Clonmel town centre

itsjaybud

tipp86 wrote: »

I feel the town centre is improving since i was a child and it will be on a par with waterford soon

Good call, NOT!!:)

I would consider the town centre to be actually moving in the wrong direction, don't feel it has much to offer at all and that businesses are financially suffering in the town centre with the developments occuring on the towns outskirts. Lack of parking i would think has a big influence on people deciding to stay out of the town centre.


On the pubs front i would have to agree OK's on a saturday night is a dodgy spot to say the least, mulcahy's has a really good atmosphere and followed up by the Post House leads to a pretty decent night out in Clonmel imo!

Pigletlover

Clonmel town centre is fairly depressing, there's empty units in a bad state of repair everywhere - Bank of Ireland, ESB and Clonmel Arms. At least something seems to be happening on the old Tesco site. The new development at the old Showgrounds looks well but that won't be opening for another good few months and I can't help wondering if the town is too small for the size of the development, especially considering the current climate.

Nightlife isn't great either, no one seems to go out before 11, probably due to a lack of decent pubs, Devanes seems to be a great loss. O'Keeffes is fairly rough and gets way too packed, I'd hate to think what might happen some night if there was a fire there. Dannos only opens one night a week, if the cover charge was dropped or even reduced it would probably do a lot better, but I can't see that happening somehow :rolleyes: It's hard to believe that not so long ago Clonmel had Dannos, Barrys The Vault and Blue Anchor niteclubs.

There's plenty of restaurants for a relatively small town - Befani's, Mr Bumbles, Emerald Garden, Ming's, Kamboat, Emperor Palace, Planet Spice, Blue Ocean, Chrissies, La Scala, Galileo, Catalpa, Devanes, Mulcahys, Tierneys, Tom Skinny's and there's even more whose names I can't think of now so I don't see how any more restaurants could improve the town, I don't know what can be done tbh.

tippspur wrote:

Parking in the town at peak shopping is still a nightmare,you must be prepared to drive around in circles in Mary street car park or superquinn car park before you get lucky.you would want some patience for it. and with Xmas on the way the nightmare will double..

There's plenty of parking on Suir Island, €2 for the whole day and only a couple of hundred metres from the town centre.

tippspur

pretty-in-pink wrote: »

Any night but Saturday is grand there, in act I'm looking forward to moving home so I can enjoy thurs/fri or sun nights out in ok's. its just saturdays....they really suck. to busy

(i feel really old now)

Saturday night in OKs is not my scene either.i like going to see the bands and comedians and having a few pints in the front bar afterward. the post house and gleesons in irishtown are good for bands also..to tell the truth the pubs in clonmel are gone very quite lately, no one seems to be going out anymore...

pretty-in-pink

tippspur wrote: »

Saturday night in OKs is not my scene either.i like going to see the bands and comedians and having a few pints in the front bar afterward. the post house and gleesons in irishtown are good for bands also..to tell the truth the pubs in clonmel are gone very quite lately, no one seems to be going out anymore...

itsjaybud wrote: »

Good call, NOT!!:)

I would consider the town centre to be actually moving in the wrong direction, don't feel it has much to offer at all and that businesses are financially suffering in the town centre with the developments occuring on the towns outskirts. Lack of parking i would think has a big influence on people deciding to stay out of the town centre.


On the pubs front i would have to agree OK's on a saturday night is a dodgy spot to say the least, mulcahy's has a really good atmosphere and followed up by the Post House leads to a pretty decent night out in Clonmel imo!

I think people would go out earlier if it was cheaper. it just costs to much. i quite like my local though. Tierneys, he can be a great guy, once you're a regular. if any of our group walk in now and we're first, they tell us, if we walk in and we're not fist they tell us where everyone else is sitting. its great. sometimes we go to the creche (more people my age are going back there every so often....weird)

tipp86

itsjaybud wrote: »

Good call, NOT!!:)
Lack of parking i would think has a big influence on people deciding to stay out of the town centre.

On the pubs front i would have to agree OK's on a saturday night is a dodgy spot to say the least, mulcahy's has a really good atmosphere and followed up by the Post House leads to a pretty decent night out in Clonmel imo!

You sold your car and lost the money in vegas so parking isnt an issue for you dont worry.

