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We begin our review of the stories we brought you this year at the obvious starting point – January…
• IT emerged that new car sales in Kerry increased by almost a fifth in 2016 on the previous year according to statistics released by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI).
Kerry had 3,228 new registrations in 2016 compared to 2,696 in 2015, a rise of 19.73%.
• TRALEE people got the new year off to a healthy start as they gathered for the Park Run in conjunction with RTE’s Operation Transformation.
It resulted in nearly 320 participants circling the park three times to complete the 5k course in the first week of the month.
• THE then Mayor of Tralee, Cllr Terry O’Brien called for traffic lights at what he described as “the most dangerous junction in Tralee at the moment”.
Mayor Terry O’Brien had a motion before the January Tralee Municipal District of Kerry County Council meeting that the Council would review the traffic situation at the Cross between the Lower Field and James’ Street and said traffic lights have to be an option as it has become a very busy junction.
“Something has to be done, whether it’s a roundabout…put a lollipop man there! It’s crazy,” he said.
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• KERRY had an easy win over Tipperary in the McGrath Cup at Austin Stack Park in their opening game of 2018.
Fielding a side drawn entirely from their Under 21 squad and managed by the Under 21 management team, they beat the Premier county by 3-11 to 1-3.
• IT was announced that Ted Moynihan was named Kerry Person of the Year by the Kerry Association in Dublin.
The Kerry Hospice Foundation chairman would be presented with the award at a gala ceremony at the Association’s annual Oiche Chiarrai in Dublin in March.
Mr. Ted Moynihan is a tireless fundraiser and campaigner on behalf of the Kerry Hospice Foundation which funds a wide range of palliative care services to patients in Kerry, dealing with serious illness.
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• THERE was great news for a syndicate of workers in Dunnes Stores in Tralee when the seven won around €70,000 on a bet.
For a €14 stake, the lads picked numbers in the Lotto draw and bet on them at the Paddy Power bookies on Castle Street. The small outlay netted them around €10,000 each.
• MANY tributes were paid as Aidan O’Mahony retired from the Kerry inter-county scene.
The Rathmore Clubman, winner of five All Ireland senior medals, made his championship debut in the green and gold in 2004 against Clare and went on to play 70 championship games for his county in a career spanning 14 years. In addition he played 85 League games for the county.
• A TRALEE man won a top prize at a regional final of Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) competition.
Derek Counihan from Tralee, founder of Harpoon which is based in HQ Tralee, won the Best Start-Up Award at the Mid West Finals of Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur 2017 held in Bunratty Castle Hotel.
This business provides services to support businesses monetise their digital marketing using up to date technology.
• THE convent at Balloonagh and Catherine McAuley House were put on the property market for a guide price over the €1m mark.
The properties were owned by the Diocese of Kerry. The convent closed in 2016 and its contents were sold at auction for over €150,000.
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• THE Council announced they were introducing a two and a half hour free parking period for Fridays which they hoped would entice people to ‘linger longer in Tralee’ and support local businesses.
The idea was that people would come to town on a Friday afternoon to do their shopping, leave the car and go for a meal and a drink and not have to worry about getting a ticket.
• GARDAÍ seized cannabis plants and cannabis herb with an estimated value of €200,000, at a premises in north Kerry in late January.
Approximately 100 mature cannabis plants and 6.5 kilos of cannabis herb were discovered. A 42 year old man was arrested.
• THE people of Kerins Park celebrated the estate’s 50th anniversary with over 180 people gathered at The Rose Hotel for the ‘Get-Together of the Year’.
It was a night of elegance and nostalgia as the people of Kerins Park, both young and old, celebrated the golden anniversary together.
