Donabate Portrane Men’s Shed’s plots at Turvey Allotment have been prepared for the winter. The beds were cleared, a layer of manure was spread and the beds were covered to stop all growth. So, except apart from garlic and spring onions in the greenhouses and an experiment with growing peppers, things will be relatively quiet there until February when we start getting ready for next season. But far from being inactive of the winter months, the Men’s Shed is planning on expanding our activities. Our regular Monday morning exercise classes resumed last month and our Tuesday morning croquet sessions at Newbridge House have on taken on extra edge, as the lads are determined to avenge their recent defeat by a ladies’ team from Active Age for All. We also meet at the Scouts’ Den on Thursday mornings for coffee and a chat, with the possibility of a table tennis or darts match if anyone is interested. In addition to these regular weekly activities, we had a pitch-and-putt outing last month and are planning a visit later this month to the Natural History Museum, better known to Dubs as the “Dead Zoo”. So, if you are interested in joining us, there’s always a welcome for a new face at our Thursday morning get-togethers in the Donabate Scouts’ Den on Portrane Road or you can call Jim on 086-3694316. We are always open for new members and new ideas about how we can expand our activities.

Donabate Parish Hall was the venue for Lambay Cinema Club’s launch on Friday, September 9th, with its very first movie screening. The real deal popcorn whet the appetite of movie goers with the tastefully named film “Licorice Pizza” well received by all. The teenage love story transported the audience to 1970’s Los Angeles with a wonderful soundtrack and period detail as the two main characters Alana & Gary, meandered first love. The club’s organisers Breda Maguire & Larry Carolan would like to thank The Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival for supporting the project and the Parish Hall for giving the use of the newly refurbished facility. Breda (MC for the night) stressed that the success of this newly formed community initiative depends solely on the support of local residents. “Lambay Cinema Club hopes to bring world cinema of various genres to local audiences on a monthly basis.” As part of Fingal Inclusion Week (14th -20th November 2022), Lambay Cinema Club will host a special screening of ”Limbo”. Inclusion Week, seeks to raise awareness of the barriers experienced by citizens of Fingal that lead to social exclusion and promote an understanding of inclusion in Fingal. Limbo is a wry and poignant observation of the refugee experience, set on a fictional remote Scottish island where a group of new arrivals await the results of their asylum claims. It centers on Omar, a young Syrian musician who is burdened by his grandfather’s oud, the king of Arabic music instruments, which he has carried all the way from his homeland. The Guardian described Limbo as “ a gorgeous tragicomic take on the refugee experience” The screening will take place Thursday, November 17th in The Church of Ireland, The Square, Donabate at 8pm.Tickets are available from November 7th via the Box Office @bleedingpig.ie/cinema-club or Eventbrite.eventbrite.ie/e/film-screening-fingal-inclusion-week-2022-tickets-429628459287 All proceeds of ticket sales will be donated to the Irish Refugee Council. Thank you to The Bleeding Pig Cultural Festival for their sponsorship of this event.

Leithinis classes are back up and running. We wish to extend a warm welcome to our new students. We now have classes in Tin whistle, Bodhran, Fiddle, Button Accordion, Concertina, Mandolin, Flute and Guitar. Our teachers are very experienced traditional Irish musicians and our lessons are taught in a relaxed and friendly environment.We had our Annual General Meeting in the Educate Together National School on Monday 17th September.. We would like to welcome our new Committee members on board and thank the members who have stepped down this year. A lot of work goes on in the background to keep the branch running and without these members volunteering their time the branch would not exist. If you have any free time and can help with the running of the branch please contact us at eithinis@comhaltas.net. We would be delighted to hear rom you. In addition to classes we have Grupai Cheoil sessions run by Erin, twice a month ( Fridays) in the Parish Hall. This is open to all members and there is a €5 fee per family to cover costs. The session caters for all levels of musical ability. We strongly encourage our students to join in these sessions. It is a great opportunity to practice and play the tunes learned in the classes with other students.There is a session for experienced musicians led by Denis in Keelings at 7.30pm on the first Tuesday of every month. If you want to listen to some traditional Irish music being played by local talented musicians this is the place to be.We held our Annual Fundraising Raffle in Donabate Town Centre in September. It was a great success. A very big thank you to McNeela Music Instruments for donating the prizes and to everyone who bought tickets.For latest news and updates about our branch please see our Facebook page or visit our website at leithinis.com.

