Castlecomer

ladeeda

Hello guys

I'm currently looking at a property in Lower Acorns, Castlecomer.

Could anyone very kindly tell me your opinions on this area and of Castlecomer in general?

I have two teen children so will be looking for schools. Also possibly commuting to Dublin.

We are from England and have family both in Kilkenny, Portlaoise and Athy in Kildare and are looking to be as close as possible to them.

I've done a search on Castlecomer and the threads are over 4 years old so hope anyone can help with my query.

Regards,
Linda

ladeeda

Also wondering about Balleyragget as there are some beautiful houses there.

Threadhead

Castlecomer has come on leaps and bounds in recent years. I'd reckon it's one of the better places to live in Co. Kilkenny. It wouldn't offer a whole lot to do for children but it's a lot better than it used to be. The Discovery Park has done an awful lot for the town.

road_high

ladeeda wrote: »

Hello guys

I'm currently looking at a property in Lower Acorns, Castlecomer.

Could anyone very kindly tell me your opinions on this area and of Castlecomer in general?

I have two teen children so will be looking for schools. Also possibly commuting to Dublin.

We are from England and have family both in Kilkenny, Portlaoise and Athy in Kildare and are looking to be as close as possible to them.

I've done a search on Castlecomer and the threads are over 4 years old so hope anyone can help with my query.

Regards,
Linda

Personally I hate Castlecomer and would never live there but some people love the place so not going to go on about it's negatives too much. Just a few points On the plus side, it's pretty central to Kilkenny, Carlow, Athy and Portlaoise. Commuting to Dublin would be a pain due to the bottleneck of Athy which can be a nightmare to get through at certain times of the day, which is the main road to Dublin.
Also, the Bus service has been recently reduced as the 7 service from Kilkenny via Comer.
Very little in the town in terms of shops I think.

Dozen Wicked Words

I've lived just outside comer before, don't like it either, have never found it particularly welcoming to outsiders. Discovery Park aside, the only things I'd go into comer for is kids school books in the excellent book shop, get a few bits and pieces from Eurospar or very occasional takeaway. Horrible atmosphere in the pubs at night imo.

ladeeda

Thank you guys, really appreciate that. Shame as the house is nice.

I'm also looking in Athy, Portlaoise and Carlow (Tullow) so will keep looking at other options!

Dozen Wicked Words

ladeeda wrote: »

Thank you guys, really appreciate that. Shame as the house is nice.

I'm also looking in Athy, Portlaoise and Carlow (Tullow) so will keep looking at other options!

Would you not consider having a few days in Ireland to have a look round the towns generally, or have you done that already? You might like Castlecomer, people have wildly different opinions of places. Some people I work with are fiercely proud of comer too by the way and eat me for my less than glowing opinion!

Oh and If I had to choose between Athy and comer I think Castlecomer would win every time.

ladeeda

Dozen Wicked Words wrote: »

Would you not consider having a few days in Ireland to have a look round the towns generally, or have you done that already? You might like Castlecomer, people have wildly different opinions of places. Some people I work with are fiercely proud of comer too by the way and eat me for my less than glowing opinion!

Oh and If I had to choose between Athy and comer I think Castlecomer would win every time.

Thanks DWW

Interesting to hear that too! I like the look of some of the schools in 'comer', I'll be over next week and having a good look around tho time is limited. I'll see as much as I can...I love Kilkenny City and being close to there seems good!

road_high

Dozen Wicked Words wrote: »

Would you not consider having a few days in Ireland to have a look round the towns generally, or have you done that already? You might like Castlecomer, people have wildly different opinions of places. Some people I work with are fiercely proud of comer too by the way and eat me for my less than glowing opinion!

Oh and If I had to choose between Athy and comer I think Castlecomer would win every time.

Athy is an awful kip alright but can see the locational advantages of it as it's fairly near Dublin, on a good rail link and beside the M9. Castlecomer is much more off the beaten track.

ladeeda

Exactly, that seems a big advantage indeed being so easy to commute to Dublin.

