Small Town Reporter

Dirty Habits at St Crispin's Cell

Redford Park has as fine history attached to it: St Crispin’s Cell, which dates back to the 11^th century; and the ford of Red ford that once suppled the water for Greystones when the place was a roaring Victorian seaside resort.

Redford park is a pleasant place, neat and tidy with fine open space dotted with young trees. But there is one blot on its landscape that beggar’s belief.  

POLLUTION BY THE LAZY & STUPID

A decade ago there was mighty rumpus about the Cell and the leaders of the campaign succeeded in protecting the area from the rampant construction plans that assailed Greystones then. Fortunately, building in the area was thwarted after the case was made by environmentalists and archaeologists that we should preserve it.  Wicklow County Council came along later, patched up the church an put a couple of gates on it to keep out the bowsies who were depositing evidence of their alcoholic habits. (They have since taken up residence in the old farm ruin a the north edge of the field.)

Harris active on Redford pollution

The issue regarding St Crispin's is one which I have been pursuing for some time along with my colleagues on the Redford Park Residents' Association.

Scary stuff from RTE Radio commander

Clare Duignan, back in RTE Radio as managing director after a lousy record  in television continues to lead her charmed life. “Very real challenges now face RTÉ Radio,” she says announcing the  latest schedule.* Hey, it's a scary world out here away from the careworn corridors of RTE power. 

Want a good reputation or a bad one?

There is a PR guy I know from the old days. He rides shotgun for companies. Used to be reporter. Not a very good one. Could not keep his eye on the ball. Always wanted more. You the know type. So, he gave up working for democracy and went into Public Relations. 

Cream sours in Greystones chamber

Fine Gael’s Simon Harris had his first bitter taste of small town politics on June 11, 2009. Shortly after 7:30 pm in the Greystones Council chamber the cream of his electoral success was soured by Independent councillor Chris Maloney (right)  who announced that he was forming an alliance with Fianna Fail and Labour members of the council. It will be conceived as Maloney pouring Harris’s chance of being Mayor of Greystones down the drain.

Small talk, strawberries and stroke

Set off for the bank and to pay my framer, Michael Hayes. At different locations I bumped into Evelyn Cawley, George and Joan Jones, Pat Dempsey, Maraed, my lawyer, and Brod Kearon from Natures Gold. Everything was fizzing. Then I popped into the Village Bookshop to talk about my book sales and there met Muiris MacConghail who revealed that he had suffered a stroke. He looked better that the last time we met. Overweight and sweaty. Now, two stones lighter and tanned.

“Ill-effects?” I said.

"Just one." Smiling: “I voted Fianna Fail,” he said and tapped my brewer’s goitre with the book in his hand.

Kelleher survives in Town defeated in County

It was as impossible to imagine the defeat of Kathleen Kelleher as a county councillor as it was easy to accept that her fellow traveller Eleanor Roche would be defeated on Greystones Town Council. 

Few individuals in this town are so dedicated to work in the community. But the fact remains, the 2009 local electorate with a fickle sweep of its hand wiped her name off the agendas of a wide range of local government committees at county level. Her interest in planning and development is with a hawk’s eye for detail. 

Tom Fortune still harbouring doubts?

Elected to Greystones Town Council for the first time is Tom Fortune, a redoubtable Labour politician who was at the heart of the anti-harbour campaign that put half a million on the bill and which delayed the project for two years bringing on two public inquiries.

There is nothing wrong with that. 

Democracy was well served by those investigations.

Simon Harris - bright mind, dark side

Simon Harris has launched his political career with a bang leaving some hard working politicians in pools of tears and mists of anger. As a Fine Gael party-man he served up the biggest victory witnessed in town and county politics for many a year. 

After the Bubble

A bubble bursts and the world melts down. In the rush for the lifeboat everyone has a quick fix:  “It is the banks we must to sort out first.” Or “The government has lost control.”  It is election time, of course, but they have forgotten their history. Or more likely, few have read a book in their lives. The first big pop in the financial world occurred in 1720 was not caused by a cork from a champagne bottle. It was the South Sea Bubble and it smashed many.

Greystones Harbour, Block 2000

IT TOOK TIME to get this far. It was a political football and still is. It cost two public inquiries. Put half a million bucks on the construction bill and saw one wannabe politician bite the dust at a personal cost of €38,000.