The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Future of Fife football academy threatened over fire safety fears
Council rejects club’s plea for £18,000 to install fire hydrant
The future of a £750,000 Fife football academy has been thrown into doubt because of fire safety fears.
Councillors have threatened to blow the whistle on Glenrothes Strollers’ pavilion at Overstenton Park after initially refusing to award funding to install a fire hydrant.
The facility is operating under a temporary operating licence after opening its doors to young footballers earlier this year.
However, a permanent licence cannot be issued until the building can be connected to a fire hydrant, after hopes of connecting to a nearby supply failed to materialise.
Angry Glenrothes councillors agreed to delay a decision until October after being approached by the football club for £18,000 to establish its own hydrant, but further refusal would ultimately force the centre to close unless money can be sourced from elsewhere.
While acknowledging the asset that the new facility has become, Councillor Ross Vettraino said the local authority could not be seen to bail out private organisations on a whim.
“This is a fantastic facility and there must be around 200 to 300 people involved with it,” he added. “The thought of it closing is unthinkable, but we cannot have every private organisation coming along asking for money.
“This is public money and we are trying to look after it as best as we can.”
Fellow councillors expressed anger that the matter was not addressed at the planning stage, with committee convener Fiona Grant stating: “This is a fabulous facility but we have to consider what else we could spend £18,000 on.”
The new pavilion was formally opened in June having received £350,000 in funding from Fife Council, with additional contributions coming from sportscotland and the club’s own fundraising efforts.
Hailed as a game-changer for footballers in the town, the new pavilion hosts changing facilities, showers and a community cafe for the estimated 500 footballers playing under the Glenrothes Strollers umbrella.
However, regulations stipulate that fire hydrants must be no further than 60 metres away from the entrance to a commercial premises, with the nearest to Overstenton Park thought to be several hundred metres away at the Michael Woods Leisure Centre.
Installation of a new hydrant is estimated to cost around £27,000, with the club already understood to have raised significant sums of cash for the project.
Brian Gibson, secretary at Glenrothes Strollers, said the club was not willing to comment publicly on the situation at this time.
The thought of it closing is unthinkable, but we cannot have every private organisation coming along asking for money. COUNCILLOR ROSS VETTRAINO