*Purcell’s Lounge Bar.
AN ACT of vandalism in Ruan does not reflect the views of the local community towards people with disabilities, local activists have said.
On Saturday night, the vacant building which was formerly Purcell’s Lounge Bar was vandalised with messages spray painted at either end of the building. The graffiti which was covered in red had the messages ‘special needs not wanted’ and ‘houses not wanted’.
Gardaí visited Ruan on Sunday morning to study CCTV footage after receiving a complaint from a local resident.
However, the Garda Press Office despite multiple queries from The Clare Echo this week stressed that they had no record of a criminal damage incident in Ruan that was under investigation.
Fintan Mac Coitir of Ruan Tidy Towns was disgusted with the contents of the graffiti and helped to cover over the messaging. Speaking to The Clare Echo, Fintan stated, “The message was about special needs, of all the sectors of society to be picking on, it seems highly offensive. It is an absurd cohort sector of society to be picking on. It had to be covered over immediately. I’ve no idea why it was done or the context or why somebody would be picking on them. I have no idea who is involved in but I would be confident it wasn’t any local”.
Cllr Joe Killeen (FF) told The Clare Echo, “the views that were expressed do not reflect the views of the people of Ruan or their mindset. The people of Ruan are warm, welcoming people who are very open and are anxious to see the development of more housing in their locality”.
Last month, fresh plans to redevelop Purcell’s Lounge Bar were withdrawn, they had only been lodged on January 5th. It was the fifth time since 2005 that Noel O’Loughlin Developments Limited had submitted a planning application to Clare County Council at the location.
As part of the latest plans, the pub was to be demolished along with an adjoining residence and shed at the rear of the property. The applicant had proposed building a commercial unit to include a two-bedroom apartment on the first floor.
The development also included five two-storey three bed terrace houses, eight single-storey bungalows for the elderly, one two-storey assisted living apartments for people with disabilities and one single-storey three-bed assisted living house for people with disabilities. The application also included a car parking area, vehicular and pedestrian access, a connection to the existing public water supply, a stormwater drainage system and a wastewater treatment system.
In 2005, planning permission was granted for a similar project and an extension granted in 2012, amended applications were later lodged in 2020 and 2022 both of which were withdrawn by the applicant.
