Ever-hopeful of selling:)

Commercial activity picking up in Clonmel

We have let a number of retail outlets in the town centre over the last month.
Photostation, with outlets in Thurles and Nenagh already, took the former Only unit, beside Abrakebabra.



Julia's European Market took the former Chess clothing unit in Market Place, opposite Elvery's.



Catherine Nail Collection took the former Culleton unit in Market Place, also close to Elvery's.



Best of luck to them all in their new ventures.

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DV8 to open in Ormonde Centre, Gladstone St, Clonmel

In another boost for Clonmel town centre, DV8, the large Northern Ireland fashion chain, have secured a unit in the Ormonde Centre, Gladstone St, Clonmel.

They will occupy approx. 5,000 sq ft of the former Tesco unit, close to other strong retailers such as Easons, Boots, McDonalds, Specsavers and many more.

Pat Quirke of P F Quirke & Co Ltd acted for the Landlord and Paul Wilson of BTWShiells, Belfast acted for DV8.

DV8 launched its first high street store in 1994 offering a ground-breaking range of branded and own brand clothing, footwear and accessories for men and women. Since then they have grown to become one of the top independent fashion retailers, both online and on the high street, known for some of the best fashion brands.

Clonmel will be their 26^th store and the first in the Republic. They hope to open a further 6-8 stores across Ireland over the next 12 months.

Pat Quirke says that a number of lettings over the last 2 months have signalled a resurgence of the town centre, with River Island, PhotoStation and a variety of other retailers voting with their pockets and opening outlets.

The launch of a PPP process for construction of a town-centre multi-storey car-park will also be a massive boost to Clonmel.

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Clonmel Town Centre trading boost

Two new lettings in the past few days are good news for Clonmel Town Centre.

A unit at Gladstone St, (formerly Only), and one at Market Place (formerly Culletons) have now been let and both will open with new tenants within the next month.

A great vote of confidence in the town to see new traders.

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Save South Tipperary General Hospital

The HSE has proposed downgrading South Tipperary General Hospital.

As a recent user of the excellent A&E for both myself and many family members, I am totally against this.

If our services are transferred to Waterford or Kilkenny, lives will be lost.

The HSE propose ceasing the following services:

• Accident and Emergency Services
• General Surgery Services
• Maternity Services - No more Tipp born children
• Gynaecology Services
• Paediatric / Children Services
• Cardiology
• Coronary Care Unit
• Acute Psychiatric Unit (closure announced)

This is the main hospital for all of South Tipperary.

If these services cease, then A&E will be up to one hour away.

Not necessary, not sensible.

If, like me you disagree with this proposal, you can:

· Join the rally on Saturday 27th March.
Meet at South Tipperary General Hospital at 3pm and march to the Main Guard

· Sign the Petition supporting the retention of our Acute Hospital Services

· Text save to 086 0202247

· Ask your family, friends, employer, employees, trade union, clubs, community and voluntary organisations to object to this awful H.S.E. plan.

· Contact your T.D.s, Senators and Local Councilors.

Act now. Do not leave it too late.

Hope to see you on the march on Saturday, 3pm at South Tipp General Hospital.

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Happy Christmas with Pierogi and Spirytus

Having delivered the presents to some of our tenants, I was asked by the last Polish couple to join them for pierogi and a drink.

Pierogi are polish dumplings, these were made with pickled cabbage and wild mushrooms.



The drink was a homemade liquer, brewed from Spirytus (a potent distilled almost neat alcohol) mixed with raspberries and sugar.

Great to block the -1C temperatures in Clonmel at noon today!

Happy Christmas and New Year to all, or indeed, Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia to all.

See you in the New Year.

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Art Hive pop-up exhibition in Market Place, Clonmel

On Tuesday last, I gave keys of a vacant unit in Market Place (close to Superquinn) to Brigid Teehan of Art Hive, a local art group.
She and a number of associates have organised a "pop-up" exhibition in the unit.
The property owners kindly provided the vacant space for free for the run.
Here are pictures of some of the artwork on display.









