New Gaa Stadium For Waterford

BIG-SLICK-POKER

Cullen gives details of €20m GAA stadium‘by year’s end’


Plans for a 25,000 all-seater GAA stadium at Carriganore, costing circa €20 million, may be finalised by year’s end and ready for submission to the Department of Sport with an application for funding.

That’s the expectation of Minister for Transport Martin Cullen this week, in the wake of Waterford’s magnificent league final win over Kilkenny last Sunday which has further boosted the county’s hurling stock, on the rise through most of the last decade. He has been engaged in talks on the proposed project over a long period with County Board GAA officials and management at WIT, owners of the site in question.

Minister for Sport John O’Donoghue has intimated strong support for the development, provided there is agreement between the GAA and WIT, which is to provide its own multi-sports centre-of-excellence on the same lands, purchased by the Department of Education for the College from businessman Eddie Kearns.

“I have succeeded in getting over €5 million for development of the RSC which is mainly for soccer and athletics and I think it only right that the GAA locally, which contributes so much to communities and to people’s entertainment, should also receive significant financial support”, said the Minister who has delivered so much to his constituency while in ministerial office.

He added that with the profile of Waterford hurling boosted by De La Salle’s All-Ireland win as well as the county’s league victory, the development of a state-of-the-art stadium would further boost the sport’s momentum, attract big matches to the venue and encourage youngsters to play the game and maintain the standards and excitement levels into the future.

Minister Cullen’s Fianna Fail Dail colleague Ollie Wilkinson has also pledged full support for the scheme. “The building of such a stadium will be a central political ambition of mine”, said the former county hurler who, in the course of a statement on the subject described Waterford as “the home of hurling in the south east”, which should raise a wry smile from Kilkenny followers of the sport.

He said he too had been in contact with Minister O’Donoghue on the issue and the response was very positive. “This will be the next step for sport in Waterford and will stand as a proud monument to the GAA’s legacy in the county”, he said.

Walsh Park

There had been plans for a €5 million development of facilities at Walsh Park. Indeed planning permission was acquired but there have been second thoughts and County Board chairman Pat Flynn has encouraged full investigation of the possibilities at Carriganore “for the benefit of generations to come”.

There is bound to be opposition from some traditionalists on the County Board and if it comes to proposals to sell Walsh Park to raise cash, that attitude will be doubly enforced. Indeed one prominent official stated this week that the city’s GAA home “would never be sold”. But times change and so do attitudes and many GAA followers, tired of poor drainage and outdated facilities at Walsh Park, will be of the view that Carriganore presents a golden opportunity which should be grasped, whatever it takes.

AdMMM

I read about this and began to wonder what hell Ollie Wilkinson was raving about with his election promise in delivering a 40,000 seater stadium for GAA in Waterford!

cwat69

What would be built on Walsh Park should this get the go ahead?Im sure McCant will object.