Galway we are not just helping businesses to recover and survive, but we are also helping ourselves.

“Keeping the money in our community means more local jobs, more investment and it supports the circle of local economic activity, allowing more local businesses to work with other local businesses.

“Ultimately this is good for Galway and we hope shoppers will remember that and embrace that principle in the run up to Christmas.”

Walk-in vaccine centre operating in Ballinasloe tomorrow

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November 19, 2021

galway daily news Vaccine booster clinic continuing today for people in their 50s

A walk-in vaccination centre will open in Ballinasloe tomorrow, Saturday, from 10am until 3pm.

The centre at St. Brigid’s Hospital campus will be offering both first and second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine for people aged 12 and over.

Booster vaccines will not be offered at the clinic and children aged 12 to 15 must attend with their parent or guardian.

The clinic in Ballinasloe is one of 14 walk-in centres operating across the country tomorrow.

Three new Aldi stores announced for Galway as part of major expansion drive

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November 19, 2021

Galway Daily news Aldi chooses Portumna store to trial new 100% recycled plastic bags

Three new Aldi stores will open in Co. Galway as part of the supermarket chain’s €320 million expansion drive aimed at further growing its share of the Irish grocery market.

New stores in Athenry, Tuam and on Monivea Road, Ballybrit are among 30 new Aldi stores which will open across the country.

Aldi says that it plans to increase its investment in Ireland by more than 75% over the next three years compared to 2019-2021.

The new stores will provide additional trading opportunities for the 330 Irish producers that the chain now partners with.

Commenting, Niall O’Connor, Group Managing Director at Aldi Ireland, said that the new stores will bring ‘unbeatable prices, value and employment’ to more towns, villages and city suburbs.

“This investment builds on the €1.6 billion we have already invested in Ireland and is a clear sign of our ambition, and the demand that exists for Aldi to be in more locations across Ireland,” said Mr O’Connor.

“It’s also great news for Irish food and drink producers, who will have more opportunity to trade with Aldi. We will spend over €1 billion with Irish producers this year, an increase of almost 20% on 2020.”

First Christmas lights to be switched on tomorrow in Loughrea

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November 19, 2021

galway daily news loughrea lights up — Pictured are Sean McDonald and Ronan Dervan of the Loughrea Community Lights Group, together with Claire Conroy of Galway Rural Development. GRD have provided LEADER grants of more than €275k toward lighting-up Galway towns this Christmas.

Loughrea will kick off the festive season tomorrow when it becomes the first town in Galway to switch on its Christmas lights at 5pm.

A total of €275,000 has been allocated by Galway Rural Development to groups in major county towns over the past year to spread joy with their illuminations.

Five towns in Galway were awarded large allocations – Athenry, Ballinasloe, Gort, Loughrea, and Portumna, where the lights ceremonies have become Christmas traditions.

“This year, as we mark the beginning of the festive season in the different towns with the ‘switching on’ of the lights, we in GRD are keener than ever to do what we can to support our businesses and communities,” said CEO of Galway Rural Development, Steve Dolan.

“We have been through a difficult period but the new illuminations will help us all enjoy the magic of Christmas and be optimistic about the future.”

Senior Manager of GRD’s LEADER team Conor Carty thanked the community lights’ committees saying that “special praise is due to the groups who have purchased the most advanced LED Christmas lights available as these use up to 80% less energy.

“Small changes can make all the difference in reducing our environmental footprint, especially over Christmas when the potential for waste is higher.”

The Christmas Lights projects by GRD forms part of its ‘smart and competitive’ approach to supporting county towns, specifically in terms of replacing obsolete equipment and reducing energy consumption.

The environmental focus and building rural areas is central to the ‘Smart Villages’ and ‘Our Rural Future’ ethos being pursued by GRD into 2022.

Mother and Baby Home redress scheme is “mean-spirited” says SF rep

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November 19, 2021

galway daily news Advisory Board members sought for Tuam Mother and Baby Home excavation

Galway East Sinn Féin’s Louis O’Hara has described the proposed Mother and Baby Home redress scheme as “mean-spirited and insulting to survivors”.

O’Hara said that children who spent less than six months in a home after being stolen from their mothers are not entitled to any redress or an enhanced medical card, while mothers have been told that their suffering could only be worth €5,000.

“This six-month rule is totally arbitrary as every minute spent in these awful places was a minute too long, and it does not reflect the fact that it only took the religious orders a moment to make a decision that would fundamentally affect the entire future of a young child.

“It is essential that the religious orders who played a key role in the running of these institutions, shady adoptions and the unexplained deaths in Tuam are held accountable for their actions.”

He said that they must be required to make a substantial contribution towards the costs of the scheme and the Government needs to be more proactive in securing this.

“It is not good enough that the Minister for Children has only recently written to religious institutions requesting a contribution.

“The Government must now engage with survivors without delay and amend this scheme to ensure that it delivers adequate redress to all survivors.”

Palace Fields in Tuam awarded Green Flag status

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November 19, 2021

Galway Daily Palace Fields awarded Green Flag status

The beautiful Palace Fields park in Tuam town has received a Green Flag environmental award for the first time this week.

The Green Flag Awards are judged every year by a peer jury of green space experts, who volunteer their time to visit applicant sites and assess them against eight strict criteria, including horticultural standards, cleanliness, sustainability, and community involvement.

In Ireland, the international awards are managed by An Taisce, which chose 103 sites for the prize this year, comprising 84 formal public Green Flag Park sites, along with 19 volunteer run Green Community Sites.

Cathaoirleach of Galway County Council, Councillor Peter Keaveney welcomed this award, saying “Our public spaces are key to improving the quality of life for people living in Co. Galway. They also serve to make our communities more attractive to visitors, and in so doing help boost tourism.”