The exhibition runs 12-6pm Friday to Sunday 20th December.
Drop in for a look.

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O’Connell St boost as store to open next month

Menary’s new fashion store is to open in Clonmel town centre in October.

They will be located in the former ESB unit in the middle of O’Connell St.

Work is well underway on the fit-out of the approx. 14,000 sq ft which will house a number of Menary’s concessions.

Full detail and pics to come from opening.

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Property fire-sale!

Over the weekend, a property we have for sale on Queen St, Clonmel went on fire.
We suspect it was malicious. The property was vacant and had been broken into on a few occasions.



A large number of locals were inconvenienced as they were awoken and evacuated from their houses as a safety precaution at midnight by the Gardai, as the Fire Brigade tried to limit the spread of the fire.



The fire was so intense it melted the nearby traffic lights!
Thankfully, no one was injured, though the house is now probably due for demolition.

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Cycling for fun-The Mountain Road

Those that know me will know that after family and work, my two main interests are horse-riding and cycling. Winter and Spring are for riding, but Summer and Autumn are almost exclusively devoted to the bike.

I am usually a solitary cyclist. I spend my working day assisting, cajoling, negotiating and advising other people, so I find it therapeutic to get out on the road by myself, with just the tarmac, weather and cycle-computer to deal with. South Tipperary and Waterford are beautiful counties and we are spoiled for choice regarding cycling routes. We have mountains, flats, country roads...any type of terrain for the cyclist to travel and experience the wonderful countryside we have.

I came to cycling late, I rode horses competitively when younger, so that took all my energies. I started cycling about 5 years ago to tackle a growing weight problem and stuck with it for the endorphins!

Fitting cycling in around a young family and a business is sometimes difficult. Daytime is devoted to business, night-time to family. I find that early morning is best for me. At this time of year, I am usually on the road at 6am and back home 7.30-8am.

One of my favourite spins is the Mountain Road, which rises from Clonmel to the top of The Comeraghs. Barry at Worldwide Cycles tells me that the “norm” is to do the climb section, starting at Hillview to the top in 20 minutes. Normal that is if you are 25, with not a care in the world except where your next date is coming from. Being 20 years older, and with plenty of “cares”, I reckon that if I can get to within 10% of that figure I will be fine. My current best is 22 minutes 30 seconds, so nearly there, but hard to crack!

I usually do a 10km loop to warm up and then attack the mountain. 22+ minutes and some pain later, I crest the top. Then onto the drops, tuck in, spin out the gears and drop as fast as gravity will take me through 2 small but scary bends without touching the brakes. Your adrenaline certainly pumps as your speed approaches 70km/h with nothing but ridiculously thin Lycra and questionable bike-handling skills between you and the tarmac. Early in the morning, the road is usually damp and as I approach the hairpin bend over the bridge flat out, I suddenly wish that I had feathered the brakes to ensure they work, not having touched them for the previous 25 minutes! There is a gap in the trees at the bridge, so the surface there has usually dried off, but I have had a few scary moments there. Worth it for the speed-rush though.



The weather can change enormously during the course of a ride, especially in the Comeraghs. Many times I have been fogged in above the Golf Club. A bit scary when you don’t see a car until the last minute, it means they probably don’t see you at all!



I then turn left down Comeragh Drive to Kilsheelan, over the River Suir, back into Co. Tipperary and on to Clonmel.



So there you have it, the Mt Rd spin. For those interested, leaving and returning to my house, it is just over 40kms, I cycle it in around 1hr 20mins and burn 1200-1300cals.
I fully intend to crack 22 minutes this month. Then onwards to 21!

