KILCULLEN 31 January 2003: Kilcullen Drama Group's production of 'Juno and the Paycock' was nothing less than a tour de force. And signs on, as they had to put on an extra four performances this week, Thursday through Sunday, all of which were sold out in advance.

NAAS 30 January 2003: Young hosts and hostesses from Naas No Name Club served up a special treat to the older folks of the town on Sunday last. The venue for the after Christmas party was, as usual, the canteen of Kildare County Council HQ in St Mary’s, Naas.

NEWBRIDGE 30 January 2003: Acabella, comprising Sarah Jayne Carey, Yvonne Crotty, Deirdre Harrington, Eileen McDevitt and Barnardine nic Giolla Phádraig are performing at the Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge, on Saturday 8 February.

NAAS 30 January 2003: The proposed new school in Naas in the Sallins Road/Monread area is unlikely to see pupils crossing its threshold for a year or two yet. The project will be tied up in a mesh of approvals before any stone is laid on a foundation.

CLANE 30 January 2003: Safety measures for pedestrians in Clane will be on the agenda of the Clane Area meeting of local councillors at its next meeting, following the lodging of a motion by Deputy Emmet Stagg.

NEWBRIDGE 30 January 2003: Renaissance ensemble The Fortuna Consort are playing a concert at the Riverbank Arts Centre on Friday 7 February at 8.00 pm. This is a unique opportunity for music lovers to hear the wondrous sounds of centuries past performed on authentic instruments.

KILDARE GENERAL 29 January 2003: A scholarship is to be provided by Kildare County Council to allow a disabled person to study at Maynooth University.

NAAS 29 January 2003: Naas's town engineer is to be asked to look at the possibility of extending the pay parking system down the Ballymore Road in an attempt to deal with a problem of all-day parking by people not willing to pay for the facility.

NEWBRIDGE 29 January 2003: The organisation for women in business in Kildare, Network Kildare, hosted an open evening at the Red House last night.

NAAS 27 January 2003: If the new litter bins recently installed by Naas Town Council 'are not respected', they will not be renewed, Naas town clerk Declan Kirrane has warned councillors.

LEIXLIP 24 January 2003: The supervisor of Leixlip Town's CES project has been made a special presentation to mark his work with the scheme.

NEWBRIDGE 24 January 2003: A series of talks on the arts continues next Tuesday night at Newbridge Library with a discussion on 17th centure genre painting by Vermeer and Rembrandt.

NAAS 23 January 2003: The recent granting of planning permission for the redevelopment of Naas Swimming Pool is 'an opportunity' to maximise the use of the field around the facility, Naas councillors have been told.

TWO MILE HOUSE 23 January 2003: County Kildare has lost what was termed a multi-million euro equestrian centre, following the overturning of planning permission for the project at Two Mile House. The plan was shot down by An Bord Pleanala.

NAAS 22 January 2003: A material contravention application for a proposed cinema complex in the Phase 2 development of the Millennium Business Park outside Naas failed last night amid absolutely extraordinary scenes of rancour and confusion.

NAAS 22 January 2003: Naas Town Council members last night voted down two motions of no confidence in the mayor of the council, Cllr Timmy Conway. The motions had been brought by Cllrs Pat McCarthy and Mary Glennon.

KILDARE GENERAL 21 January 2003: County Kildare Failte, which promotes tourism in Co Kildare, came under strong attack at Monday’s Budget 2003 meeting in Kildare County Council with a number of councillors wondering if they were getting good value for money.

NAAS 21 January 2003: Naas’s town manager is to recommend a material contravention to the Naas Town Development Plan 1999 tonight when he proposes that a rezoning to allow a 9-screen cinema complex in Millennium Park (above) should go ahead.

COUNTY HALL 21 January 2003: Further debate on Kildare County Council’s Budget 2003 has been adjourned until Monday morning next with a number of speakers yet to have their say on many of the features proposed by County Manager Niall Bradley.

NAAS 21 January 2003: Naas Town Council will be pursuing residents of Cleevaun Estate who haven't yet rectified incorrect connections to surface water and foul sewer systems made in the construction of the estate.

