Year in Review 2019: October
By Brendan Grehan
OCTOBER was a busy month with plenty of stories that ended up on the pages of The Echo.
It was reported that the Draft Local Area Plan for Tallaght Town Centre was available for inspection. The plan was open for public consultation until October. It outlines South Dublin County Council’s vision for the development of Tallaght between 2020 and 2026.
The Draft local area plan for Tallaght Town Centre was released this month
Audrey Brown told The Echo about her group swimming classes for children with autism in the Maldron Hotel in Tallaght. Audrey’s son Ashton (4) has autism.
“There are so many benefits to swimming for children with autism. It positively impacts on their sleep, motor skills, eating,” Audrey said.
Audrey Brown with her son Ashton
Audrey has been a coach with swimming school Turtle Tots for a number of years.
Residents of Clondalkin took to the streets of their village as part of the Save the Convent Campaign.
They were protesting against plans by a developer to build a nursing home on green space beside the 162-year-old convent.
Evie, Emma Nolan and Keith Purdy’s daughter turned one this month. Evie has a rare condition called microcephaly with pontine cerebellar hypoplasia, and a mutation in her CASK gene.
Evie with parents Emma and Keith
The local community in Tallaght has raised over €100,000 to send Evie to the United States for specialist treatment. Emma Nolan said that the support from the community has been “mind blowing”.
Lucan resident, Adrian O’Grady was Station Officer in Tallaght Fire Station. He passed away suddenly this month at the age of 47.
He was remembered by his colleagues as a “genial giant”.
Adrian O’Grady from Tallaght Fire Station passed away suddenly in October
District Officer Peter Navan told The Echo about how much of an impact Adrian had on the force and how he was so “easy and approachable”.
Mr Navan said: “To say that the fire service is shocked would be an understatement – emergency services all across Ireland are absolutely devastated by the news of Adrian’s passing,”
A Stalwart of Thomas Davis GAA Club also passed away in October. Andrew O’Donnell gave a lifetime of service to the club. At the time of his passing Andrew was Club Secretary.
David Griffin, the assistant secretary of Thomas Davis, told The Echo: “Andrew had a very good personality. He was very amenable towards everybody, always willing to help and listen.He served two or three terms as chairman, served as secretary twice, and he was a team mentor.”
In Rathfarnham, the news broke that Penneys is going to close its branch in Rathfarnham Shopping Centre. The shop is set to shut its doors in February.
Penneys in Rathfarnham which is due to close in February
This month, South Dublin County Council released plans to extend Tallaght Stadium’s capacity to 10,000. They also plan to hold concerts at the stadium.
Over in Sean Walsh Park, Environmental protesters walked from the wetlands to South Dublin County Council’s offices.
In September, the wetlands were the subject of national media attention after it emerged that silt was spread on the wetlands, which were home to many different species of wildlife.
The National Bravery Awards were held in Farnham in the Phoenix Park. Garda Sean Breheny from Templeogue was honoured for risking his own life when rescuing a man who attempted to jump off a bridge at the Snugborough Road/N3 Flyover in Blanchardstown in June 2018.
In Blanchardstown District Court, Judge David McHugh refused bail in the case of a mother who allegedly poured boiling water over one of her 18-month-old twin sons.
In Tallaght Village, Cáife Aon Sceál opened. The caifé, which is Irish-speaking, aims to be a social outlet for those with no Irish, some Irish and fluent speakers.
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