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Junction Festival Cafes

Just back from a quick survey of the Junction Festival cafes.
This is an initiative where the organisers took over 5 vacant units in the town, turning them into themed cafes for the duration of the festival.
There are 5 cafes.
The Canine Cafe, in Market Place, is billed as “an urban social space for both species with canine and human cuisine, beds and chairs, water bowls, tea & coffee and a reading library.


This café only allows humans under dog supervision… otherwise you may glance at proceedings from a viewing area. This is a visual art project, a living studio, a social experiment and an inter-species meeting place all under one roof for the ten days of the Festival.”
It smelled a bit, but then most dog-lovers probably would not mind.

Next up was The Break Station.



This is billed as “A relaxed and vibrant space to chill out; a room full of dancers of different styles…..You can watch the action, be part of it, take a lesson or just chill out and relax and hang out with your gang and listen to some new tunes. Take a class in street dance styles such as krumping, house dance and old skool hip hop.”

Local dancers will collaborate with Upswing over the festival period to teach and curate the café with open mic sessions, dance classes and live dance events and performances.

This smelled a bit too 8), but again, not in a way that dedicated dancers would be unacquainted with!

The Writing Room where “writers, readers and booklovers of all age and size are invited to drop in for a selection of literature related activities” was busy when I called in, with a workshop underway discussing writing for film. About 20 people were engaged in discussion.

Whispering, so as not to interrupt, the staff offered me coffee, but time constraints meant I could not stay.
This looks like a nice Cafe, the setting in the old Angela’s Coffee Shop is good. I will revisit.



Shrine is on Mitchel St, and is based around the creation of a contemporary "Shrine”, in the form of a small Wooden House. The Shrine will be made up of donated jewellery, beads, broken chains, earrings, bangles and whatever people offer to be used for such the piece. Artist Patricia Looby (from Fethard originally) is putting it all together.



I did not get to the Robinsons’ Sunday Roadshow Cafe, which attempts to re-create life as lived by a northern Baptist family who moved to Dublin in the 1960’s. I will do at some stage.

All Cafes are open 11am-7pm form 4th-11th July incls. (except Sunday 2-5pm).

Anyone else with any views on the Junction Festival?

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Marks and Spencer open in Clonmel

Huge queues, traffic gridlock, but happy people all round for the opening of the 20th Irish M&S store in Clonmel today.

Some people stood in line for up to 4 hours to visit the retailing giant’s new store at the Showgrounds development, on the Davis/Waterford Road.

Following 2 years of “will they, won’t they” rumours, the launch today was extremely successful and has to be a boost to the town. Up to 100 people will be employed at the new store.

Although controversial, in that some (the writer included) think that the development will take from the town centre, the extra traffic that a retailer such as M&S will bring may compensate.

If the crowds today are any indication of the future popularity of the store, then it will be good for Clonmel as a whole.

Opening hours are Mon-Wed and Sat 9-7, Thurs-Fri 9-9 and Sunday 10-6.

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Clonmel Arms re-development gets go-ahead.

A brief post to confirm that the long-delayed Clonmel Arms re-development by BORC Developments has finally got the approval of An Bord Pleanala.

After 4 years of seeking planning permission, in which time the hotel has been closed, this is a great boost for the town centre.

Permission has been granted for 330+ car parking spaces, 40,000 sq ft of large footprint retail to include bar/restaurant/cafes, 15,000 sq ft office space, a Medical Centre and 14 x 2 & 3 bed apartments overlooking the river.

Great news for Clonmel. Full details to follow as they unfold.

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Clonmel Coffee

I am going to attend the Clonmel Coffee Morning meetings. It is a type of networking event (I think?), the first of which will take place on Thursday next, April 23, 2009 from 10:00 am to 11:00 am at Clonmel Park Hotel in The Poppyfields, Clonmel.
I found out about it via Twitter, which I am experimenting with at present to see if it is useful for business.

