Dundalk velodrome hopes boosted after council agree to land disposal

The proposed site map for the new Cuchulainn Cycling Park

Plans for a new cycling park and velodrome in Dundalk earned a significant boost this morning after Louth County Council agreed to a land disposal for the facility at Muirhevnamor Park at their monthly meeting at Co Louth Golf Club in Baltray.

Plans for the Cuchulainn Cycling Park first came about in 2010 when the locally-based Cuchulainn Cycling Club were celebrating their 75^th anniversary.

Planning permission was secured in February 2013 and that December the now defunct Dundalk Town Council approved a 150-year lease of a 5.3 acre site located off Hoey’s Lane, adjacent to Muirhevnamor Community and Sports Centre.

The facility was to include a 250m Velodrome and BMX track, which was expected at the time to cost in the region of €2.5m, with the first two phases coming in at around €250,000 each.

Last February Cuchulainn’s plans changed slightly when they teamed up with Dundalk IT with a view to building the velodrome inside the former JJB facility at Dundalk Retail Park.

However, this was later shot down by students, who had agreed to co-fund the DkIT Sports Arena, which opened its doors in recent weeks.

That put the Muirhevnamor plan back on the agenda although in order to avail of grants, Cuchulainn needed to own the land which brought it back before the council today.

After a long debate, councillors voted by 18 votes to 10 to dispose of the land, with all bar the 10 Sinn Féin councillors consenting.

There’s still a long way to go for the dream of a velodrome in Dundalk to become a reality, of course, but this is a significant step.

Phase one of the project involves the erection of fencing, all associated site ground works and the construction of a BMX track. The second phase will then see the construction of the outdoor velodrome, with phase three – estimated at €2m – bringing about the erection of the roof on the velodrome.

While being planned by Cuchulainn Cycling Club, the facility would be available for use by clubs across the country with 11 of Ireland’s largest cycling clubs said to be located within 1.5 hours of Dundalk.

It is hoped the track will provide a training resource for elite athletes and will promote the sport of cycling with Cuchulainn planning to run special courses through its Cycling Ireland affiliated coaches.

The track will also play host to competitive events including underage, male and female racing.

IIHA call for Dundalk Ice Dome to reopen and offer to put up “half the revenue” to make it happen

Dundalk Ice Dome now lies boarded up having closed its doors in 2010

The Irish Ice Hockey Association has called for Dundalk Ice Dome to be reopened, with the organisation offering to put up half of the costs to ensure it does.

The facility at Dundalk Retail Park on the Inner Relief Road has been lying idle since closing its doors in May 2010.

However, the IIHA are now desperate to see it reopen as Team Ireland, the nation’s representatives on the global hockey stage, are at risk of losing their right to participate in international tournaments due to the fact they do not have a basic arena measuring 60×30 metres.

Since the closure of Dundalk Ice Dome almost five years ago, the team have trained at temporary facilities like the Point Village on Ice.

However, it will shut down in March after an 8-week extension was granted by Dublin City Council, partly to facilitate the Irish team. When it closes the IIHA said the team will not meet sporting guidelines and therefore lose full membership status with the International Ice Hockey Federation.

That means Team Ireland will no longer be able to compete internationally, despite some strong performances in recent years like when the team took home gold from the IIHF Championships in Luxembourg in 2010.

While many ice hockey players and figure skaters travel to the Odyssey Arena in Belfast to train at the home of the Belfast Giants, a rink is badly needed in the Republic with general secretary of the Irish Ice Hockey Association Mark Bowes pointing out to UTV Ireland this week that Dublin remains the only capital city in Europe without a permanent ice rink.

With a deadline to meet standards set for May, Mr Bowe said that the situation looks bleak “unless we can pull a rabbit out of a hat and get a rink.”

He said that the only realistic solution before the deadline would be to extend the Point Village licence on a “semi-permanent basis” or reopen the Dundalk rink – to which the Irish Ice Hockey Association would be willing to put forward “half of the revenue”.

He added: “We are continuing to work with the local authorities and government departments and we remain relentless in our efforts to find a way to achieve a permanent rink in Ireland.”

In November 2013, the IIHA’s then president Aaron Guli offered hope of the rink reopening early last year. It had been hoped that UK-based rink operator Planet Ice – who ran Dundalk On Ice in the Market Square last Christmas – would bid for the tender to run the facility from Dundalk IT, who have taken over that part of the Retail Park, including the former JJB facility.

The college had hoped to open a new sports facility at JJB last September but this has been delayed until this summer at the earliest.

Mr Bowes told UTV Ireland that despite hockey perhaps being perceived as a niche activity in Ireland, there are a lot of people seeking to play or take up the skating which would make a rink feasible.

“Anytime we open up a festive rink we see the level of commitment of people from eastern European nations [where ice hockey is popular], and even local kids, in ice hockey and skating… The demand is there.”

“Ice hockey is an incredible way to get kids out playing a sport that is both exciting and fun… But anytime we get our ice hockey programmes up and running the rink is gone.”

Dundalk IT students demand €125 refund as JJB facility fails to open

What the new facility is supposed to look like but progress on converting it has been slow

Dundalk IT Students’ Union have demanded a full refund of the €125 each student paid towards the new DkITSport facility, which was to open last year at the former JJB premises at Dundalk Retail Park.

An emergency class rep meeting was called by the Students’ Union yesterday, with 87 class reps in attendance being told that the latest information from the college was that the facility will not be open until this summer.

At the start of the 2014/2015 academic year in September, each student paid an additional €125 on their college fees towards the former JJB facility, which DkIT were set to convert into a major sports centre.