Dozen Wicked Words

Best of luck wherever you decide, you could do a lot worse than most places in Co. Kilkenny for quality of life. Depending on where in the UK you are coming from it will probably be a change of pace anyway!

ladeeda

Dozen Wicked Words wrote: »

Best of luck wherever you decide, you could do a lot worse than most places in Co. Kilkenny for quality of life. Depending on where in the UK you are coming from it will probably be a change of pace anyway!

W

You're right, we're coming from London so absolutely looking forward to a slower pace of life! Equestrian activities and owning pets are pluses for us too.

I'll keep you posted and thanks for your help, that's another good thing about Ireland, how friendly people are (yes I know there's many exceptions but in general)

catbear

If motorway access to Dublin and proximity to kilkenny is important I'd sooner recommend places like paulstown, bagnelstown and leighlinbridge.
It's just over an hour to the M50 from these towns plus bagnelstown has a train link to Dublin.

ladeeda

catbear wrote: »

If motorway access to Dublin and proximity to kilkenny is important I'd sooner recommend places like paulstown, bagnelstown and leighlinbridge.
It's just over an hour to the M50 from these towns plus bagnelstown has a train link to Dublin.

Thanks for that advice, I'm on Daft.ie at the moment so will be looking at your suggestions right now!

catbear

ladeeda wrote: »

Thanks for that advice, I'm on Daft.ie at the moment so will be looking at your suggestions right now!

The usual proviso's though, Bagnelstown has a few rough areas but better than Castlecomer in my opinion (let the stone casting begin!), you could try in the Carlow forum for more info on them but I've cousins there and they seem to like it.

Are you going to rent for while in an area before committing?

ladeeda

catbear wrote: »

The usual proviso's though, Bagnelstown has a few rough areas but better than Castlecomer in my opinion (let the stone casting begin!), you could try in the Carlow forum for more info on them but I've cousins there and they seem to like it.

Are you going to rent for while in an area before committing?

Haha

Well I was planning to just launch in to it and buy a place but I think it's probably wise to rent for a while and travel around while renting to do viewings as opposed to popping over to Ireland to do them...

I saw a nice place in Goresbridge too which looks nice. Very difficult to know from over here so will definitely have to take it a bit slower than I thought.

catbear

One problem with Goresbridge and some of these towns is infrequent and indirect services with Dublin and elsewhere, towns like Goresbridge may only have two buses a day.
http://getthere.ie/goresbridge-kilkenny/

A few nearby towns have loads of bus connection services, Paulstown, Leighlinbridge and Gowran can have eight connecting buses directly to Dublin, Kilkenny, Carlow and Waterford. Carlow and Waterford have third level education institutions.

The rural idyl, whilst liberating from congestion, can also be isolating by lack of connectivity. A common unintended consequence is becoming wedded to the car which can take the good out of it, becoming your children's taxi has frustrated many friends who are rural dwellers.

I tried it myself once and was glad to move back to Kilkenny where I didn't need the car.

There is a happy medium in a lot of the towns mentioned already, Paulstown, Bagnelstown and Leighlinbridge are probably the best connected between Carlow and kilkenny and further afield (including Dublin Airport).

Another reason to rent would be that while house prices in Dublin are been driven up again the story is not the same everywhere else.
Here's a handy site that registers price moves, just type in the town name you're interested in to see which way things may be going there. http://www.collapso.net/search/search.php

femur61

As with any town there is a Ireland at the moment there is a drug problem in Castlecomer. I know people are going to lamblast me for this but as a nurse I see it all the time and I am only being honest. Bigger towns you can have find your own niche.

There are plenty of rural towns near Dublin if you need to commute. I lived in London for years, and it is hard to break back into provincial community. I live in Kilkenny city and love it. Probably too far from Dublin, but here you have the best of two worlds, small enough to have a community and big enough not to have small town mentality. Not too mention great restaurants and coffee shops. and thats the other thing in a larger town if you live you have a better choice of schools.

I would advise taking a trip over to get the feel of places, somewhere may look idyllic on the internet but then you may get a totally different feeling when you visit.

MassDeb8r

Hi OP,

I moved to the town a couple of years ago when I was in a similar situation to you. On the balance of things, I would recommend it.