It is hoped to gather a group of people to discuss technology and numerous other topics over Coffee. The main topics to be covered -
Brief introduction, who you are, what you do (what you would like to learn, share or gain)
How Clonmel Coffee can grow, what it should become.
Connecting the community via technology projects, social networking, creating a better Clonmel.
Why attend Clonmel Coffee, what can we do for you.
Anything else that comes to mind on the day.

If you are interested in attending (I certainly am), then log on to http://clonmelcoffee.com/events/mornings and register your interest.
Or just turn up. We will be in the bar...drinking coffee!
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Progress for Gaelscoil Cluain Meala?

The long-running saga regarding Gaelscoil Cluain Meala moved to another phase recently, when the plan for the HSE lands north of the bypass, just off the Heywood Road was unveiled.

The Urban Framework Plan will provide a three acre site for the Gaelscoil, which has been engaged in a fifteen year search to identify a site for a new school.The councillors were told that the County Council plan provides for the transfer of some schools, both secondary and primary from Clonmel town centre to the lands. It is also intended to provide sporting and recreational facilities which could include a 12,000 capacity sports ground (!) and to provide space for expansion of the industries located in the area.Councillors said that while it was always the intention of South Tipperary County Council to make a site available within the HSE land bank, this proposed site does not require any internal road network within the lands and thus can be built on immediately.

The Gaelscoil has operated for the last 15 years in the old council offices in Irishtown. It is now an issue as to whether the Gaelscoil can get on the Department Of Education’s School building programme. This has been a controversial issue for some time now, with management and parents at the school being very vocal in their calls for a new school. There were ugly scenes at a demonstration in Clonmel during a visit by the last Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern to the town, when management, parents and children were accused of unseemly behaviour and of orchestrating a near-riot!The plan could offer exciting options to other schools and sporting clubs based in or near the town centre. As part of an overall strategy for the town centre, it might make sense to move other schools such as The Sisters of Charity and St Marys to this site. If a sporting club were to locate there also, the potential for sharing facilities would be huge. I hope that South Tipperary County Council will explore this further. It would be of enormous benefit to the schools and the clubs themselves and would facilitate the further development of the town centre as two of the above-mentioned are centrally located and would provide much-needed parking and other development opportunities for the heart of the town.

Treasa Nic Dhiarmada, Gaelscoil Principal, has been very outspoken about the lack of progress. She said that while the site may have been identified they are still no closer to actually getting a site, as the lands have not yet been formally purchased by the County Council from the HSE. This was confirmed by a spokesman for the County Council who stated that the legal transfer of the land has not yet been completed.

So maybe this saga is coming to an end...or maybe not? Nil fhios agam!

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How much is it worth?

How much is it worth?
I am asked this question nearly every time I visit a house, sometimes even by friends when on a social visit! Many factors affect the value of a home. Many other factors have no impact at all on the value. Some people find it hard to distinguish between these two sets of factors.

The most important things that impact on the value of a home are:

Location – The old adage “Location, location, location” always holds true. Houses with the same accommodation and design in one estate will have a different value in another estate. Even within the same estate, different locations will have slightly different valuations. Sub-factors such as orientation, a green area to the front, nearby parking or the condition of adjacent houses have an effect.

Condition - The condition of a home can have a large impact on the value. Buyers will sometimes offer thousands less for a few hundred euro in necessary repairs. People are afraid of having to hire builders to fix problems as they think the cost might be much more than it actually is, so it isn't unusual for them to offer €5-10,000 less when the home needs repairs that might cost €1,000. That said, it is unwise to embark on a large project if you are thinking of selling your home. You rarely get the value of it back. Minor renovations or redecorating to spruce up are ok though. They can pay back many times over.

Size – Most valuations will take note of the square footage of a home. However, not all space is equal. Most buyers want good living space in both the kitchen/diner and the sitting room. Bedrooms are a secondary consideration, as long as there is one larger one. Location aside, a poorly-designed house, with larger bedrooms and a constricted living area does not have the same value per square foot as a better-designed house.