NAAS 21 January 2003: Just 120 rented houses in Naas have been registered with the local authority as required by law.

NAAS & THE CURRAGH 20 January 2003: The St Brigid's Hospice on the Curragh has benefited from a Table Quiz organised by Kavanagh's Golfing Society in Naas.

NAAS 19 January 2003: Naas Town Council’s mayor, Cllr Timmy Conway, faces two motions of ‘no confidence’ at next Tuesday night’s monthly statutory meeting of the council, and the town clerk, Declan Kirrane, is also being asked to explain the legal grounds on why he refused to put a similar motion on the agenda for the December meeting.

CASTLEDERMOT 17 January 2003: A two-hour march up and down Castledermot this afternoon strongly registered the frustration of parents and teachers at St Diarmada's National School in Castledermot today.

KILCULLEN 17 January 2003: They were there before me. I was part of them for a number of years. They are a part of the cultural history of Kildare that is a little less sung about than are most of the other bits.

NAAS 17 January 2003: Transport to schools may be subsidised by Naas Town Council under a new allocation in the town's 2003 Budget, recently adopted by the council.

NEWBRIDGE 17 January 2003: Street entertainment based around the Riverbank Centre will mark St Patrick's Day in Newbridge, following a decision by the Chamber of Commerce not to take part in a St Patrick's Day Parade.

NAAS 16 January 2003: Although car park spaces have been in place for Naas Hospital staff since last year, workers in the hospital are still using Lakelands for all day parking, despite the fact that Naas Town Council has placed 'Residents Only' signs throughout the estate.

CASTLEDERMOT 16 January 2003: A schools protest rally in Castledermot tomorrow is likely to lead to widespread traffic disruption between 1pm and 3pm.

KILDARE 16 January 2003: Feile Bride 2003 in Kildare, which begins next Thursday, is the 11th year of the festival, and will include an anti-war conference organised by Afri.

NAAS 16 January 2003: Naas Lollipop Lady Frances Nevin and Naas Town Council outdoor staffman Mick FitzHarris were presented with carriage clocks to mark their recent retirements from working for the council.

LEIXLIP 16 January 2003: Kildare County Council has received an application for the demolition of the former Falcon Coffee Shop and the rest of the building at 59 Main Street, Leixlip.

NAAS 15 January 2003: A planning application for a combined centre involving doctors, dentists, physiotherapists and other medical-related facilities is likely to be brought before Naas town councillors in the near future.

ATHY 15 January 2003: The Athy Investment, Development and Employment Forum has invited people interested in setting up businesses, or relocating their enterprises during 2003 to consider setting up in the Community Enterprise Centre due for completion in the town later this year.

NAAS 15 January 2003: If you are in the habit of stubbing out a cigarette butt, or spitting out chewing gum, on the sidewalks of Naas, it could cost you big from here on in.

MAYNOOTH 15 January 2003: A number of queries on a major development proposed for Moyglare Road in Maynooth are to be asked by local representative Cllr John McGinley, at the Leixlip Area Meeting planned for 17 January.

NAAS 15 January 2003: Divisions of opinion were apparent last night when Naas town councillors discussed the new traffic lights at South Main Street prior to getting on the with the Progress Report agenda for the meeting.

NAAS 15 January 2003: Naas Town Council should be setting aside money every year to provide a proper brochure for the town, Cllr Seamie Moore told the recent Budget meeting of the council.

MAYNOOTH 15 January 2003: Road safety measures for the Celbridge Road, Maynooth, are on the agenda for the next Leixlip Area Meeting which takes place on the afternoon of 17 January.

ATHY 15 January 2003: The proceeds of a massive aid effort by students at Scoil Mhuire in Athy are being brought to the children of Eritrea by members of the Irish defence forces stationed in the war-torn area.

NAAS 14 January 2003: A prominent Naas businessman says the lack of parking policies near his premises on the Ballymore Road may force him to cut jobs at his shop.

LEIXLIP 14 January 2003: Problems relating to the parking of heavy goods vehicles in private estates have been highlighted by councillors in North Kildare.

