*Clodagh Lawlor on stage at the 19th Hole Festival in Newmarket-on-Fergus. Photograph: Joe Buckley
ALTHOUGH the 19th Hole Festival in Newmarket-on-Fergus proved to be warmly welcomed over the weekend, strong disappointment has been voiced with the manner in which a cohort of local residents forced the cancellation of a children’s funfair.
Large crowds attended the two-day 19th Hole Festival in the Green of Newmarket-on-Fergus with traffic restrictions introduced along the Ballycar Rd to enable activities to proceed.
Local singer Clodagh Lawlor was one of the top musical attractions along with the Shaskeen Céilí Band also impressing those in attendance.
Golf, music and a lift to the village were among the positive talking points in Newmarket-on-Fergus across the weekend but there was also a sense of disappointment with how residents in close proximity to Our Lady of the Rosary Church led to the cancellation of the children’s funfair.
A spokesperson for Clare County Council told The Clare Echo, “Following consultation with local residents late last week, Clare County Council, in consultation with the event company, made the decision to remove the funfair aspect of the 19th Hole festival. The funfair elements that were in place were deemed to be inappropriate for use at the location concerned due to noise nuisance in particular.
“Whilst it is regrettable that this element of the festival had to be withdrawn at a late stage, Clare County Council has received extremely positive feedback from the local community and those that attended the festival from across Clare and further afield. Clare County Council and its Elected Members are proud supporters of community events such as the 19th Hole festival which was hosted in conjunction with the KPMG Women’s Irish Open.’
Kenneth Arthur was among those to attend both the Women’s Irish Open and the 19th Hole Festival. The Newmarket-on-Fergus native told The Clare Echo, “Clare County Council and all others involved should get great credit for the recently organized festival in Newmarket on Fergus to coincide with Women’s Irish Open in Dromoland. Initiatives like this are vital to bring back some life into a village and the Ballycar Road in particular which has seen the depletion of vital services in recent years. It was however embarrassing to hear of the ‘local’ objections, in particular to the children’s funfair which was cancelled on Saturday to the disgust of many.
“Everyone has the right to object, but how a small few can hold such sway is beyond me, let’s hope it doesn’t put off others from trying to improve the very community that needs it,” Arthur a former resident of the Ballycar Rd added.
Among the jibes thrown in the direction of the objectors across the weekend was that they held more sway than the residents adjacent to Croke Park in forcing cancellations of local events.