Below are a couple of good and bad points from my experience:


Firstly Castlecomer is far better to live in than Athy. For those mentioning drug problems it is no better or worse than any comparative town in the country (source: I am an addiction counsellor)



Athy would be far more up the scale in terms of anti-social behaviour.


Castlecomer has nice amenities, walks and clubs such as the ones below (including a great equestrian centre)


http://www.discoverypark.ie/
http://www.deensidewheelers.com/
http://www.rockafoyleequestriankilkenny.com/

http://www.castlecomergolf.ie/


There are also a decent amount of places to go for coffee or lunch, the best is probably Cafe 1:


http://www.tripadvisor.ie/Restaurant_Review-g186616-d4009916-Reviews-Cafe_1-Kilkenny_County_Kilkenny.html


Where you are planning on living is close to the 700 student secondary school and also the fire and garda stations. The estate is nice and there are no issues there, I lived beside it for a year.



Dublin is 1 hour 15 minutes away - I worked there for a year and left at 6.40am to be in work in the city centre at 8am, I was back by 6.15pm most days.


Pubs are fine, don't go there much but was always welcome and never felt like an "outsider" Lots of families from different places live in the area.


Also a very good festival-type day on new years day worth mentioning http://www.wellierace.com/


I didn't have any links to the town before I moved there, joined the cycling club and made many friends in no time.


There aren't really many places to go shopping, there are two supermarkets and a garden centre as well as a small amount of other shops but most people go to kilkenny or carlow (both places are only 15/20 minutes away)


Moving to rural Ireland from england is always going to be a culture shock, I would recommend you spend a day or two in the town and see what you think of it. On the main it is inexpensive, pleasant and there are lots of recreational options (golf/fishing/walking/bike/soccer/basketball)


Happy to help if you have any questions - just put them up here or PM me.


Regards,


Tom

raze_them_all_

Comer is a kip. Source? Lived in the ****hole for 18 odd years

sarah101

MassDeb8r wrote: »

Hi OP,

I moved to the town a couple of years ago when I was in a similar situation to you. On the balance of things, I would recommend it.

Below are a couple of good and bad points from my experience:


Firstly Castlecomer is far better to live in than Athy. For those mentioning drug problems it is no better or worse than any comparative town in the country (source: I am an addiction counsellor)



Athy would be far more up the scale in terms of anti-social behaviour.


Castlecomer has nice amenities, walks and clubs such as the ones below (including a great equestrian centre)


http://www.discoverypark.ie/
http://www.deensidewheelers.com/
http://www.rockafoyleequestriankilkenny.com/

http://www.castlecomergolf.ie/


There are also a decent amount of places to go for coffee or lunch, the best is probably Cafe 1:


http://www.tripadvisor.ie/Restaurant_Review-g186616-d4009916-Reviews-Cafe_1-Kilkenny_County_Kilkenny.html


Where you are planning on living is close to the 700 student secondary school and also the fire and garda stations. The estate is nice and there are no issues there, I lived beside it for a year.



Dublin is 1 hour 15 minutes away - I worked there for a year and left at 6.40am to be in work in the city centre at 8am, I was back by 6.15pm most days.


Pubs are fine, don't go there much but was always welcome and never felt like an "outsider" Lots of families from different places live in the area.


Also a very good festival-type day on new years day worth mentioning http://www.wellierace.com/


I didn't have any links to the town before I moved there, joined the cycling club and made many friends in no time.


There aren't really many places to go shopping, there are two supermarkets and a garden centre as well as a small amount of other shops but most people go to kilkenny or carlow (both places are only 15/20 minutes away)


Moving to rural Ireland from england is always going to be a culture shock, I would recommend you spend a day or two in the town and see what you think of it. On the main it is inexpensive, pleasant and there are lots of recreational options (golf/fishing/walking/bike/soccer/basketball)


Happy to help if you have any questions - just put them up here or PM me.


Regards,


Tom

I live in Castlecomer and agree with everything Tom said.

Proximity to Kilkenny city and Carlow town are a real advantage.

Great local secondary school in which you should not have any problem securing a place for your kids. Good choice of primary level schools too.

Discovery park and local library are great amenities in the town.

