Offering incentives to use street-front buildings in Kerry towns as homes would bring “the pulse” back into rural towns as well as helping tackle the housing waiting list, local politicians have said.

Spontaneous and warm tributes by councillors and management were yesterday paid to Irish Examiner journalist Donal Hickey at his last county council meeting after almost half a century.

A traditional seaside resort is in need of modernisation to help it capitalise on the Wild Atlantic Way.

One of the country’s leading tourist areas last year saw a 17% rise in the number of illegal dumping cases.

Campervans are becoming a "scourge" in some tourism hotspots of the south-west.

A local authority is taking a lead in trying to end the "scourge" of many church-goers being intimidated by some political parties taking up annual cash collections.

Political representatives in north Kerry are dismayed by reports that the company behind the Shannon LNG project has pulled the plug.

Locals in the village of Lixnaw, Co Kerry, are seeking the demolition of a council-owned cottage where a number of people have died, including a woman who died violently there last year.

There is to be a full recount of votes in the Listowel Electoral Area, Co Kerry, after only five votes separated three candidates in the 11th and final count at the counting centre in Tralee late last night.

Not even the rise of Sinn Féin, which took the last seat in South and West Kerry and out-polled Labour in the Killarney area, could dwarf the gigantic performance of the Healy-Rae organisation.

Sinn Féin could double its representation on Kerry Co Council from two seats to four, party strategists are predicting.

WALKING along the golden sands of Ballybunion on a calm, sunny day, it was hard to imagine the ferocity of the waves and storms that relentlessly battered the coastline just a short time before.

Waterford

Kerry County Council is to seek emergency funding from the Government to deal with a worsening coastal erosion problem, with some seaside areas being described as “war zones”.

The road system in Kerry is unlikely to be maintained to an acceptable level this year, due to council funds being slashed by €22m.

Permits costing €300 will be required for people promoting water sports activities on Kerry’s beaches.

A motion passed by Kerry County Council aimed at permitting people to drink and drive has been criticised today for dragging the country back to "darker days".

Three different sets of financial records, none of which match, have been submitted to Kerry County Council for a recently-closed swimming pool complex in a popular seaside resort, it was revealed yesterday.

TRADITIONAL seaside resort Ballybunion is to ‘rebrand’ its image, following bad experiences with a drink-fuelled event that attracted hordes of young people to the town on Monday nights.

HOPES were voiced yesterday that there would be no further delays in going ahead with a €500 million natural gas-fired energy project in Tarbert, Co Kerry.

IN our capacity as councillors we and our colleagues are faced daily with the appalling consequences for people arising from the economic and banking mismanagement of the past decade.

THE urgency of restoring the Cork/Swansea car ferry for the 2009 season was highlighted yesterday, as the tourism industry continues to suffer a sharp decline in the south-west.

A MOVE to allow some cash-strapped Kerry golf clubs to build holiday homes on courses has been stymied by the local authority.

MEMBERS of Kerry County Council distanced themselves from a proposal that could have been seen as an attempt to reintroduce domestic rates “through the back door”.

AN anticipated near doubling of vehicles in top tourist town Dingle has raised strong fears about traffic management.

ILLEGAL dumpers in Kerry have become so “cute” that it is virtually impossible to catch them, it was revealed yesterday.

A CALL for action to curb late-night drinking parties and vandalism on children’s playgrounds in Kerry was made yesterday.

WORK on providing broadband internet access to six Kerry towns is due to get underway shortly, it was confirmed yesterday.

PEOPLE who recently removed sand from a dune area, in Ballyheigue, could yet face proceedings from Kerry County Council, it emerged yesterday.

THE community in the seaside resort of Ballybunion has been shocked by what gardaí described as a “serious assault’’ on a local woman in her early 20s early on Sunday.

MEMBERS of Kerry County Council are expected to do a U-turn on a controversial rezoning decision in one of Killarney’s prime tourism areas.

MAJOR State funding is required to restore one of Kerry’s best-known picture postcard castles.

FIANNA FÁIL yesterday came to the rescue of Kerry Sinn Féin mayor Toiréasa Ferris by ensuring a Fine Gael no confidence motion in her was defeated at Kerry County Council’s meeting.

A DISAPPOINTING level of bookings for July and August is adding to concerns about the 2005 tourism season among those in the industry in the South-West.

Donal Hickey