News
Pressure mounts on council regarding future of St Finan’s
By Sean Moriarty
Elected officials from the Killarney Municipal District are puting Kerry County Council management under pressure to make decisions on the future of the St Finan’s Hospital site.
The old hospital – idle since 2012- and its surrounding gardens is currently owned by the Health Services Executive.
The HSE is to offer the property for sale on the private market – this was confirmed to the Killarney Advertiser last month.
Kerry County Council is in the process of buying 5.5 acres of the extended site which is part of the HSE land portfolio (and prior to the construction of the bypass part of the St Finian’s complex) but it is not part of the now separate St Finian’s site south of the By-pass.
The dynamics changed last week when Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien announced the “Housing for All” national homebuilding strategy.
One of the key recommendations of the plans is the release of state owned land for residential construction.
At Wednesday’s Killarney Municipal meeting, Cllr Niall Kelleher asked: “if there discussions with the Land Development Agency regarding acquiring land in Killarney?”
A council official replied: “All options regarding the availability and potential purchase of lands for Housing purposes in Killarney continue to be considered and pursued,”
Mr Kelleher told the meeting that this response was not good enough. Earlier he had said that Killarney is facing a housing problem and that there are ten people for every available rental property in the town.
The majority of the elected councillors agreed that the building needs to be acquired for homebuilding purposes and other uses. They called for the old hospital to be refurbished into apartments and in line with the new national plan.
Only Donal Grady opposed the move citing its former use as a mental hospital as a reason it should not be used for housing.
“A lot of bad things happened up there,” he said.
However all agreed that the building should not be allowed fall into disrepair like other buildings including the Aras Padraig and the Pretty Polly factory.
TFI Anseo demand-responsive transport pilot extended
The National Transport Authority (NTA) and TFI Local Link Kerry have announced an extension of the TFI Anseo pilot service in Killarney following a successful first year of operation.
Funded through the Climate Action Fund as part of the Connecting Ireland Rural Mobility Plan, the demand-responsive bus service has supported over 82,000 passenger journeys since launching on August 11, 2025. The extension will allow the service to continue operating while a final evaluation report is compiled for December 2026.
The pilot allows passengers to book flexible trips for work, healthcare appointments, shopping, and social visits across the Killarney area.
Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien welcomed the extension, stating:
“I am very pleased to see the TFI Anseo pilot service being extended following its highly successful first year. The sheer number of passenger journeys recorded shows that the local community have embraced this innovative service, which truly puts the passenger at the heart of the journey. Extending the pilot allows us to continue learning how to provide practical transport solutions that encourage sustainable and inclusive travel.”
Minister of State with responsibility for Rural Transport, Jerry Buttimer, noted that local feedback from business owners and residents demonstrates a strong vote of confidence in demand-responsive transport for rural communities.
NTA CEO Anne Shaw confirmed the pilot has operated within budget while providing key insights into future rural public transport. Over the autumn months, the NTA will conduct customer satisfaction surveys to gather further feedback from local passengers.
RTÉ News appoints new Cork and Kerry reporter
RTÉ News has announced that Barry Gallagher will take up the role of regional news journalist for Cork, Kerry, and the wider Southern region starting this August.
Gallagher will work alongside RTÉ News’ Southern Editor Paschal Sheehy, reporting across television, radio, online, and social media platforms. He succeeds veteran broadcaster Jennie O’Sullivan, who retired in May following a 25-year reporting career with RTÉ in the region.
Gallagher joined RTÉ in 2023 as a presenter for news2day before moving on to report across flagship programs, including the Six One News, Nine O’Clock News, and Morning Ireland. His coverage has spanned major national stories, including the 2024 Olympic Games, All-Ireland Hurling Finals, and Storm Chandra.
Originally from Gartan, County Donegal, Gallagher studied journalism at D
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