Tests show contaminated South Park soil is ‘no longer threat to public’

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

Contaminated soil in South Park no longer poses any risk to human health a new report has confirmed, although a local councillor said it should not have “taken eight years to come up with this analysis”.

In a new, written, report, by City Hall, Galway City Council management confirmed that detailed re-examination and soil retesting shows there is now no risk to human health from the contaminated soil and that there is no requirement to remediate the site.

Exploring traditional skills on the Aran Islands

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

‘Seo é Inis Oírr’, a workshop weekend celebrating island crafts and the traditional skills of Inis Oírr, Aran Islands, takes place from September 19 to 21.

Corribdale Duathlon on this Saturday

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

The second annual Corribdale Duathlon will take place on Saturday in Oughterard.

Council applies for major Salthill to Silverstrand walkway

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

A scenic pathway and footbridges spanning the shoreline between Salthill and Silverstrand is the subject of a major new planning application.

The Galway City Council has applied to the Department of the Environment for a foreshore licence to pave the way for a continuous coastal walkway. Applications to the Department can be a protracted process.

Galway Baytones host top Norwegian a cappella group tonight

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

Fans of a cappella singing are in for a treat tonight when the Galway Baytones host top Norwegian a capalla group Halvdan Svartes Guttekor from Norway.

Public consultation on ‘world class’ Eyre Square to Ballinasloe greenway

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

Public consultation on the Galway city to Ballinasloe section of the Dublin to Galway greenway is to begin next month with planning permission expected to be lodged with An Bord Pleanála by autumn 2015.

Traffic delay warning as stop/go in place as Lough Atalia ahead of road lowering

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

Motorists are being warned of possible traffic delays caused by a stop/go system at Lough Atalia bridge to facilitate site investigations ahead of a major road lowering project due to begin next January.

Change needed to tackle housing crisis

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

The Rental Accommodation Scheme is a waste of time, that is according to a number of city councillors who called for major change to properly address the housing crisis which has gripped the city and left many families with young children homeless.

Kyne accuses Dublin MEP of ‘threatening progress’ on Connemara road

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

A Dublin MEP has been accused of “threatening progress” on a road she “does not travel regularly”, by raising questions about it in the European Parliament.

City Hall investigation into houses allocation accusations continues

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

The internal investigation over allegations that a Galway City Council official improperly allocated a house to a fellow council staff member remains ongoing in City Hall

What have the Scots ever done for us?

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

Next week when the Scots go to the polls to vote whether to stay or nay, there'll be mixed feelings on this side of the country. We might have watched with pride the exploits of Mel Gibson as William Wallace, roaring on his compatriots (all of whom looked like Brendan Gleeson) in the battle against the Sassanach in Braveheart; we might have found ourselves running down that street with Ewan McGregor in the opening of Trainspotting; we might have found ourselves singing in the street at 4am to the lyrics of The Proclaimers; we probably roared on Archie Gemmill when he scored that wonder goal against the Dutch in the '78 World Cup, but here in Galway, there is only one thing that we have not yet forgiven the Scots for — and that's the stealing of Digital.

We had lived peacefully with our Celtic (and Rangers) cousins for centuries, always eying each other up and down with a degree of camaraderie but with an even greater degree of suspicion in a sort of 'you couldn't be up to them' sort of way.

Scotland’s independence vote will affect us

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

With the schools back, the evenings longer, and summer giving way to autumn, focus is switching to the resumption of the Dáil and to what the political environment will be like over the coming months. Are we facing a winter of discontent or are the dark skies starting to give way to brighter days?

Remembering The Great War’s fallen Irish through art

Thu, Sep 11, 2014

THE CENTENARY of the First World War has prompted many commemorations of, and fresh reflections on, that vast and cataclysmic conflict. Here in Ireland it has occasioned a reclaiming of the history of the many thousands of Irishmen who served and died in the war and whose stories had largely been erased from official memory until recent years.

Government commitment to Gaeltacht questioned over changes to LEADER programme

Fri, Sep 05, 2014

The future of community services in the Gaeltacht and smaller Gaeltacht areas has come under question after it was revealed that it will not be treated as a separate entity under the new rural development programmes.

Property sales increase by 50 per cent

Thu, Sep 04, 2014

According to the property price register at the end of August, the number of property sales for both Galway city and county is showing a dramatic increase year on year. The register gives the exact selling price of properties and so is the most accurate record of actual sales that have taken place.

Galway City Council figures reveal city election candidates’ expenses

Thu, Sep 04, 2014

Expenses ranging from more that €9,000 to under €1,000 were incurred by local election candidates across Galway city’s three wards in May’s local elections. However one candidate’s campaign cost him only €39.

Young mother left homeless as city housing crisis continues

Thu, Sep 04, 2014

A mother of young children, including a baby born 26 weeks premature, is the latest victim of the city’s housing crisis, which has seen rising rents, lack of housing, and the refusal of landlords to accept rent allowance force many families to seek the emergency assistance of the housing section at Galway City Council.

Elderly forced to find own transport to daycare centre

Thu, Sep 04, 2014

A number of elderly people attending a day care centre in the city must organise their own transport to and from the facility because a HSE West bus service is no longer available.

New €15 coin launched in honour of inventor John Philip Holland

Thu, Sep 04, 2014

A new €15 limited edition silver proof collector coin honouring John Philip Holland, the Irish born inventor of the modern submarine, was launched on Monday in Oranmore by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Connemara MND sufferer fights for operation denied by HSE

Thu, Sep 04, 2014

A Connemara MND sufferer has accused the Health Services Executive of denying him the right to choose to undergo an operation that will extend his life and has set up the Andrew Lydon Trust to help raise funds for the procedure and extensive aftercare that will be needed.

E-paper

Read this weeks E-paper. Past editions also available from within this weeks digital copy.