COUNTY HALL 14 January 2003: Work on the new HQs for both Kildare County Council and Naas Town Council are now expected to get under way in the coming year.

NAAS 14 January 2003: Lawyers differ and clients pay. And the common people lose. That could be the conclusion from a recent meeting of Naas Town Council, when Cllr Pat McCarthy raised an old bugbear and asked for the status of his query on the legal status of the council providing a 'waiver' system to help the financially challenged deal with their waste disposal costs.

NEWBRIDGE 14 January 2003: A conference on history and family research within County Kildare will be held in the Riverbank Centre in Newbridge on 25 February.

ATHY 13 January 2003: Sr Consilio, founder of the Cuan Mhuire alcoholism and drug treatment centres in Athy and Limerick, was recently made a presentation to mark her work.

LEIXLIP 13 January 2003: A number of motions relating to flooding in Leixlip are on the agenda for the next Leixlip Area Meeting of the Kildare County Council.

KILL & JOHNSTOWN 13 January 2003: Improvements to make two junctions on the Naas Road more safe are the subject of two motions down for the next Naas Area Meeting of Kildare County Council.

NAAS 13 January 2003: Naas Town Council paid E6,080 for entertaining visitors from its US twin Omaha when a delegation from the Nebraskan city came to Naas last year.

NAAS 11 January 2003: Naas town officials are to 'talk to' the Naas Chamber of Commerce about a problem with the collection of cardboard for recycling operated by the town's refuse collector.

NEWBRIDGE 11 January 2003: Newbridge Musical Society will begin rehearsals for 'Fiddler on the Roof' next Tuesday, 14 January. The show will be staged at Easter in the theatre at Newbridge College.

LEIXLIP & NAAS 11 January 2003: Two County Kildare 'No Name' clubs won category awards at the No Name Club of the Year competitions held in Kilkenny.

NEWBRIDGE 11 January 2003: The pantomime 'Dick Whittington' will be staged for a week in Newbridge beginning Sunday 19 January.

MAYNOOTH 11 January 2003: A CAO advisory evening will be held at Maynooth University on Wednesday next, 15 January, beginning 7.30pm.

LEIXLIP 11 January 2003: Thirty-six happy householders have received the keys to their new local authority homes in Lougnamona Park in Leixlip.

NAAS 10 January 2003: People who leave their local authority houses in poor condition 'shouldn't get away scot free', Cllr Willie Callaghan believes.

CELBRIDGE 10 January 2003: Peak time traffic congestion in Celbridge should be eased from the end of the month when the new Celbridge interchange to the M4 is opened.

LEIXLIP 10 January 2003: Dumping of refuse at the entrance to Newtown House in Leixlip has been angrily condemned by Leixlip town clerk Mary Foley.

NAAS 10 January 2003: Naas councillor Seamie Moor had declared himself 'incensed' at what he claimed was a '25 per cent' increase in the County Charge element in the Town Council's Draft Budget. He was clearly prepared to verbally shred the Kildare County Council finance director on the matter whenever Eamonn O'Sullivan arrived to explain it to councillors last Tuesday.

CELBRIDGE 10 January 2003: A poll carried out by local website celbridge.net has found that 90 per cent of respondents are unhappy with the bus service in Celbridge.

NAAS 10 January 2003: It costs 30 cents for people to use the new Superloo in Naas. But they shouldn't feel they're being short-changed for 'spending a penny'.

KILDARE GENERAL 10 January 2003: Kildare County Council's refuse charges may rise to E324 for 2003 if proposals in the Draft Budget for the county are accepted by councillors.

MONASTEREVIN 9 January 2003: A St Stephen's Day charity event by Monasterevin Football Club raised E1,100 for the local Day Care Centre.

NAAS 08 January 2003: Naas Town Council last night unanimously adopted its Draft Budget for 2003, with an increase of 5 per cent in the commercial rates. The Budget represents a total gross expenditure of E6.6 million including the County Charge of E1.3 million, and represents an increase of just over 11 per cent on 2002.