Shopping centres, cinemas and swimming pools all available within 20 minute drive.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Bowlardo

Would you not think of living in thomastown.
train and bus service to dublin.
nice sort. decent pubs.
inistoige down the the road. secondary school is there too

femur61

Bowlardo wrote: »

Would you not think of living in thomastown.
train and bus service to dublin.
nice sort. decent pubs.
inistoige down the the road. secondary school is there too

I would second that. There is a great arts element to Thomastown and are more welcoming to people moving there.

I know I already posted a negative post about Castlecomer forgot to mention I worked there when I came back from the UK, and its a very rural mindset. May suit, as it had been suggested take a trip look around at surrounding towns.

ladeeda

One problem with Goresbridge and some of these towns is infrequent and indirect services with Dublin and elsewhere, towns like Goresbridge may only have two buses a

A few nearby towns have loads of bus connection services, Paulstown, Leighlinbridge and Gowran can have eight connecting buses directly to Dublin, Kilkenny, Carlow and Waterford. Carlow and Waterford have third level education institutions.

The rural idyl, whilst liberating from congestion, can also be isolating by lack of connectivity. A common unintended consequence is becoming wedded to the car which can take the good out of it, becoming your children's taxi has frustrated many friends who are rural dwellers.

I tried it myself once and was glad to move back to Kilkenny where I didn't need the car.

There is a happy medium in a lot of the towns mentioned already, Paulstown, Bagnelstown and Leighlinbridge are probably the best connected between Carlow and kilkenny and further afield (including Dublin Airport).

Another reason to rent would be that while house prices in Dublin are been driven up again the story is not the same everywhere else.
Here's a handy site that registers price moves, just type in the town name you're interested in to see which way things may be going there.

Thanks for those towns that you mention about connecting to Carlow, Kilkenny and Dublin. I am thinking about the isolation! At the moment that sounds marvellous coming from London but what you mentioned about becoming your children's taxi - that is a worry for me as I can definitely see that happening!!

That's why I would prefer to be close to family so we can all share the ferrying around our our own and cousins, friends etc.

Thanks for the link I'll be having a good look at that

ladeeda

femur61 wrote: »

As with any town there is a Ireland at the moment there is a drug problem in Castlecomer. I know people are going to lamblast me for this but as a nurse I see it all the time and I am only being honest. Bigger towns you can have find your own niche.

There are plenty of rural towns near Dublin if you need to commute. I lived in London for years, and it is hard to break back into provincial community. I live in Kilkenny city and love it. Probably too far from Dublin, but here you have the best of two worlds, small enough to have a community and big enough not to have small town mentality. Not too mention great restaurants and coffee shops. and thats the other thing in a larger town if you live you have a better choice of schools.

I would advise taking a trip over to get the feel of places, somewhere may look idyllic on the internet but then you may get a totally different feeling when you visit.

Thank you - very interesting to hear from someone having lived in London. I am ready for small town and the mentality and all my only worry is having two teens who wont exactly appreciate it. Though there are plenty of things they would appreciate about it. It's good to think about them in this sense.

The more I read about Kilkenny and how a great little city it is, apart from having a lovely time there when I visited (wanted to open a restaurant/cafe there) the more I think perhaps I should be looking there!!

It's a bit further from family, (we have one family member there but not cousins for the kids) so it feels like a bit away from the security of having family around the corner but if its right in every other way, may have to start thinking about there.

Our whole family love coffee shops/restaurants too.

ladeeda

MassDeb8r wrote: »

Hi OP,

I moved to the town a couple of years ago when I was in a similar situation to you. On the balance of things, I would recommend it.

Below are a couple of good and bad points from my experience:


Firstly Castlecomer is far better to live in than Athy. For those mentioning drug problems it is no better or worse than any comparative town in the country (source: I am an addiction counsellor)



Athy would be far more up the scale in terms of anti-social behaviour.


Castlecomer has nice amenities, walks and clubs such as the ones below (including a great equestrian centre)




There are also a decent amount of places to go for coffee or lunch, the best is probably Cafe 1:




Where you are planning on living is close to the 700 student secondary school and also the fire and garda stations. The estate is nice and there are no issues there, I lived beside it for a year.



