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Killarney businessman swaps car for scooter to beat traffic

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One Killarney businessman has come up with a novel way of dealing with the town’s crippling traffic problem: he has ditched his car in favour of a nifty scooter.

Fed up with trying to get around town during the busy tourist, Frank Doran of Safeguard Security decided to buy a scooter so he could bypass the long lines of traffic that plague Killarney throughout the summer months.

“We offer a 24-hour service and we need to get to people’s properties pretty quickly in the event of a burglary or fire alarm activation,” Frank explained. “The traffic is so frustrating around different parts of the town. It’s definitely worse this year. Last year was bad, and that’s what prompted me to think about getting a scooter, but this year has been hectic. If you’re out the Fossa side and you’re trying to get in towards town, you come up Mission Road and it’s bumper to bumper. It can take you back as far as the cathedral sometimes and it moves at a snail’s pace.

“It’s the bane of our lives, really.”

The TEIR 1 report, which was released earlier this year, highlighted the town’s intertwined traffic and parking issues as major concerns but Mr Doran says it’s time for action, not words.

“I know the council are trying to do the best they can and they’ve done lots of surveys, but nobody seems to be coming up with any ideas,” he said. “You wonder, what’s the point of these surveys?

“It’s a marvellous town and we’re probably victims of our own success in that regard. I understand that Killarney is probably unique with the amount of visitors who come here but we still need to be able to get around and manage our town better from a traffic point of view.

“I think if a number of businesspeople – who see what’s happening each day of the week – in conjunction with the council and the gardaí could set up a committee to look at the problem, it might be a far better option. They’re doing surveys for a number of years now but we’re still no better off. Somebody needs to do something.”

Mr Doran is just one of a large number of residents and business owners who have expressed their dismay at the traffic in Killarney this summer. It appears as though long tailbacks on Muckross Road, Lewis Road, Mission Road, Rock Road, Park Road and the Cork Road, among other places, have left locals at the end of their collective tether. Fair play to Mr Doran for thinking outside the box but for many Killarney people alternative transportation isn’t an option.

Hopefully this worrying issue isn’t swept under the carpet as things get quieter and we approach the off-season. Surely now is the time to address it head on; it can’t be left until next summer when things get out of hand again.

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Paralympic legend Jason Smyth visits St Brendan’s

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Paralympic legend Jason Smyth visits St Brendan’s


World renowned Paralympian and world record holder Jason Smyth paid a visit to St Brendan’s College on Wednesday afternoon as part of a high profile visit to Killarney.


The six time Paralympic gold medallist spoke to second year students from St Brendan’s College, alongside students from neighbouring schools St Brigid’s Presentation Secondary School and Killarney Community College.
The interactive talk and interview took place ahead of World Sight Day, with the legendary sprinter sharing his personal journey with Stargardt disease, a genetic eye condition that left him legally blind at eight years old.
The Derry native, who holds the world record as the fastest Paralympian on earth over 100 metres, offered inspiring insights into overcoming physical adversity and achieving success at the highest level of world sport.
The school visit formed the opening leg of his Killarney schedule before he took centre stage later on Wednesday evening at The Killarney Plaza Hotel & Spa.
Smyth headlined An Evening with Paralympian Jason Smyth, an event organised by the Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce as part of its winter schedule, sponsored by AIB.

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Deerpark Retail Park placed on market for fifteen million euro

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Deerpark Retail Park in Killarney has officially been placed on the market with a guide price in excess of 15.4 million euro, excluding VAT.

International real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield has been appointed as the sole sales agent to handle the high-profile commercial property sale on behalf of its current owner, Investcorp.

Investcorp, a global investment management firm headquartered in Bahrain, had previously acquired the prominent shopping complex.


The sale represents one of the largest commercial property offerings to launch in County Kerry this year.

Located roughly 1.3 kilometres west of Killarney town centre, the scheme enjoys strong regional connectivity and sits adjacent to independently owned operations including a Tesco Extra store, a Tesco petrol filling station, JYSK, and Aldi.


Constructed in 2006, the development extends across approximately 10,482 square metres, or 112,835 square feet.

The scheme comprises a mix of modern retail warehouse units and a complementary neighbourhood centre, offering 13 individual units in total with Part Open and Part Bulky Use planning permission.

The units range in size from 94.6 square metres up to 1,994.9 square metres. Visitors have access to approximately 248 customer parking spaces across the commercial grounds.

The park is currently 100 per cent occupied by a strong line-up of established national and international brands.

Key retail tenants include Marks & Spencer, Boots, DID Electrical, Maxi Zoo, and Mountain Warehouse.

The neighbourhood centre element accommodates service and convenience operators such as Costa Coffee, Card Factory, and Salon B.

The first-floor accommodation is fully let to Peak Performance Academy, which provides additional rental diversification.

Additionally, the scheme benefits from an agreement with Tesla to operate eight electric vehicle charging bays within the customer car park.


Commercial figures show that the property generates a total current rental income of 1,326,458 euro per annum, with a weighted average unexpired lease term of 4.45 years to break options and 6.46 years to lease expiry.

Cushman & Wakefield noted that the quoted guide price of 15.4 million euro reflects a net initial yield of 7.83 per cent, assuming standard purchaser costs of 9.96 per cent.

The selling agents highlighted that the fully occupied asset offers investors an attractive income profile alongside scope for additional income generation through parking commercialisation.

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