| Shannon An tSionna
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|---|---|
| — Town — | |
| Aerial view of Shannon | |
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Shannon
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| Coordinates: | |
| Country | Ireland |
| Province | Munster |
| County | County Clare |
| Dáil Éireann | Clare |
| EU Parliament | North-West |
| Elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Urban | 9,222 |
| Irish Grid Reference | R402624 |
| Website | www.shannon.ie |
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1841 | 241 | — |
| 1851 | 196 | −18.7% |
| 1861 | 156 | −20.4% |
| 1871 | 147 | −5.8% |
| 1881 | 95 | −35.4% |
| 1961 | 234 | +146.3% |
| 1966 | 1,658 | +608.5% |
| 1971 | 3,657 | +120.6% |
| 1981 | 7,998 | +118.7% |
| 1986 | 8,005 | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 7,920 | −1.1% |
| 1996 | 7,940 | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 8,561 | +7.8% |
| 2006 | 9,222 | +7.7% |
| [1] | ||
Shannon or Shannon Town (Irish: Baile na Sionnainne), named after the river near which it stands, is a town located in County Clare. It was given town status on 1 January 1982. The town is located just off the N19 road, a spur of the N18/M18 road between Limerick city and Ennis.
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Shannon is a new town. It was built in the 1960s on reclaimed marshland alongside Shannon Airport, along with the Shannon Free Zone industrial estate.[2] The residential areas were intended as a home for the thousands of workers at the airport, surrounding industries and support services. Population growth was never as fast as planned throughout the first few decades of the town's existence. This was partly due to the proximity of 'friendly' places to live, such as Ennis town and Limerick city, or even the nearby village of Newmarket-on-Fergus.
The 'planned' nature of this town did not necessarily result in a successful town. It was lacking in facilities, and the town's shopping centre was also of poor design. Shops fronted onto pedestrian malls that were originally uncovered, allowing estuary winds and rain to strike at shoppers. The early low-cost housing (tower-block flats located in Drumgeely, near the airport) was poor-quality terraced housing.
| Climate data for Shannon | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 8 (47) |
8 (47) |
10 (50) |
12 (54) |
15 (59) |
17 (63) |
19 (67) |
19 (66) |
17 (62) |
13 (56) |
11 (51) |
9 (48) |
13.2 (55.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 3 (38) |
3 (38) |
4 (40) |
6 (42) |
8 (46) |
11 (51) |
13 (55) |
13 (55) |
11 (51) |
8 (47) |
6 (42) |
4 (40) |
7.5 (45.4) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 99 (3.9) |
74 (2.9) |
69 (2.7) |
58 (2.3) |
61 (2.4) |
66 (2.6) |
74 (2.9) |
89 (3.5) |
84 (3.3) |
97 (3.8) |
97 (3.8) |
107 (4.2) |
973 (38.3) |
| Source: Weatherbase [3] | |||||||||||||
There have been recent improvements. The recently completed bypass of Newmarket on Fergus includes a spur to Shannon airport, resulting in a bypass of the town for most traffic to and from Ennis and Limerick. The population grew significantly in the 1990s, and new modern housing developments continued to be built. Facilities in the town are slowly improving; for example, a second major supermarket opened, with the shopping centre being expanded by the addition of the modern "Skycourt" complex. The main road through Shannon was remodelled following the opening of the bypass. New units continue to open in the industrial estates (despite some others closing or changing hands). There is also a lobby for railway services connecting to Shannon, from the existing Ennis-Limerick route. In theory this would benefit the local community as well as the airport.
Shannon Free Zone is Ireland's largest cluster of North American investments. Since its establishment in 1959, more than 110 overseas companies have chosen to Invest in Shannon Ireland included Zimmer, Digital River, GE Capital, Genworth Financial, Intel, Lufthansa Technik, Mentor Graphics, Molex, RSA Security and Symantec.[4] Aer Rianta International, a subsidiary of Dublin Airport Authority, has its head office on the grounds of Shannon Airport.[5] When Eirjet existed, its head office was located on the grounds of Shannon Airport.[6]
The town is administered at a local level by "Shannon Town Council", known prior to 2001 as "Shannon Town Commissioners".[7] In addition, prior to September 2004, Shannon Development, a state-sponsored body had charge of many services normally provided by local authorities in the Republic of Ireland. This gave Shannon a unique status in local governance. In September 2004 its situation was regularised when Shannon Development transferred its local government functions to Clare County Council.[8] The company retains responsibility for the Shannon Free Zone.
| Party | Seats | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Fine Gael | 4 | +2 |
| Labour Party | 2 | = |
| Independent | 2 | -1 |
| Sinn Féin | 1 | +1 |
| Fianna Fáil | 0 | -2 |
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