Wifi zones are to be developed in each Municipal District in Co Clare.
€60,000 in European funding for the roll-out of wifi has been obtained by Clare County Council. €15,000 has been secured each for the Ennis, Killaloe, Shannon and West Clare Municipal Districts under WiFi4EU.
An initiative of the European Commission, WiFi4EU promotes free access to Wi-Fi connectivity for citizens in public spaces including parks, squares, public buildings, libraries, health centres and museums in municipalities throughout Europe. The vouchers are to be used to install Wi-Fi equipment in public spaces that are not already equipped with a free Wi-Fi hotspot.
Locations being considered by the local authority include Lees Rd in Ennis, the Market in Scariff, Shannon Town Park and both the square in Kilrush and Ennistymon.
Head of Information Systems with Clare County Council, Urban McMahon confirmed that they have a period of six months to complete the works. “It will be wifi for people to log on who haven’t it at home,” he explained at a meeting of the Rural Development SPC.
Following questioning by agriculture representative Denis Tuohy, McMahon confirmed that the funding was a one-off and could not be applied for annually.
Chair of the SPC, Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) stated, “The wifi zones in the towns can be hugely beneficial”. He suggested that both Tulla and Killaloe should also be in the thinking of local authority officials.