Supply and demand – Sometimes global factors affect the demand curve more than anything else, but mostly, all property is local. At the moment in Clonmel, there is a demand for 3-bed homes in good locations...that are properly priced. For the first time in ages, we are now seeing multiple offers on homes that meet these criteria, with mortgage-approved bidders starting low, but bidding up towards the Guide Price due to competition. Last year there were too many homes on the market, but now the overhang is gone. So expect more competition for properly-priced homes.

Many people have differing views on what affects the value of a home, here are some things that don’t:

How much the last owner paid for it - People always say “But I paid €x for it a few years ago.” Sorry, this does not matter whether the market is going up (as it was up to 2006), or down (as it has since!).

Special Features – This can be very personal. Some people can get offended if the sauna, (which cost a lot of money, takes up the third bedroom and nearly crashes the local electricity grid), is not fully appreciated by a prospective buyer. Home gyms are another like-it or hate-it feature. If investing substantial money in creating a putting green in your back garden, remember that you do it mainly for yourself. Do not expect a buyer to pay you more for it. Some might, but the majority won’t.

The value of a neighbouring property as listed on an agents web site - Don’t believe what you read is the best maxim here. Lots of houses are currently vastly overpriced. Combined with the Internet and almost every agent having a listing site, this has lead to entire neighbourhoods being over-valued, as the new to the market owner decides to pitch his house at the same level as his neighbours, even though his neighbour’s house has not sold for the past 18 months. The best comparison is an actual sale. A lot of agents have sold very little in the last 12 months. Make sure that the information you are being given is backed up by results!

How much the current owners owe on their mortgage - This is obvious. It may stop them selling at the real value, but it does not affect the value.

Sellers can price a home at any level they want to but if it is priced too high buyers will ignore it. Lenders are being very conservative. Buyers can only borrow 85-92% of the purchase price. At current local price levels, a twenty-something first-time buyer is expected to have their own independent funds in excess of €20,000 to secure a mortgage! Sometimes the buyer can’t borrow enough money to buy the home. Sometimes they do not have enough savings.

How much is it worth?
At the end of the day, the market decides. Whatever the owner or their agents think, a home is worth as much someone will pay for it. Buyers drive prices, no-one else.

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My brushes with death – Part 1

They say that many of us have a near-death experience/incident most days of our lives. We don’t see them all the time, but they happen all the same. That speeding car that just misses you as you cross the road is easy to spot. It would have hit you if you tripped while running across in front of it. The car that pulls out in front of you, but you are far enough back to avoid or brake. What if you had not slowed momentarily half a mile ago, you would have been straight into it. The falling slate in a storm, the items dropped from scaffolding on a building site (come back the building boom!). If we stopped to analyse each situation, we would see how tenuous our existence on this planet actually is...we would also get nothing done and probably go insane.
Our business has us out and about a lot. To me, this is better than being chained to a desk all day. We do however get into more potentially dangerous situations.
We put up a lot of mileage, with a high proportion on smaller roads and are sometimes under pressure to make appointments.
We visit building sites regularly.
We make arrangements to meet total strangers with nothing more than a contact mobile.
We visit homes where there are dogs (and on one occasion, snakes, but that’s for another day!).
We walk farms where we come into contact with cattle and other farm animals.
We visit vacant homes.
The last one may not seem so threatening, but on one occasion, in the 1980’s, I was doing a valuation for the County Council on an abandoned house on College Avenue. I had a key to the boarded-up house and entered it around 11am. This is a built-up area and I did not feel unsafe. As I peered around in the dark, trying to make use of the limited light that came through the boarded windows, I saw what looked like a dead body on the floor. I squinted more and as my eyes adjusted, I saw a man lying on his side, fully-dressed, with bloodstains on the floor, under his head.
This was pre-CSI days and I had recently done a CPR course, so I went closer to see if he was really dead. As I leaned down to see if he was breathing, he sat up, grabbed me and asked why I had hit him. He had a bad cut on his head and there was broken glass all round. Mindful of the fact that there was a broken bottle nearby, I assured him that I had not hit him, that whoever did was long gone and asked why someone in a suit and tie would attack him!
This last point seemed to sink in. He asked me what the f... I was doing there. I told him I was valuing it for the council. He stood up, brushed off his clothes, cursed the council, pushed open the back door (which was unlocked), shouted “See ya ‘round” and staggered off, dazzled by the sunshine.
Shock was starting to make my hands shake, so I made my exit by the front door without seeing the rest of the house. I told the council to get someone to secure it properly and when they were there I went up again to value it.
In those days in provincial Ireland, drink was the drug of choice. Today unfortunately, the substances abused are very different. Instead of being hung-over, my nearly assailant might have been well-pumped and the outcome much worse for me than a fright and a funny memory.
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Pancake Tuesday in Clonmel