“Providing a space where people can safely enjoy the outdoors has been very important this year and I want to congratulate everyone in Galway County Council and Tuam Tidy Towns on this prestigious award for the Palace Grounds.”

This year, the environmental award was given to more than 2,300 different sites around the world in 16 different countries, though the bulk by far are located in the UK.

This year participating countries, alongside the Republic of Ireland, included Australia, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

Man convicted of causing crash by running red light

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November 19, 2021

A young man who caused a serious crash after running a red light was fined and disqualified from driving this week.

Joshua Shiel (25), of Dun an Oir, Loughrea was convicted of dangerous driving at Galway District Court for a late night crash on Bothar na dTreabh back on August 22 of last year.

The crash happened at 11:15pm that night at the Briarhill junction on the N6 Bothar na dTreabh.

The injured party, Stephanie Bell, was coming from the direction of Carnmore when she said she stopped at the lights at the Briarhill junction, waiting to go onto the Monivea Road.

When the light turned green for her, she said that she moved ahead, and only briefly saw something on her right before there was a huge bang that sent her car spinning round.

Her Toyota Yarris was spun completely around by the crash, and left facing back towards Carnmore, while Shiel’s went partially up onto the traffic island in the middle of the road.

After the crash, someone came over to her car and opened the driver side door with difficulty. She told the court that he just said to her “that was your fault”, and walked away.

Joshua Shiel gave evidence that the light turned green as he was approaching the junction. He said that he saw a car pulling out from another side, and tried to swerve to avoid it, but was only partially successful.

Ms Bell was the sole occupant of her car, and there were three other passengers in the other car, one of whom had to be taken to hospital by ambulance.

He said that he had come into Galway to pick up his girlfriend and her friends after he finished work in Ballinasloe that evening.

He said that he did go over to the injured party’s car after the crash to see if she was okay, and then after went back to his car as his girlfriend was unconscious.

He claimed that he told the injured party that she ran the light after she said that she didn’t know what had happened.

An independent witness told the court that he was waiting at a red light on the junction when a Volkswagen Golf came up from behind him in the next lane and drove through the red light, striking another car in its driver side front wing.

This was disputed by the defendant, who said that he was in the right hand lane to go straight ahead towards the motorway roundabout, the same lane the witness said that he was in.

The man who saw the crash said that he helped the injured party out of her car afterwards, and got her phone so she call gardaí, and then waited for them with her.

Inspector Finbarr Philpott said in cross-examination that none of the other people in his car said that the lights were green in their statements.

Another witness was coming from the direction of the Clayton Hotel after finishing work, but he said that he didn’t see the crash happen, only the aftermath.

Garda James Traynor told the court that he was called to the scene of a collision at around 11:30pm. He spoke with the two drivers and witnesses present.

The drivers of both cars showed no signs of intoxication and passed roadside breath tests he said. The driver of the Toyota Yarris was “visibly shocked and shaken” he said.

Judge Mary Fahy said that there was a “total conflict of evidence” from the two sides, but that she had to consider that there was an independent witness.

She also noted the force of the impact, which left the victims car “spun round” on the road, and that there was “obviously an ingredient of speed” in the collision.

Judge Fahy convicted Shiel and fined him €500 for dangerous driving. He was also disqualified from driving for two years, and ordered to pay witness expenses.

Leave was granted by the court to appeal the verdict.

Return to Galway Bay for COPE Christmas Swim

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November 19, 2021

Galway Daily news Return to Galway Bay for COPE Christmas Swim

The annual COPE Galway Christmas Swim is adapting with the times this year, keeping the online format that drew people from around the world, but also making its triumphant return to Galway Bay.

This year’s swim is a hybrid event taking place during Christmas week from 20-26 December and includes a “live event” on Christmas morning.

On December 25, swimmers will brave the icy waters of Galway Bay at Blackrock in Salthill from 9am to 1pm.

For others who can’t make it their that date, or who want to take part from around Ireland or abroad, they can swim where they are in Christmas week.

“Last year, Galwegians at home and abroad adapted to Covid restrictions and swam at their own location to raise funds for our services, resulting in a really engaging virtual event,” said event organiser Lynia O’Brien.

“This year, whether you brave the cold with colleagues, friends or family, whether you join us on Christmas Day or do it your way during the week, anywhere in the world, you can make a huge impact this Christmas.”

The 2021 event will have extra safety measures for the Christmas Day event, including the introduction of time slots.

The new swim website and registration portal gives options to register as an individual, family or a group. It allows you to set up a group and invite friends and family to join your team.

For over three decades, people connected to Galway have demonstrated the true meaning of Christmas by raising vital funds for those who need it through the services that COPE Galway provide.

Since the inaugural swim, the event has grown from strength to strength, bringing thousands of families and friends to Salthill every year.

Lynia continues, “When I think back to the brave, passionate group of COPE Galway staff who took the plunge into icy waters 32 years ago, I am sure they never guessed that they would inspire one of Galway’s most cherished Christmas traditions.”

COPE Galway supports people across Galway city and county at a most vulnerable time in their lives; families and individuals faced with the realities of homelessness, women and children experiencing domestic abuse and older people who may be isolated and in need of nutritional support.

Though the Christmas Swim event has changed with the times, now adapting to a virtual alternative during the pandemic, the community spirit has not faltered and the heart of Galway continues to have an impact from all over the world.

More information about the event, including how to register and take part, is available online here: copegalway.ie/events/christmas-swim.

Gardaí renew appeal for missing Galway man with new information

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November 18, 2021