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Wed 4th Sept, 6pm – Shearwater Hotel East Galway & Roscommon are locations for global and local investment. Next Wednesday 4th September the Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment, Peter Burke TD will visit Ballinasloe and meet business leaders that are expanding operations and scaling up. Making the next step to growing national sales and also exports. Are you considering starting up a business, scaling up, expanding – why not come along and hear about policy initiatives from Department of Enterprise and agencies Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and Local Enterprise Offices. Minister Peter Burke has recently launched an SME Test criteria to ensure all policies and legislation are reviewed for impact to sole traders, small and medium sized businesses in all sectors. https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/news-and-events/department-news/2024/may/202405151.html All welcome to this public meeting with a business focus. An opportunity to showcase Ballinasloe and surrounding areas for investment and find out about these questions and more with Q&A time too….. How do we position Galway & Roscommon region for future growth? What financial supports are in place for sole traders, SMEs and large scale companies? How do Enterprise Ireland and Local Enterprise Offices work with growing businesses – LEO Outreach/ Pulse Club? How do we keep excellent people – challenges of recruitment and retention? How do we upskill our teams for the next decade – digitalisation & AI? ********************************************************* BUSINESS SUPPORTS https://www.localenterprise.ie/ https://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/supports/funding-and-grants https://www.idaireland.com/
TRAINING & EDUCATION SUPPORTS
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By Colm Croffy  Photo shows all the MDC Councillors with Kieran Coyne ,Senior Staff Officer and Angela Spellman, Meetings Covenor Galway County Council Outgoing Chair Declan Geraghty thanked colleagues and staff for their support to him in his 12 months and remarked how closely and cooperatively they had all worked for their communities in the past five years, at their first meeting of the Municipal District Area Council since the Local Elections in June. The longest serving fifth term Councillor and area Poll Topper, Michael Connolly, was elected unopposed to the Chair - first having served in the position in 2014. Cllr Peter Keaveney proposed, and Cllr Evelyn Parsons seconded him. Cllr. Declan Geraghty proposed Cllr Dermot Connolly for Leas Cathaoirleach - or Deputy Chair, seconded by Cllr. Peter Keaveney. Cllr. Michael Connolly, in his opening address thanked his colleagues, the council staff and welcomed the newcomer to the Chamber-Cllr. Alan Harney stating that "he was some 5 terms on the Council and still learning about new issues every month." In setting out his priorities for the 12 months ahead he was keen to see the County Council properly secure Central Government funding on par with other counties from the Equalisation Fund and that investment and resources would be prioritised for East Galway. "I have always believed that politics is about what is possible and know that all of us here will work for common goals. I was particularly proud of the sensitive handling of genuine concerns and the agreements they collectively secured from the Government over the accommodation of Ukrainian families. Where other communities struggled, we as a group showed positive leadership and collective Director of Services Jackie Carroll, congratulated and welcomed the newly elected members of the MDC and wished both Chair and Vice-chair well in their 12 months ahead. The MDC meets monthly every Wednesday in the Civic Offices.  Galway County Council will begin safety works at Creagh Junction, on the Athlone Road, in the next 2 weeks.
“This busy intersection has long been a major concern, due to high traffic, pedestrian activity, and inoperable lights and an issue which came up regularly throughout my canvass” stated Cllr. Evelyn Parsons. The whole sorry mess has been raised repeatedly by all MDC Councillors and many of them contributed portions of their own Notice of Motion Money towards getting the project over the line. “I allocated over half of my annual discretionary municipal funds to help kick-start these essential improvements at the Junction to add to other funding procured. Contractors are engaged and will be on the ground in the next couple of weeks. It’s crucial that the works are completed promptly to ensure the safety of children and staff returning to school after the summer break” noted the Councillor. Completion of the project will entail installing new, modern traffic lights to replace the old ones, a controlled pedestrian crossing on the Dublin Creagh road and an uncontrolled crossing on the Creagh Shannonbridge side, both with realigned dropped kerbs and tactile paving, to enhance safety and accessibility. New traffic signs will be added to better guide drivers and pedestrians, and there will be a review of the bollards along the path to town. “Public concerns and the cooperation of community groups in conducting walking safety audits have been invaluable in identifying safety issues” Cllr Evelyn noted. “Regrettably the planned works will not take in the Taughmaconnell junction - there will need to be a more complex and extensive plan and funding sourced to deal with this. Road safety planning and works need now to be progressed at the Taughmaconnell junction. Along with traffic safety and calming works to Sarsfield Road, I will be pushing to see these locations secure safe active travel schemes linking to the current active travel scheme which, when complete, will run from Dunlo Hill to the Marina and will include the new bus stops” stated Cllr. Parsons. The Creagh junction developments are a step in the right direction for the town, with Cllr Parsons adding that: “Improving pedestrian and road safety is essential for creating a secure and accessible environment for everyone.” All of the Councillors are looking forward to seeing the works fully completed before the school term re-opens.  Writer Nuala O’Connor, captured by her photographer sister, Úna. Nuala O’Connor is never happier than when she’s living in the past, at least when it comes to writing fiction. “History is so seductive,” she says.