Your part of the dodgyness:D with your nice new phone :eek:

tippspur

pretty-in-pink wrote: »

I think people would go out earlier if it was cheaper. it just costs to much. i quite like my local though. Tierneys, he can be a great guy, once you're a regular. if any of our group walk in now and we're first, they tell us, if we walk in and we're not fist they tell us where everyone else is sitting. its great. sometimes we go to the creche (more people my age are going back there every so often....weird)

The creche ?? I'll have a guess.. dannos ?

itsjaybud

dannos = tipp86's main hangout spot!:D

I haven't been in dannos for nearly two years id say! Would consider it to be a good niteclub with alot of potential to bring in bigger crowds, its just 80% of the people that go there include underagers and your average towny boyo!

Not my scene really but then again all this is easily overlooked after a heap of vodka and redbull except the underagers part obviously!;)

cml387

tippspur wrote: »

Yep

I would not be too optimistic about M&S opening in Clonmel.

Rumours of Sparks scaling back investment in Ireland

redroar1942

Rumours is exactly what they are. Dont the Irish just love depressing gossip.

tippspur

redroar1942 wrote: »

Rumours is exactly what they are. Dont the Irish just love depressing gossip.

The rumor was so strong at one stage that Tipp FM sent down a reporter to the site to see were they still working there...:(

redroar1942

tippspur wrote: »

The rumor was so strong at one stage that Tipp FM sent down a reporter to the site to see were they still working there...:(

And what did they find? That work was on schedule or that the site was deserted and the buildings in flames.

Meathlass

According to The Nationalist about 2 weeks ago, the M and S development is on schedule to open in Sept 2009 with Phase 2 to include a theatre/cinema, restaurant and food court and 2 major anchor tenants. They said they've signed all the paper work but can't announce who they'll be yet. A new cinema would be great in the town.

This thur and fri there's a play in the Main Guard called 'Cockroach'. Sounds good and it's a night out. There's always plenty to do if you look around plus there's the Bulmers Comedy Festival in O'Keeffes this weekend too.

Matt Santos

Meathlass wrote: »

According to The Nationalist about 2 weeks ago, the M and S development is on schedule to open in Sept 2009 with Phase 2 to include a theatre/cinema, restaurant and food court and 2 major anchor tenants. They said they've signed all the paper work but can't announce who they'll be yet. A new cinema would be great in the town.

This thur and fri there's a play in the Main Guard called 'Cockroach'. Sounds good and it's a night out. There's always plenty to do if you look around plus there's the Bulmers Comedy Festival in O'Keeffes this weekend too.

So why would you think that the present facility is not good enough?
The Clonmel Omniplex has gone thru a major refurbishment in the last few months and is hugely improved with its movies that it is getting at the moment.
I agree that a Theatre would be a super asset for the town but I dont think the town could sustain two Cinema..

Meathlass

Matt Santos wrote: »

So why would you think that the present facility is not good enough?
The Clonmel Omniplex has gone thru a major refurbishment in the last few months and is hugely improved with its movies that it is getting at the moment.
I agree that a Theatre would be a super asset for the town but I dont think the town could sustain two Cinema..

I think the cinema at the moment is very badly run. Always queues on friday and saturday night because there are not enough people on selling tickets. Twice I've bought tickets by credit card on the machine in the foyer, neither of which time it worked. I was assured that I hadn't been charged but still was. The laser card facility never seems to work. The whole place looks shabby, stains on carpet, sticky carpet, seats fraying. The outside of the building is shabby looking as well and I don't know why they never replaced the board detailing what movies and times were on. Lots of underage kids in at 15 and 18 screenings. Compared to the bigger chains they have a very small selection of sweets and drinks and the popcorn is always cold and is stored in big bags off the side of the main exit. I have no problem with the quality of films. I'm not being smart but I don't know what major refurbishment you're talking about. I don't think I've noticed any difference to any of the screens or the common areas. I would presume if a new cinema opened that the Omniplex would move out to the Showgrounds. Lots of my friends travel to Dungarven as the seats are bigger and there's a better pitch to the Storm cinema out there.

Ponster

tippspur wrote: »

the post house and gleesons in irishtown are good for bands also..to tell the truth the pubs in clonmel are gone very quite lately, no one seems to be going out anymore...

My little bro plays in a rock cover band (Xhail) who play in Gleasons and the Posthouse form time to time and has noticed a marked difference in the number of people coming out over the past 6 months.

Ponster

Meathlass wrote: »

I have no problem with the quality of films.

