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April 26 – May 30, 2024
Local Elections Candidate: Chris Heinhold C llr Chris Heinhold wants to continue work- ing on turning ideas
I’m here to help.
Social Democrats
Cork, on Castle Street in Cork City, and then at West Cafe Wine Bar in Bantry, where he lives with his partner and three young children. Chris has a clear under- standing of the wide array of challenges facing small independent businesses across the country, but particularly in our towns and villages. He is very invested in the survival of such businesses, as they offer so much more to their communities beyond what they may sell or the services they provide. On the council, Chris has raised these issues, and if elected in June will continue to advocate strongly for busi- nesses. Being a father of three children under five, Chris
knows the challenges faced by young families. Childcare and housing are key areas he wants to work on at the council level. The council can and should do more to reduce the burden on families, particularly in rural areas where options are limited. Chris and his partner moved into their own home this year. Getting to this point took a long time, a lot of work, and the kindness and support of family. While renting, they relied on luck and connections to ensure that they could stay in the local Bantry area. The housing market is broken. Decades of policy directed at enriching a small minority has led to a market which is less fo- cused on ensuring people have secure and affordable housing,
and more on ensuring high rents and house prices continue to grow. We need to stop lining the pockets of landlords and developers and start building and maintaining real social housing. Being a member of Cork County Council has been an in- credibly rewarding experience for Chris so far. He has enjoyed the council meetings, and the interactions with people day to day. Chris loves the hospitality business because he loves peo- ple. He wants to be of service to his community and to make it a place where more people can build a forever home for themselves. Being a council member allows him to turn ideas into action, and make an actual difference.
Chris HEINHOLD
into action. Chris was co-opted onto Cork County Council on January 8 of this year. He is sitting on the council in the seat which Holly Cairns originally won in 2019, before she went on to win her Dail seat. Chris’s background is in the hospitality industry. He has worked behind bars, waiting tables, and making coffee since school. He attended UCC as a mature student, receiving a degree in History and the Academic Study of Religions, and then a Masters in Politics. For the past seven years, he has operated his own businesses, firstly at Ireland’s first dedicat - ed board game cafe, Tabletop L ocal election hopeful independent candidate for Cork County Council as a mission to “restore people power in local government”, saying many people feel like they don’t have a voice when it comes to political matters. Speaking about his reasons for seeking a seat on the coun- cil, he said “Voter turnout for council elections is shocking. Everyone has an opinion on how the country should be run, but in the last local elections, less than half of the people that could vote actually did”. He Barry O’Mahony sees his decision to run as an went on to say “it’s disappoint- ing to see, but it’s not hard to understand. A lot of people don’t value local government because they don’t think the councillors themselves take it seriously. There’s a perception C astleview Mills and Rathbarry Church in West Cork have both been awarded funding through the 2024 Communi- ty Monuments Fund. Under the scheme Castleview Mills will receive €100,000 and Rathbarry Church will receive €30,000 in funding. Over €7.4 million will be awarded to 140 projects around the country to help owners and custodians of archaeological monuments to safeguard them into the future. Castleview Mills has been identified as the best preserved
Cork County Councillor Representing Bantry m 083 428 6024 k chris.heinhold@cllr.corkcoco.ie Q chris_heinhold E Chris Heinhold West Cork
Local Elections Candidate: Barry O’Mahony
that local election candidates are only using the council as a step up for a future career in Leinster House or in Brussels – seeking out photo opportu- nities to raise their profiles but with no appetite to tackle big issues. That’s not what I’m about.” When asked if he has any aspirations to become a TD, O’Mahony said “Abso- lutely not. My wife and I have a two-year-old daughter, so I don’t want to be spending half of my time up and down to Dublin away from them… to be honest, I don’t like to spend any more time in Dublin than is absolutely necessary!” The Clonakilty native continued “I believe that any candidate running in a local election should be one hundred percent focused on being as effective as possible within the council, representing their
constituents, and not trying to climb the party ladder. My in- tention is to be answerable only to the people in my commu- nity, and not to a party leader who has their own career to protect”. As a non-party candidate seeking election for the first time, O’Mahony comes without the baggage of a past in politics or a party affiliation, but also without the profile or familiar manifesto of some of his opponents. When asked about his policies he had this to say: “I’m aware that, while being an independent candi- date generally gets me a warm reception when knocking on doors, for many people I’m an unknown element – people don’t know what I stand for until they get to speak to me. Generally, every candidate in this election (unless some
oddball or extremist announces their intention to run) will be eager to tackle the bread-and- butter issues of road conditions, housing supply and water ser- vices – we all live in the area; we all experience these issues first-hand – but where I am de - termined to make a difference is by demanding more joined- up thinking and common sense in infrastructure planning; speaking out about the inade- quacies of organisations like Transport Infrastructure Ireland and Uisce Éireann – my old foe from the Shannonvale sewage scandal; and bringing new creative solutions to address- ing the issues that face our community – solutions with a long-term vision, not just an eye on the next election.”
DONNCHADH Ó SEAGHDHA
West Cork buildings awarded funding from 2024 Community Monuments Fund
Your Sinn Féin local election candidate SKIBBEREEN – WEST CORK LEA
mill in Cork County – the only one out of 500 in the county still in working order – and one of Ireland’s top five, recognised internationally for the signifi - cance of its industrial archaeo- logical heritage. Owner Joseph O’Leary, who is spearheading the renovation project, says he’s delighted and relieved to have been successful in this round of funding. “There is now a big push to get special- ised work done by September.” Plans involve weather slating the front and east elevation of the building, replicating a
window from 1800, installing new windows and continued loft repair. First established in 2020, the Community Monuments Fund aims to conserve, maintain, protect and promote local monuments and historic sites. Funding is available to allow conservation works to be car- ried out on monuments that are deemed to be significant and in need of urgent support. The aim is to encourage access to monuments and improve their presentation and also to build their resilience to help them
withstand the effects of climate change. The CMF supports essential repairs and capital works for the conservation of archaeolog- ical monuments and also the development of Conservation Management Plans to identify measures that may be needed to conserve monuments. Grants are also available to enhance public access infrastructure and interpretation at archaeological monuments.
Standing up for West Cork / Ag seasamh an fhóid
MY PRIORITIES INCLUDE CAMPAIGNING FOR: → Major upgrading of roads network in West Cork → Investment in social & affordable housing → Supports for farming, fishing & local businesses → A cleaner, healthier environment
ar son Iarthar Chorcaí.
083 0160430 donneaghdha@eircom.net
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