In her latest novel, Seaborne, the Ballinasloe-based author has embraced the 18th century Irish pirate, Anne Bonny, creating a fearless heroine who’s determined to follow her own star, even if that determination brings Anne into conflict with societal norms of the day. There are very few biographical details available about Anne Bonny, who may have been born in Cork, although Nuala says that has never been verified. The only factual information comes from a court case in Jamaica in 1720, where Anne Bonny and Mary Read were tried for piracy, as were the ship’s captain, John Rackman, and other crew members – all men. The trial transcript doesn’t mention her birthplace, but says Nuala with a laugh, “Kinsale has claimed her”. That’s due to a colourful book about piracy, written in the 1720s, that stated she was “born at a town near Cork”. Allegedly the work of a Captain Charles Johnson, this publication became a bible on piracy but, as Nuala points out, nobody knows the author’s real identity and he took great poetic licence. So too did other writers on the topic. “It’s very hard to get serious books about piracy,” she says. That makes it difficult to separate fact from fiction, but it’s a gift for a novelist like Nuala who began to tease out Anne’s extraordinary life. “How does a young woman end up on board a pirate ship?” she asks of Anne, who is believed to have been 23 when she was arrested for piracy.Nuala answers that question in this book, set in a time “when women didn’t own their own futures in the world. But Anne was determined to own hers”. Dublin-born Nuala has shown similar determination, albeit in a far more low-key way, through her writings in Irish and in English. Her short stories and her novels have been widely praised and her fifth novel, Nora (2021), based on the life of Nora Barnacle, was shortlisted for various prizes and selected for the Dublin One City One Book in 2022. You can purchase Seaborne from Salmons, Easons and all good book stores! You can follow Nuala O'Connor on X, Instagram and via her website  Dublin natives Gareth and Michelle McAllister will be opening a new dining space in Ahascragh with the Clan Colla Restaurant, expanding from their current facilities at the Old Mills Cafe and their sustainable Distillery. Currently the couple are converting the former O’ Donnell’s Bar into a top-class restaurant for visitors. They hope that, after an enjoyable time of touring the Distillery, guests finish their day with a delectable meal in the cosy spot . The restaurant shares its namesake with their whiskey ‘Clan Colla’ which itself refers to an Irish legend of three brothers Colla Uais, Colla Fo Chrí and Colla Menn who ruled Ireland during the fourth century. Visitors can anticipate their selections of award winning whiskey and gins to be available at the fully licensed premises. The new cuisine establishment will open to the public from June 14 and will be catering with a special Father's Day menu on the Sunday following the launch. Their meal selection may be found on their socials prior to the opening at ‘Ahascragh Distillery’. It will be open Thursdays to Saturdays from 17:00 to 20:45 for final orders, and Sundays 12:00 to 18:30 for final orders. Bookings are encouraged and can be made to Marie at (090) 968 8935. The Clan Colla restaurant also have a function room currently open and available to rent. The venue is suitable for various occasions whether your child's christening, confirmation, communion, birthday party, for your wedding celebrations, family events or any other gathering. There is also a private garden available which may be put to good use during the summer months, depending on the forecast. Each booking is dealt with on a case-by-case basis and can be made by email at [email protected] or [email protected], or by phone at (083) 863 2582.   New Self Storage Facility Opens Ballinasloe Self Storage – one of our newest business services opened at Garbally Oil in Pollboy , offering self container storage containers to rent at very reasonable rates. There are over 125,000 square metres of self-storage in Ireland with around 45 traditional self-storage stores and over 33 container based self-storage operations. This equates to around 0.02 square metres per person which is considerably less than other European countries such as the UK (0.068), Netherlands (0.052) and Sweden (0.048), according to the Irish Self Storage Association. There are a number of reasons why both consumers and businesses are increasingly turning to self-storage. The primary reasons remain social factors such as moving home, marriage, divorce, retirement, and for businesses, self-storage proves useful for a number of reasons including storing archive, stock or office equipment. Director David Flaherty says that we saw an opening in the market for storage rental