Latest news with #Cahir
Irish Independent
11-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Calls for ‘student-type' accommodation for apprentices in Tipperary to encourage young people into trades
Councillors at the June meeting of Tipperary County Council were briefed by Brian Beck, Director of Services for Economic, Community Rural Development and representatives from Tipperary's Local Enterprise Office (LEO), gave an update on attracting business to the county, and outlined that serviced sites with water and electricity are what multinational companies who are looking for a base are requiring. The call for accommodation to be provided was made by Cahir councillor Andy Moloney at the meeting, who called for student-like accommodation to be built on sites where new industrial buildings were being developed. Speaking to the Irish Independent after the meeting, Cllr Moloney said that the changes would help to encourage more young people into an apprenticeship and help to stem the flow of young people emigrating to Australia and Canada. "They're saying that power and water are the two main sources, now a lot of these IDA companies are going to be coming in and they're going to be looking for young people to do apprenticeships and all that,' Cllr Moloney said. "But you won't get apprenticeships and young lads unless they have somewhere to stay, and housing is an issue, and affordable accommodation for students. What you're really looking for is student-type accommodation on-site in a portion of these lands so that the people can come in of a Monday or a Sunday evening and they can stay until Friday evening and they can go back home again,' he outlined. The plan would aim to encourage young people to undertake an apprenticeship, which traditionally attracts low pay in the first few years, by taking away the stress of finding and affording accommodation on an apprentice wage. "It would encourage kids to stay at home and do an apprenticeship rather than be getting on a plane and going out foreign,' Cllr Moloney added. "I'm not looking for a satellite town, but I am looking for satellite accommodation on the site'. "Say if the IDA come in with a proposal that they're going to create 200 jobs on a site, 10% of that – 20 student-type accommodation units should be provided with it,' Cllr Moloney said. "It should be the first thing on the site and it could be used by the builders while the project is going ahead, and once it's finished it would be signed back over again and becomes part of the whole thing,' the Cahir councillor explained. According to Cllr Moloney, more forward thinking is needed to address issues of accommodation and low rates of people taking up apprenticeships, and would make Ireland an even more attractive workforce to multinational companies. "Most American companies will tell you that they're here because of our educated workforce and that's plain to be seen, but if you're talking about apprenticeships, you're starting off on a low rate but at least if they had the accommodation at least it's something, it's some little bit of a carrot to keep them there'. The County Tipperary Development Plan or local area plans do not allow for any mixed-use space on lands that are zoned as commercial or industrial which would allow for this type of accommodation to be built. "In a lot of cases, these could be modular homes, and I'm not looking for anything fancy, just a bedsit with a shower, toilet and a small kitchenette, it's only the size of a big bedroom,' he said. "I think it's one way of encouraging business in if you can provide these incentives,' Cllr Moloney added. "County development plans are made five years at a time, but we need to be able to make changes midstream if we see the market moving a bit,' he concluded. Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Remembering Tom Cahir: The 'epitome' of a what a public servant should be
A dedicated public servant. A good listener. A dogged advocate. A consummate professional. A transformative leader. A true champion of Cape Cod. Those are the words people are using to describe Thomas Cahir, longtime administrator of the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, after his sudden death on March 12. The cause of his death has not been released. 'He was one of a kind and the epitome of what a public servant should strive to be,' wrote Bourne's Assistant Fire Chief Joseph Carrara Jr. in a March 13 email. Carrara saw Cahir's work ethic in action during his time as state representative for Barnstable 3rd District. Carrara worked for Cahir during and after college, and the two developed a strong friendship. 'I truly consider him to be family,' Carrara wrote. Cahir was one of Peter Meier's mentors when he was a young man just getting started in politics. Meier joined the Bourne Democratic Town Committee when he got out of college. He's been on the select board and other town committees ever since he first ran for office in 1996. Much of what he's learned about serving constituents came from Cahir. 'He taught me the value of constituent service and to listen to the people,' Meier said in a telephone call March 13. 'He made sure every Friday he had office hours in his district. He'd say 'I can't fix everything but at least they know we listened, we'll do our research and get back to them. You don't want to ignore the people that you work for.'' Cahir was elected to the state House of Representatives in 1985, following in the footsteps of his father, Jeremiah. The Democratic representative served the 3rd Barnstable District for 14 years until 1999. During that time, he served on and chaired the Joint Committee on Transportation. In 1999 Cahir became the Deputy Secretary for Transportation Programs at the Executive Office of Transportation and Public Works. His office was responsible for the operation of the 15 Regional Transit Authorities in Massachusetts and a $140 million budget. In 2009 he was named administrator of the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority. In a March 13 telephone interview, Barnstable County Commissioner Mark Forest recalled his long working relationship with Cahir. The men met in 1985 when Forest was working for US Rep. Gerry Studds and Cahir was launching his political career. 'He's known as Mr. Transportation; that's a title that's rightly deserved,' Forest said. But Cahir's impact went well beyond transportation, he added. 'He's had as profound an effect on this region as anybody.' Cahir played a key legislative role in getting the Cape Cod Land Bank passed, Forest said. The act saved thousands of acres of land on Cape Cod and was the precursor to the Community Preservation Act. Cahir was instrumental in the passage of legislation regarding the Barnstable County government charter, Forest said. And he was dogged in advocating for his constituents whether it was state, federal or local government issues. 'He came of age politically when if you represented people, you gave it your all on behalf of them,' Forest said. 'The job wasn't about you; it was about serving the community. That's part of Tommy's ethos, his DNA.' Kathy Jensen, deputy administrator for the Transit Authority, called Cahir's loss — and legacy — immeasurable. In a March 13 email, she called Cahir a leader, mentor, problem solver and true friend. 'He taught me so much,' she wrote, 'not just about work, but about how to truly make an impact and get things done. He led by example, showing what it means to be dedicated, compassionate, and unwavering in the pursuit of solutions.' 'Our hearts go out to the countless people whose lives he made better just by being in them,' she wrote. 'He will be profoundly missed.' Denise Coffey writes about business, tourism and issues impacting the Cape's residents and visitors. Contact her at dcoffey@ . Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Cape Cod Times subscription. Here are our subscription plans. This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Tom Cahir remembered by Cape Cod as dedicated public servant, leader