Cllr Adran Henchy has said, “Just to provide an update on what was a very positive briefing from both the Economic Enterprise and the Architects Department of Fingal County Council who informed us that they are in the preliminary stages of confirming the former home of Donabate Credit Union will be regenerated and modernised to become the new home of Donabate Library. Both my Councillor colleague on the peninsula Cllr Paul Mulville and I have pushed hard initially to convince Fingal County Council to purchase this landmark iconic building at the heart of our local community from Provident Credit Union and also to ensure whatever future the building has is only reserved for community usage. This of course also allows for the significant space currently occupied at Donabate Portrane Community Centre for the Library to also return back into community usage. A potential win win for our growing local community. The initial capital cost put aside for this transfer to take place is €0.5 million with overall funding of €2 million allocated to this project.,This matter is a headed item at the next meeting of the full Council and this will give Councillors the opportunity to question the Executive further on this proposal on behalf of our local community.

Active Age as usual have great plans for this term especially our involvement in Fingal Inclusion Week. As our contribution to this event we will hold an Inclusion Day in the Community Centre. In conjunction with the Community Centre and other groups we will stage an exhibition of crafts, painting and photography and enjoy some music and singing. We will be providing some taster classes in Yoga and Sit & Get Fit, on the day so if you want to try these activities please come along and support us. The Day will open at 11.30 a.m. and continue till 3.00 p.m. Tea/coffee and home made cakes will be provided free of charge. Active Age will have an information stand there if you wish to join us or just get some information about our classes.- A Walk Through the Liberties -Recently a group from Active Age went on a guided walk through the Liberties area of Dublin. This area is located in the southwest of the inner city. Our lovely guide Roslyn was born and reared in the area so she is a true child of the Liberties. Liberties were a feature of mediaeval cities under Anglo Norman rule. They were outside the city walls and separate from the main city government. They were granted certain privileges and entitlements to regulate trade and commerce within “the Liberty” hence the name The Liberties. Our tour started at the corner of Cornmarket and Lamb Alley where one of the only remnants of the city wall remains. We were fascinated by the depth of Roslyn’s knowledge of the area, from the Vikings to the 17th and 18th century when it became the industrial heart of the city. In later times it was dominated by Guinness and Power families. Great poverty and slums were evident in the 19th century and this spurred a number of enlightened housing developments, for example, The Iveagh Trust Buildings on Patrick Street. We saw one of the oldest buildings in Dublin on Thomas Street which has been lovingly restored. We all enjoyed our ramble through this historic part of Dublin and sincere thanks to our guide Roslyn who made the day very special. For our next trip we are hoping to visit Glasnevin Cemetery which should be a fascinating trip. As always if you need further information about Active Age please email activeageforall@gmail.com or look at our website activeageforall.com

Donabate Portrane Dramatic Society will bring Frank McGuinness’ play ‘The Factory Girls’ to Donabate Parish Hall, from Thursday 24th to Saturday 26th November, 8pm and Sunday 27th November, 3pm. Donabate Portrane Dramatic Society’s new production is directed by an experienced member of the society Lisa Buckley, and it features a cast of existing as well as new members. The Factory Girls, set in a shirt factory in County Donegal in the early 80s, tells the story of five strong women who, facing the threat of redundancy, decide to stage a lock-in in the manager’s office until better conditions are offered. During the course of their adventure Ellen, Una, Vera, Rebecca and Rosemary learn more about each other’s life stories and their personalities. They show courage and camaraderie when facing the manager Mr. Rohan and the Union representative Mr. Bonner, but they can’t avoid the struggle with one another. Although they often give each other a hard time, what emerges is a story based on friendship, loyalty and the sisterhood which grows between them. The play, which is particularly realistic and relevant today, is a blend of laughs and poignant moments, teeming with humour, colourful language, anger, courage and compassion. “I am excited about bringing The Factory Girls to a Donabate audience. These women all have their own story at different stages of their life. They are all connected by the security of the main job in a small town, working on the factory line and this story is about what happens when the security is threatened” – Lisa said. Tickets cost €10 per person and are available on door or on eventbrite.ie.

Corina Johnston, Labour Party Area Representative has welcomed the announcement by Fingal County Council of its intention to carry out permanent resurfacing works at the Ballymastone sports ground car park.Johnston said; “ I am very pleased that the ongoing campaign by Duncan Smith TD and I for the permanent resurfacing of the existing car park at the Ballymastone Sports Grounds has come to a successful conclusion”Johnston added;”At an on-site meeting with Fingal County Council this morning requested by Duncan Smith TD in which I was in attendance, Senior Officials from Fingal County Council informed representatives from St Pats GAA, St. Ita’s AFC and local Cllrs Henchy and Mulville that the council have taken the decision to resurface the car park with a tar-macadam surface. The officials confirmed their intention to progress these works through a procurement process with the works to be carried out at the earliest possible time. In the interim I asked the council to carry out remedial works given the current condition of the car park which they have agreed to.”Johnston added; “Duncan Smith TD and I have been campaigning for this work to be carried out for nearly two years now. At an onsite meeting earlier this year we stressed the need for a permanent solution to the car park surface and the need for the provision of lights in the car park given the number of children accessing the sports grounds across the dark car park. At that time the council proposed to carry out temporary repairs and to give consideration to installing lights in the car park. Within a few weeks the car park surface returned to the desperate state it was a few weeks earlier.At my request the former Mayor Cllr Seána O’Rodaigh rased a question with the CEO. Johnston concluded: We thanked the officials for taking the health and safety concerns of parents and the clubs on board, for coming up with the substantial amount of funding required to carry out the necessary works and for their ongoing support for sport on the peninsula.”