because of the proximity of our site to the motorway and being so central for to the towns such as Ballinasloe ,Loughrea and Athlone The units are all new and insulated and are ideal for storing furniture, clothes, office equipment etc . David says that some units have already been taken by local businesses who need that extra space. The storage depot is fully secure under CCTV cameras and occupiers have access to the units at all times. Should you wish to discuss your storage options you can call David 0862586779 , or Conor 0872587754 who will happily advise you of your options. www.ballinasloeselfstorage.ie   The Galway Traveller Movement recently opened a new Branch office within the Ballinasloe Enterprise Centre, expanding from their existing space in Headford Road in Galway city Currently the charitable organisation covers the county overseeing many programmes advocating for equality, social justice and rights for the Traveller community. Some of their recent achievements include founding the Miselor Festival celebrating Nomadic culture, their ‘Build Homes, Build Health, Build Hope’ campaign against Traveller inequities post-pandemic, and winning an Aontas Star Award in 2021. The Ballinasloe branch's leading service, included under the HSE funded Peer Led Primary Health Care programme, sees team members collaborating with nearby health services and responding to healthcare and wellness needs of the region’s Traveller community. Currently 10 members are working part-time on this programme servicing Ballinasloe, Loughrea, Athenry, Portumna and Ballygar. The local team will also help in conducting campaigns and assisting in organising events in town. Meanwhile, together with Galway Rural Development, the branch held a sponsored walk fundraiser for St. Teresa’s Special School. The event was organised by Geraldine Ward and the county team of Community Health workers, alongside Karyn Gavin of GRD. Starting in the centre of town, the participants made their way towards St. Teresa’s in Creagh brandishing blue outfits to support autism awareness. A crowd of parents, pupils and teachers welcomed the walkers as they entered the courtyard where they were offered refreshments. A raffle was held with multiple prizes to be won, and the day concluded with some words by Geraldine Ward, Karyn Gavin, Margaret O’Riada, and St Teresa’s principal Anita O’Reilly. Together through funding cards and the raffle, the event brought in €3,500 donated to the school. “It was an incredible day focused on inclusion and increasing awareness of Autism in our community, and the incredible work of services and supports like St Teresa’s Special School” mentions Margaret O’ Riada, Joint Coordinator with Galway Traveller Movement. Currently the team are hiring a new coordinator to oversee the Peer led Primary Health Care Programme in South-East Galway. The full job description can be found under a listing on Activelink online with applications sent to [email protected], and the deadline to apply is June 5. For all other general queries regarding the organisation, you can reach out by mobile at 091 765390 or email at [email protected].   Ballinalsoe Life Magazine - An Insight into the Area We Live In
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Join us for the Open Day of the new state-of-the-art Ballinasloe Enterprise Hub!
Date: Friday, 24th May Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM Location: Society Street, Ballinasloe - H53TH24 Come and explore our modern facilities, perfect for fostering innovation and entrepreneurship. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur, a freelancer, or just curious to see what we offer, we welcome you to tour our spaces and join the Q&A sessions!
For more details, visit www.ballinasloeenterprise.ie All Welcome!  The official reopening of Ballinasloe Town Hall is taking place on Thursday, May 23rd, at 6:30pm. All are welcome to attend!
The theatre has undergone a significant transformation over the past 18 months and this would not have been possible without the support of various government agencies, as well as the generosity and support of the local community who rallied behind our Buy a Pane of Glass campaign last year. Join us as we celebrate this landmark building, and help us to mark the beginning of a new chapter on the journey towards creating a vibrant cultural hub for our community. |
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June 2024
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The Town Team was set up by BACD Ltd. to revive the fortunes of Ballinasloe and its hinterland. With the main focus to build on the town’s many strengths, change existing negative perceptions and bring about measurable improvements in the town centre economy and its wider social value.
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