Dublin is 1 hour 15 minutes away - I worked there for a year and left at 6.40am to be in work in the city centre at 8am, I was back by 6.15pm most days.


Pubs are fine, don't go there much but was always welcome and never felt like an "outsider" Lots of families from different places live in the area.


Also a very good festival-type day on new years day worth mentioning


I didn't have any links to the town before I moved there, joined the cycling club and made many friends in no time.


There aren't really many places to go shopping, there are two supermarkets and a garden centre as well as a small amount of other shops but most people go to kilkenny or carlow (both places are only 15/20 minutes away)


Moving to rural Ireland from england is always going to be a culture shock, I would recommend you spend a day or two in the town and see what you think of it. On the main it is inexpensive, pleasant and there are lots of recreational options (golf/fishing/walking/bike/soccer/basketball)


Happy to help if you have any questions - just put them up here or PM me.


Regards,


Tom

Thanks for your insight, sounds like you know Comer very well and know what a family is looking for. Those activities sound fantastic too.

Commute doesn't sound too bad. I'm glad it's an OK neighbourhood as I have seen lovely houses in Athy but I've googled the neighbourhoods and got a bit of a shock on some.

Absolutely LOVE the equestrian centre!

I'll probably be PMing a few of you guys very soon as my search progresses!! Be warned

ladeeda

raze_them_all_ wrote: »

Comer is a kip. Source? Lived in the ****hole for 18 odd years

Do you still live there?

Sorry to hear you don't like it, seems to have mixed reviews but most are quite positive. I actually hate London at the moment so I understand what its like to not like where you live.

ladeeda

Bowlardo wrote: »

Would you not think of living in thomastown.
train and bus service to dublin.
nice sort. decent pubs.
inistoige down the the road. secondary school is there too

Will look in to Thomastown! Thanks

ladeeda

femur61 wrote: »

I would second that. There is a great arts element to Thomastown and are more welcoming to people moving there.

I know I already posted a negative post about Castlecomer forgot to mention I worked there when I came back from the UK, and its a very rural mindset. May suit, as it had been suggested take a trip look around at surrounding towns.

I think I'll be needing a week or two to explore in the coming months focusing on connectivity to other parts, schools etc. I'm making a list of all the suggestions here.

raze_them_all_

ladeeda wrote: »

Do you still live there?

Sorry to hear you don't like it, seems to have mixed reviews but most are quite positive. I actually hate London at the moment so I understand what its like to not like where you live.

aye for another 13 days or so, YOu hear what good schools there are? They are ok, while they have probably tightened up a bit in the last few years, bullying and fights were a massive problem. Despite what the addiction councilor says drugs and violence are pretty relevant with at least 5 people I went to school with dead, a few are locked up. I will say theere hasn't been a stabbing in a few years to my recollection which is good as they were oddly common for a town of comers size.

TLDR: Comer to me is rougher than it should be for a town of it's size, a Lot of the people who caused trouble when I was growing up are either dead, in jail or have a family so calmed down. Comer has some good points though, I will say if they are into soccer Deen Celtic is a fantastic club with probably the nicest facilities in Kilkenny if not the south east. There is also rock climbing and kayaking not too far away

ladeeda

raze_them_all_ wrote: »

aye for another 13 days or so, YOu hear what good schools there are? They are ok, while they have probably tightened up a bit in the last few years, bullying and fights were a massive problem. Despite what the addiction councilor says drugs and violence are pretty relevant with at least 5 people I went to school with dead, a few are locked up. I will say theere hasn't been a stabbing in a few years to my recollection which is good as they were oddly common for a town of comers size.

TLDR: Comer to me is rougher than it should be for a town of it's size, a Lot of the people who caused trouble when I was growing up are either dead, in jail or have a family so calmed down. Comer has some good points though, I will say if they are into soccer Deen Celtic is a fantastic club with probably the nicest facilities in Kilkenny if not the south east. There is also rock climbing and kayaking not too far away

Thanks Raze-them-all. Naturally as a parent I'm worried about bullying and fights etc. My child has a friend in Ireland who told her not to bother coming to school here because of her very English accent...oh dear!! (I have considered home schooling)

Football and equestrian, walks etc all great for us so that's definitely a positive