Councillors have approved Fingal County Council’s €989m three-year Capital Programme which provides for significant investment on projects across the County during period from 2023 to 2025. It represents a €205m increase on the previous Capital Plan with the 2023-2025 programme identifying 266 individual projects with an estimated spend of €988,990,218 over the three years The Programme projects a capital spend in 2022 of €269m, followed by €354m in 2023 and a further €366m in 2023. Around 55% of the €989m has been allocated to Housing with the €543m budget underpinning the Council’s commitment to delivering a significant housing programme under the Government’s Housing For All policy. Another 15%, or €146m, has been earmarked for Economic, Enterprise, Tourism and Cultural Development projects. A further €139m, or 14%, is set aside for Planning and Strategic Infrastructure projects The remaining 17% of Capital Programme spending will be on Environment, Climate Action and Active Travel (€68m); Operations and Water Services (€41m), Community and Sports Development (€35m) and Corporate Affairs and Governance (€17m).The Capital Plan is a rolling programme which is revised annually as time and other constraints may vary the progress of projects within a given period. The decision of Councillors to agree the Capital Plan 2023-2025 does not confer approval on any individual project. This can only be done through the normal statutory processes and compliance with the Public Spending Code. Funding arrangements also need to be clearly identified and secured in advance of committing to any project.

Householders in Fingal will see their 2023 Local Property Tax bills reduced by 7.5% following a decision by councillors at last night’s monthly meeting of Fingal County Council. The elected members in Fingal voted by 26 votes to eight to reduce the Local Property Tax by 7.5% up to 31 December 2024.This is the sixth successive year that bills have been reduced by less than the 15% rate. The previous five reductions were for 10% and the extra income raised facilitated increased resources in areas such as housing, operations, community, and libraries. The Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, Ann Marie Farrelly, said the decision of councillors will benefit both the householders and the communities they live in. This is the sixth year we have been able to give householders a reduction while creating a fund for local services. Having that extra funding has made a tangible difference across the county and I would like to thank our Elected Members for their continued support,” said Ms Farrelly. The effect of new valuations and the increased number of residential properties liable for Local Property Tax will result in an average decrease of around 1.3% on what people were paying in 2022,” she added. The number of properties playing Local Property Tax in Fingal has risen by 10.7% from 98,300 in 2022 to 108,800 and the average amount paid will reduce from €349 to €345.The decision not to apply the full 15% reduction means that Fingal County Council will have an additional €2.26m to spend on local services.

Fingal County Council has welcomed the announcement by Taoiseach Micheál Martin of a €150,000 grant under the Shared Island Local Authority Development Funding Scheme for the Corridor Enterprise Hubs project. The Corridor Enterprise Hubs project is a Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor (DBEC) initiative for which Fingal County Council is the lead authority. DBEC is a partnership of eight local authorities and two universities located on either side of the border. The grant will enable Fingal to commission a feasibility study on developing regional innovation hubs within the DBEC area. Innovation hubs have been identified by the DBEC partnership as having the potential for collaboration between the partners based on existing local strengths and the importance of the establishment of local clusters as highlighted in national and regional plans. The DBEC partners have identified a number of economic clusters with the potential for cross-border collaboration including: -Fintech Cluster- Circular Economy Cluster - Digital Health Cluster - Agri-tech Cluster and Advanced Manufacturing and Renewable Engineering Cluster. Welcoming the funding announcement, the Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Howard Mahony, said: “The funding from the Shared Island Scheme will allow Fingal County Council, and our partners within the Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor partnership, to undertake this important feasibility study which will examine how we can create cross-border sectoral clusters, using new or existing facilities, to promote enterprise in the region.”Fingal County Council Chief Executive AnnMarie Farrelly said: Following today’s announcement, a multi-disciplinary team drawn from within the DBEC partnership will prepare the Terms of Reference for the feasibility study, with Fingal County Council leading and managing the procurement process with the tender award anticipated in December. The successful tenderer will commence the feasibility study in January 2023 and will be supported by a Steering Committee comprised of relevant officials from within the DBEC partnership to produce a final report in Q22023. The Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor partnership consists of Belfast City Council, Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council, Armagh Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council, Newry & Mourne District Council, Louth County Council, Meath County Council, Fingal County Council and Dublin City Council plus academic partners Dublin City University and Ulster University.