Back to drawing board for Louth GAA
All options back on table but sweat and tears guaranteed
LOUTH GAA chiefs will closely examine and investigate all options as they begin the search for a new county grounds this week.
County board officials will meet with Croke Park top brass in the coming weeks to discuss the next steps in the process following the collapse of plans to redevelop the Gaelic Grounds in Drogheda into an 8,200 capacity arena.
The three main options available to the county board all come with pros and cons and include:
• acquire and develop a ‘greenfield’ site.
• reach an agreement to redelevop an existing club ground.
• redevelop the county’s training base in Darver.
The county board has already received expressions of interest from land owners with regards potential greenfield sites, while the St Mary’s and Oliver Plunketts clubs offered to meet the county board with a view to discussing the redevelopment of their grounds in Ardee and Drogheda respectively.
Darver has already undergone a feasibility study some years ago when county board officials were choosing between projects at DKIT, Drogheda and the Centre of Excellence, which is located off the Ardee-Dundalk road.
With clubrooms, a main pitch and floodlights already in place at the training base, the main issues in relation to Darver would centre around access and services, with additional adjacent land likely to be required to satisfy potential planning requirements.
The DKIT plan, which many Louth supporters still view as a missed opportunity, seems to be off the table at this stage. The County Council land adjacent to DKIT Sport (formerly JJB Soccer Dome) is now ear-marked for a running track, a facility which is also badly needed in the Dundalk area.
The DKIT project won the original race to become the new county ground in 2011 when clubs were asked to choose between Drogheda, Darver and the Dundalk venue.
After agreeing to GAA exclusivity, GAA ownership and scaling the project back from and initial 22,000 capacity to 8,000, the DKIT project received 82% support from clubs at Louth GAA’s annual Convention at the end of 2011.
However, just under two years later the project was abandoned with Croke Park citing unrealistic construction costs as the reason for pulling the plug.
The Darver drawings, which were always third choice back in 2011, were based on a 7,000 all-standing capacity, but those plans would likely be revised to incorporate seating this time around.
While two clubs have already publicly declared an interest in sitting down with the county board, there could be more considering it privately as it would defray many of the running costs associated with operating a modern-day GAA club, including insurance, maintenance and utilities.
As well as Pairc Mhuire in Ardee, St Brigid’s Park (Dowdallshil), Pairc Clan Na Gael (Clans) and McGeough Park in Haggardstown (Geraldines) have all previously been used to host inter-county matches over the past 10-15 years.
However, it remains to be seen if the county board would enter into serious negotiations with a club again, following the collapse of talks with the O Raghallaighs over lease and ownership issues, both of which could be a stumbling block in a potential deal with any club.
The right greenfield site would seem like the most attractive option, but also potentially the most expensive.
A greenfield site would have to be paid for and construction costs are likely to be higher than if an existing club ground or Darver were to be developed, depending on the extent of the work required.
But whatever road they embark on over the next few months, it promises to be another long and arduous one for Louth GAA officials.