*Painting commences on The Waterfront in Kilkee. Photograph: Gene Clohessy
KILKEE’s Waterfront building remains the subject of a compulsory purchase order (CPO) by Clare County Council, the acquisition continues with works ongoing this summer to improve the external appearance of the property.
In October 2023, Clare County Council announced plans to commence the CPO process for the Waterfront building in the hesrt of Kilkee.
Approval for the CPO was lodged an An Coimisiún Pleanála (formerly An Bord Pleanála) in November of that year but was withdrawn in January 2024 before a new application was submitted later that month.
A two storey commercial premises, the Waterfront was a bar and nightclub for over twenty years and has been closed since 2010.
Its prominent position in the town lends itself to numerous commercial opportunities.
An update on the status of the building was sought by Cllr Gabriel Keating (FG) at a sitting of the West Clare Municipal District. He asked, “Can something be done in the short term to deal with the outside view of the premises”.
Senior executive officer in the property management unit of Clare County Council, Carmel Greene outlined, “Clare County Council has commenced the process to compulsorily acquire this property in accordance with the provisions of the Derelict Sites Act 1990. The Vesting process is underway and will take some time to be completed”.
She confirmed, “Arrangements are being made to improve the external appearance of the property and will be completed this summer”. Works have begun in the past week on painting the building.
Cllr Keating said he was “satisfied” with the detail provided by Ms Greene while Cllr Ian Lynch (IND) was wary about the matter being discussed in the public domain and suggested taking the matter “offline if there’s acquisitions with commercial interests”.
