Marsh House, Market Square, Castlebar, has been the municipal home of Castlebar Town Council for the past number of decades and will feature prominently in Noel Campbell's historyTHERE were no birthday cakes, no candles, no fanfare.

The 400th anniversary of the inauguration of local government in Castlebar was March 26 last.

For most, apart from the most diehard of the historically or politically minded, the significance of the date passed unnoticed.

One man who did notice though, and is doing his best to bring the fact to the attention of the public, is Noel Campbell, a former member of the town council.

In fact, Mr. Campbell is writing a book about the history of the town council and gave a very enlightening talk on the matter at the council’s monthly meeting.

Displaying intense knowledge and interest in the subject, Mr. Campbell, with the aid of a projector, brought the councillors, officials and members of the press who were present on a jaunt back through the centuries to March 26, 1613, when King James I granted a certificate of incorporation to Castlebar.

The most important role of the Corporation, Mr. Campbell explained, was to return two MPs to the Irish Parliament in Dublin. 

Visit CastlebarA NEW and exciting multi media video promotion initiated by Castlebar Chamber of Commerce is set to attract national and international exposure for Castlebar in the  weeks and months ahead.
The new DVD promotion features the theme ‘Castlebar – Everyone’s Invited’ and looks on the town as a great place to live, work and visit. “This is a vital promotional
tool for the town going forward as millions of people now use multi media devices such as their phones and iPads when looking for holiday destinations and business
opportunities. This is a quality production using state-of-theart technologies and it gives a great overview of what is on offer in Castlebar from a business, tourism, cultural and social aspect,” commented Castlebar Chamber president, Oliver Kelleher.
The new DVD promotion is the brainchild of Castlebar Chamber and will be used to promote and drive business and tourism to the county town under the umbrella of www.visitcastlebar.com 
From inception to the delivery of the final product, the whole process took little under a month to ensure the DVD would be ready for international distribution this St. 
Patrick’s Day. The interactive website highlights Castlebar as a great place to live, do business and visit.

Westport Town Council to seek legal advice on it's abolitionELECTED members of Fine Gael-dominated Westport Town Council are considering taking legal action against the  government’s decision to scrap town councils.

Environment Minister Phil Hogan announced his decision last autumn to reform local government by replacing town councils with district councils.

However, Fine Gael Councillor Michael McLaughlin said the council should seek legal advice on taking a challenge against the ruling.

Councillor Christy Hyland, the council’s representative on the Association of Municipal Authorities of Ireland (AMAI),  said the reforms are all about funding, powers and numbers.

He stated the AMAI had also decided to seek legal advice on a challenge to the decision.

“Minister Hogan has led us astray and personally told me last year that town councils would not be abolished,” he explained.

Councillor Brendan Mulroy (FF) stated they needed to hold a meeting with Minister Hogan as a matter of urgency.

A special meeting is being held on Thursday, January 3, to decide on strategy.

The main residence on Inish Turk Beg, which was renovated at a cost of €9 millionAN island off the west Mayo coach is up for sale and its price is reduced by more than half due to the recession.

Inish Turk Beg, one of a myriad of islands in Clew Bay off Mayo, is on the market for just short of €2.85 million.

That’s less than a third of the €9 million businessman Nadim Sadek spent transforming the island into his dream hideaway from the pressures of the world.

Sadek was one of Ireland’s ‘Secret Millionaires’ last year, taking part in the popular TV programme.

However, he has been hit by financial difficulties and Inish Turk Beg is being put up for sale by receivers to Sadek’s business.

The sale of the island is being conducted jointly by Knight Frank and Sherry FitzGerald in association with Christie’s International Real Estate.

An Irish-Egyptian businessman, Sadek bought the island 10 years ago with the dream of turning it into his very own haven after selling his successful international market research business.