*Photograph: Noreen Finn
ONGOING investment in Killaloe has underlined the opportunity to market the East Clare town as “the gateway to Co Clare”.
In a proposal before the Killaloe Municipal District, Cllr Tony O’Brien (FF) asked that Killaloe and East Clare be recognised and marketed as the gateway to the county.
Senior planner and Killaloe MD coordinator, Brian McCarthy acknowledged, “Killaloe and East Clare are ideally placed to be marketed as the gateway into Clare, combining a high-profile tourism offering with strategic infrastructure investment. The new Killaloe/Ballina bypass and bridge crossing will significantly improve regional connectivity and traffic flow, making Killaloe more accessible to visitors arriving from Dublin, the Midlands and beyond. Coupled with the Killaloe/Ballina Town Enhancement and Mobility Plan, which will create a more attractive and pedestrian-friendly town centre, these developments will strengthen Killaloe and East Clare’s role as a welcoming and vibrant arrival point into the county and the West”.
He said, “These enhancements present a timely opportunity to reposition Killaloe and East Clare’s as the launchpad for exploring wider tourism and cultural assets. Marketing efforts can use Killaloe’s established brand as a draw rooted in heritage, lakeside beauty, and visitor amenities while signposting experiences across the region, from Inis Cealtra, to our rich Heritage, Culture towns and villages, music festivals, and nature-based tourism. Promoting Killaloe as the gateway supports a cohesive regional identity, drives visitor flow into lesser-known areas, and aligns with national policy goals to regenerate and connect rural communities through strategic place-based investment”.
Submitting the Killaloe/Ballina Twin-Town Tourism, Regeneration and Enhancement Project for RRDF funding “further emphasises the importance that that Killaloe MD and Clare County Council places on the economic and tourism opportunities that enhanced connectivity of Killaloe and East Clare can play for all who live, visit and work in the region,” McCarthy said. He confirmed they would liaise with colleagues in the tourism and economic development directorates of Clare County Council, Fáilte Ireland “to further emphasise and market Killaloe and East Clare as Gateway to County Clare”.
“Now there is an opportunity for us,” Cllr O’Brien told colleagues at a sitting of the Killaloe MD. “There is an opportunity for us to bring people off the motorway and say this is what we have in Killaloe and East Clare”. He praised the work of Deirdre O’Shea and all involved in Visit Clare, noting Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands is helping the locality. He asked that a representative from the Killaloe MD be added to the Clare Tourism Advisory Forum. “We’ve fantastic people and a fantastic product in East Clare”.
Seconding the proposal, Cllr Pat Burke (FG) commented, “Killaloe is established, there’s no doubt about that, we have to grow it”. Cllr Conor Ryan (FG) believed it was “a wonderful opportunity to promote Killaloe and the entire East Clare region, with the new bridge opened in the coming months it is a fantastic opportunity which unlocks East Clare in a way it hasn’t been before”. He said Killaloe and Loug Derg is “rich with history, heritage, fantastic restaurants and natural amenities”.
Having it a “a more pedestrian friendly town will be a challenge down the road, he got that it in the reply,” Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) laughed while the senior planner shook his head.
