*An aerial shot of the construction works for the Supermac’s Plaza. Photograph: Paul Corey.
CONSTRUCTION has commenced on the Supermac’s Plaza on the outskirts of Ennis with the potential of an opening within six months.
Within the past month, work begun on the building process of Clare’s first motorway plaza. Before a shovel was put in the ground, €1.5m had already been spent for fees on architects, engineers, surveys and legal costs according to Supermac’s.
Managing Director of Supermac’s, Pat McDonagh has previously said 120 to 140 people are expected to be employed at the Ennis plaza with an additional 100 jobs in the construction phase.
A source for the fast food restaurant chain told The Clare Echo that recruitment locally for management and general staff will commence “in the coming weeks and months”.
Speaking to The Clare Echo this week, Cllr Pat Daly (FF) detailed that personnel behind the development are hopeful it will be open within six months. “It is great to see it moving fast, no better man than Pat McDonagh, he is hoping to have it open within six months, it will be great for the county, it will promote tourism in the county and Ennis, it will be a great landmark in the county, up to now if you drove from Kerry to Galway there was no stop, they can no stop and the potential is there for people to stop and learn about the county”.
Cllr Daly who was the only politician in Clare to submit an endorsement of the development while it was in the planning stage added, “The job creation is fantastic, up to 130 permanent jobs when it is complete which is a great boost to the county”.
In October, the High Court dismissed the judicial review application against the decision of An Bord Pleanála to grant planning permission for the motorway service station on the M18 outside Ennis. This was the fourth planning application made by Supermac’s for the development of a plaza at junction 12 of the M18 at Kilbreckan in Doora.
An Bord Pleanála in 2022 upheld a decision by Clare County Council to grant permission. The development was stalled when chartered civil engineer, Michael Duffy from Kilfenora, brought a judicial review proceedings before the High Court seeking to overturn the decision.