It is Pancake Tuesday in Clonmel. A number of "celebrities" gathered under the Main Guard to toss pancakes and sell them for local charities. Mattie McGrath (Fianna Fail), Dan Costigan(Independent) who is the only qualified chef amongst the group, and a representative of Tom Hayes (Fine Gael) who were doing the cooking when I visited, with John Crosse (Fine Gael) looking on from a safe distance.

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A sideways look at the parking problem in Clonmel

As part of the Clonmel Chamber initiative, I am on the team concentrating on ways of improving the Town Centre. I am joined in this by Ken Hennessy (Hennessy Doyle Architects), Conor Moroney (Moroney Shoes) and Des Hourigan (permanenttsb Clonmel).
Ask any town centre trader what is the largest limiting factor on the town centre and most will answer insufficient parking.
The following car park facilities available in Clonmel at present:
Free All-day car-park at Gashouse Bridge
Reduced rate All-day Car-parks at Suir Island, The Quay/Anglesea St, Gordon Place
Regular pay Car-parks at Irishtown, The Quay, and Mary St/Town Centre

Up to now, the focus has been on the construction of a multi-storey in the town centre to cater for shoppers.
The Borough Council owned Mary St car park has been put forward as the best potential site... since I came back to work in Clonmel 24 years ago!
There are title and right-of-way difficulties which have precluded this site from being developed.

It may be time to re-appraise the entire problem and approach it from a different angle.
The Gashouse bridge site is wholly owned by the Borough Council, with no apparent title difficulties. It is currently used by office workers to park their cars for the whole day.
The reduced rate all-day car-parks at Suir Island, The Quay/Anglesea St, Gordon Place are used by largely the same people. These car-parks are very well located, close to the town centre.
If the Gashouse bridge site was developed as a multi-storey to house all the office workers, it would free up the car-parks at Suir Island, The Quay/Anglesea St and Gordon Place to be used as regular pay car-parks to facilitate shoppers.
This is a sideways look at the problem, but it may be a good one?

Let me know what you think.

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Clonmel Voucher Scheme

As previously posted, I am taking part in the Clonmel Chamber sponsored exercise on improving the town.
The plan is that by “brain-storming” the various issues that arise around the town, a cogent report will be prepared that can be presented to the Borough Council for their consideration. As all the contributors are rate-payers, I hope we are listened to.
The first general meetings have focused on a Voucher shopping scheme for the town retailers.
A bonus, gift or payment up to a maximum of €250 per person per year is not liable for tax or PRSI (from employer or employee) provided it is not paid in cash.
To encourage those who get their earnings in Clonmel to spend in Clonmel, a Shopping Voucher Scheme will be introduced.
Clonmel Chamber will sell vouchers at face value.
Vouchers will be exchangeable for goods and services from participating Clonmel businesses.
Vouchers will not be exchangeable for cash.
Participating businesses will receive payment against valid vouchers at Clonmel Chamber in accordance with the terms of the Clonmel Shopping Voucher Agreement.
This has worked very well in other towns, so it will hopefully work just as well in Clonmel.
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