A small community in south Tipperary is considering how to raise more than £200,000 to save its local pub, which is under threat from the new liquor-licensing laws. The laws, which came into force in July, enable the licences of rural premises to be transferred to towns and cities.
As a result, the Crossbar pub at the crossroads in Castlegrace has been bought by a Dublin syndicate which plans to transfer the licence to the capital. However, following radio and press attention, the syndicate has offered to sell the pub back to the community for a slight profit.
The Vintners' Federation has confirmed that this is not an isolated case, though it says it is too early yet to have accurate figures on the number of licences being moved to urban centres away from rural communities. The new law removed the tie which bound licences to particular premises.
Mr Tadhgh O'Sullivan, chief executive of the Vintners' Federation of Ireland, acknowledged licences were being moved out of rural to urban areas, "but there are very few rural areas without a pub or two. The problem is that there are far too many pubs in rural Ireland and some are now moving."
There were 140 people for every pub in rural Ireland and "it is uneconomic in very small rural areas to run a pub. It's simply not viable." According to the VFI, just over half the pubs in the Republic are located in small towns of fewer than 10,000 people and fewer than 20 per cent are located in cities.
The low customer base is compounded by the low cost of drink in country pubs, insists Mr O'Sullivan. "There is just no incentive for pubs to stay in rural areas, there is an over-supply of pubs in the country as a unit." A recent survey of licensed premises showed that almost 61 per cent of the State's 11,000 licensed premises have an annual turnover of less than £150,000, and more than a quarter turn over between £50,000 and £150,000.
The Castlegrace residents, however, feel their pub represents more than figures. Mr Patsy Coffey was born there and has led the effort to raise awareness to save the pub, by going on local radio and the Marian Finucane Show. "A local is a local. Bertie Ahern has a local he likes to bring people to, and I'm the same. You don't have very much else in a rural area. Since the pub closed, people are scattered all over the place."
The friends and neighbours who previously congregated in the Crossbar now travel just a few miles more, but inevitably in different directions, and the extra distance involves driving.
"There are no taxis around here," said Mr Coffey.
There is hope for Castle grace's Crossbar. At a meeting of more than 40 residents last Thursday, several people expressed an interest in taking up the Dublin syndicate's offer to buy back the pub and retain the licence. "With all the publicity it's getting, there's a good chance it'll be bought," said Mr Coffey.