Does anyone think there's a market for non-mainstream Hollywood movies in a Clonmel cinema?

In the past I've had to travel to Dublin just to see films that never had a chance of making it to Clonmel.

tippspur

It is rumored that the construction company that are building the showgrounds center have bought the old Barlow radiator factory and a field behind it. i presume this is where phase 2 will be built...

Matt Santos

Hi Meathlass,

Gotta address a few of the points that you have brought up.
1. That its "badly run". Its a 5 screen cinema in a pretty big inland town. It has been there for 14 years and has not up until recently been the subject of any re-investment. It has 14 odd staff and has to be run as a business. That means making money and staffed to an appropriate level.
2. Queues Friday and Saturday. This is a sign that it is actually busy I would have thought! Anyway, at the time that people are buying their tickets to attend a show its also when the previous show is exiting a screen. Staff are being pulled from all over to clean the screens for the next show. One person in a ticket office can service all of the screens at the displaced times the shows screen at. A queue will form because certain screens are allowed in earlier to avoid conjestion where say the main screens are held back to ensure that the screens are entered clean and tidy. The public is a funny thing and expect just because they have a ticket and are there a half hour before the show screens they should be seated immediately!
3. Credit card system. It is technology! Its great when it works but it sucks when it dont. Every business has problems with its credit card systems and the cinema has its fair share of issues. It is getting addressed and will improve.
4. Shabby, Stained and seats frayed. All 5 screens have undergone a stadium style seat replacement. The seat numbers have been brought back but it is up to the same standard as Dungarvan now and the Carpets have been replaced.
5. Outside sign The original signs outside were a perspex lettering that was a slide affair into a frame high up over the street. This was stopped due to a health and safety issue. There is now a LED data display system in the foyer and connected over the screen doors.
6. Kids at 15 and 18 shows. There is a huge difference in children being at a 15A show and a 16/18 show. It is a very serious accusation to claim that youngsters are being allowed into these movies. There are screen checks and other checks in place to ensure that this does not happen.
7. Small selection of sweets. The sweet selection is the same as any Omniplex throughout the country! Ok It does not have a pick and mix but as I said earlier its business and these people are a little successful at running their business!!
8. Popcorn cold and stored in bags etc The making of popcorn is a slower than you would think process. When it is expected to be busy of course you would make an excess and have it ready for the busy time! Thats a given. The quality of the popcorn is perfect as its good practice to know how much you think you will need and prepare on the day in the appropriate manner! The dispenser for the popcorn has a warm air that heats the popcorn while it is being sold and helps to keep it fresh. Of course on a Friday/Saturday night when you have 300 odd people going to a show its just impossible to keep stored bags heated to the optimum level. Again, its a business!
9. Omniplex/ Showgrounds. You wold presume that they would make this move? If the business was thought to be bigger and better to justify such a move then it might be considered IMO. Its a huge cost to move a venue for a perceived little gain. These people are in business and it would have to make economic sense for them to consider such a move.
10 The Dungarvan cinema is a fine facility but its a trek over to the town! All I am saying is that Clonmel Cinema is getting up to speed and getting its fair share of top films at the moment. And Dungarvan is not a Storm either..

M

pretty-in-pink

I like the onmiplex, and years ago we sustained 2 cinemas (not for long....but we did). If dungarvan can sustain all the new shopes etc, Clonmel def can. Its a much better town, safer etc. Going all the way there for the cinema...is a bit daft.

I wish they would sell scallops here in Clonmel though. Lovely food. Bring back Imeldas I say....

Meathlass

Matt Santos wrote: »

Hi Meathlass,

Gotta address a few of the points that you have brought up.
1. That its "badly run". Its a 5 screen cinema in a pretty big inland town. It has been there for 14 years and has not up until recently been the subject of any re-investment. It has 14 odd staff and has to be run as a business. That means making money and staffed to an appropriate level.
2. Queues Friday and Saturday. This is a sign that it is actually busy I would have thought! Anyway, at the time that people are buying their tickets to attend a show its also when the previous show is exiting a screen. Staff are being pulled from all over to clean the screens for the next show. One person in a ticket office can service all of the screens at the displaced times the shows screen at. A queue will form because certain screens are allowed in earlier to avoid conjestion where say the main screens are held back to ensure that the screens are entered clean and tidy. The public is a funny thing and expect just because they have a ticket and are there a half hour before the show screens they should be seated immediately!
3. Credit card system. It is technology! Its great when it works but it sucks when it dont. Every business has problems with its credit card systems and the cinema has its fair share of issues. It is getting addressed and will improve.
4. Shabby, Stained and seats frayed. All 5 screens have undergone a stadium style seat replacement. The seat numbers have been brought back but it is up to the same standard as Dungarvan now and the Carpets have been replaced.
5. Outside sign The original signs outside were a perspex lettering that was a slide affair into a frame high up over the street. This was stopped due to a health and safety issue. There is now a LED data display system in the foyer and connected over the screen doors.
6. Kids at 15 and 18 shows. There is a huge difference in children being at a 15A show and a 16/18 show. It is a very serious accusation to claim that youngsters are being allowed into these movies. There are screen checks and other checks in place to ensure that this does not happen.
7. Small selection of sweets. The sweet selection is the same as any Omniplex throughout the country! Ok It does not have a pick and mix but as I said earlier its business and these people are a little successful at running their business!!
8. Popcorn cold and stored in bags etc The making of popcorn is a slower than you would think process. When it is expected to be busy of course you would make an excess and have it ready for the busy time! Thats a given. The quality of the popcorn is perfect as its good practice to know how much you think you will need and prepare on the day in the appropriate manner! The dispenser for the popcorn has a warm air that heats the popcorn while it is being sold and helps to keep it fresh. Of course on a Friday/Saturday night when you have 300 odd people going to a show its just impossible to keep stored bags heated to the optimum level. Again, its a business!
9. Omniplex/ Showgrounds. You wold presume that they would make this move? If the business was thought to be bigger and better to justify such a move then it might be considered IMO. Its a huge cost to move a venue for a perceived little gain. These people are in business and it would have to make economic sense for them to consider such a move.
10 The Dungarvan cinema is a fine facility but its a trek over to the town! All I am saying is that Clonmel Cinema is getting up to speed and getting its fair share of top films at the moment. And Dungarvan is not a Storm either..

M

Thanks for replying, you certainly sound like you know what you're talking about! Of course I accept that the cinema is a business and I was judging and comparing it to other cinema's I've been to in Ireland in similarly sized towns. Obviously not going to compare it to Dublin where they have coffee shops, and wine bars in the cinemas.
2. My point was that there was a queue to buy tickets and if you didn't give yourself at least 10-15 mins or hadn't bought in advance you'd probably miss the start of the show. (Only seems to apply at peak times at weekend) I've never noticed a queue into the screens and certainly wouldn't expect to be seated more than a few minutes before the movie started.
3. I understand that it's technology but I've never had so many problems with cards as there. On all times though the staff have been great but as I rarely carry cash and usually buy tickets in advance it's a complete nuisance to have to go to the bank link at superquinn to get out 30 euros.
4. Has the carpet been replaced in the foyer? The last time I was there for James Bond I just noticed it while I was waiting.
5. Isn't the slide frame system still there though, I just think the outside looks like the building is closed.
6. I don't see the difference in kids being allowed in underage regardless of the age on the movie whether it's a 15 or an 18. I'm not really bothered if they are watching unsuitable material, that's their parent's concern, I just don't want lots of young teens, talking, laughing, on their phones while I'm trying to watch the film.
7. I'm not bothered what chain the cinema is and don't think most people would even know or notice. I'd just compare it to a cinema I also go to in Navan (dont' know the brand) where they've a much bigger selection and hot popcorn. I wasn't implying that the popcorn was substandard but just hate eating the stuff cold. I understand though that you can only make and heat so much at peak times.
10. Apologies, thought Dungarven was a Storm, it's my brother and his mates who go there all the time. Too much petrol money for my liking to make the trip imho!

I love going to the cinema and yes, Clonmel does get its fair share of top movies, no complaints there. It certainly has a captive audience; the nearest cinemas are in Waterford City, Dungarven, Limerick or Kilkenny. The seats in Tipp town are so small it's like being on a Ryanair flight watching the movie!

Ponster

tippspur wrote: »

It is rumored that the construction company that are building the showgrounds center have bought the old Barlow radiator factory and a field behind it. i presume this is where phase 2 will be built...

I can confirm that up until recently, 50% of Barlow's was being used to store new empty Bulmer's bottles and had been for 2 years but as of last month has been cleaned out.
Doesn't prove anything but interesting all the same...