In exchange for the €125 they would receive full membership to the gym facility.

This was to open in September or October but when it failed to do so DkIT Students’ Union renegotiated that students would receive a refund on a pro-rata basis.

This would mean that if the facility opened in February they would receive €62.50 back. However, after hearing that the facility will now not be open until June, students have demanded that their money be refunded in full, with the levy not coming into place until the facility is fully operational in September.

Students’ Union President Brian Fitzpatrick said: “This year in DkIT the students have grown very frustrated due to many cuts and changes to our vital services.

“We promised the students that we would stick by them throughout this process and ensure that they will be treated fairly. The only fair option now is for a full refund as otherwise there would be a blatant breach of the original plebiscite voted on by the students in 2012.”

The Students’ Union previously blocked plans to build a velodrome in the facility, a venture that was put forward by college representatives in conjunction with Cuchulainn Cycling Club.

Plans for Dundalk velodrome up in the air after students vote against the proposal

What the velodrome building would look like if given the go ahead

Plans for a velodrome at the JJB facility at Dundalk Retail Park have suffered a massive setback after students at Dundalk IT voted almost unanimously against the proposals yesterday.

The ambitious plans for the velodrome in conjunction with the college were announced last Wednesday by Cuchulainn Cycling Club, with DkIT president Denis Cummins saying he was determined to work with the them and Cycling Ireland to bring the first velodrome in Ireland to the town.

However, the move angered students at the college who claimed they were not consulted on the plans despite the fact that they voted last year to support the college’s takeover of JJB – a decision which will add an additional €125 per year to their fees to help subsidise its purchase.

Class reps met on Monday afternoon to discuss the matter and of the 40 reps present, 39 voted to oppose the proposal, with one abstaining.

That leaves the plans very much up in the air with president Cummins giving a commitment that the velodrome “would not go ahead without student support,” according to DkIT Students’ Union president Brian Fitzpatrick.

In a statement on the Students’ Union website this morning, Mr Fitzpatrick said: “We invited DkIT president Denis Cummins in to talk about the background of the proposal and what it would mean to the college if it was passed. Denis insisted that this was still only a proposal and would not go ahead without the student support. After taking some difficult questions on the matter from some of the reps in attendance, Denis asked us to hold back on taking a vote and to wait until we could make a more informed decision in the near future. He then left us to discuss the matter further before taking our vote. 

“We decided that we would take the vote there and then as we seen no point in delaying since we had gathered sufficient feedback from all students over the past week. Of the 40 class reps present, 39 voted to oppose the proposal, 1 abstained and 0 voted in favour of the proposal.

“The general feeling was that this is our facility, and rather than just jumping at the first funding opportunity that comes available, we should be patient and wait for something that will actually be an addition for us students in DkIT.

I would like to thank all of the DkIT students for their feedback on the issue and all of the class reps for helping us gather it.”

A poll was launched last week within the college by the DkIT Students’ Union to gauge opinion on the velodrome proposals but most felt it was not in the best interests of students. While there are a wide range of clubs and societies on campus, cycling is not one of them.

According to one student, posting on the Dundalk IT Students’ Union Facebook page: “A lot of students are against this. This is not what was agreed.”

One commentator to Talk of the Town, Vikki Conroy said: “It doesn’t really make sense to build a facility purely for use by a cycling club. Why pull out the major facilities that’s already in place and students were promised use of?”

Should the ambitious plans fail then, Cuchulainn Cycling Club could revert to their initial idea of building a cycling park in Muirhevnamor – a project they had already secured land and planning permission for.

Students could object to plans for Dundalk velodrome

What the new velodrome building could look like but does it conflict with what students had envisaged (below)

Local students could be set to object to plans for a new international standard velodrome in Dundalk.

What students had been promised for the JJB facility conflicts with proposals for the velodrome

The news that the velodrome was going to be built by Cuchulainn Cycling Club in conjunction with Dundalk IT at the JJB facility at Dundalk Retail Park received plenty of support this week.

For students of DkIT though, they remain very much divided on the matter.

Last year students voted to support the college’s takeover of JJB – something that will cost them an additional €125 per year on top of their fees to help subsidise its purchase.

However, there is a feeling amongst many students at the college that they were not consulted about the ambitious plans for the JJB facility and many feel their interests are not being best served by giving over so much of the building to what is, in reality, a minority sport.

According to one student, posting on the Dundalk IT Students’ Union Facebook page: “A lot of students are against this. This is not what was agreed.”

Others have suggested that the facility would be better utilised as an indoor athletics track.

Either way, the debate is raging and the students are likely to vote on the matter next week to make their feelings be known.

Indeed, DkIT Students’ Union president Brian Fitzpatrick has already released a statement on the matter.

He said: “Initial reaction from the college and from the north-east sporting community has been very positive as this an exciting proposal and something that is unique to the country let alone the region. However we feel it is essential that we gather feedback from the students of DkIT before this proposal goes any further.

“Starting from next year we will each have to pay an additional €125/year on top of our fees to pay for this facility, so let our opinion be heard before any major decisions are made.”

Fitzpatrick feels that the plans released this week by Cuchulainn Cycling Club conflict with what the students were promised when they voted on the purchase of JJB last year.

“This proposal will really kick-start the sport of track cycling in Ireland, however will it be of any benefit to us students? Is there a want or a need for track cycling among the DkIT students?

“As I’ve already mentioned this facility has been purchased by the students and is supposed to be for the students. While voting to purchase this last year we were promised free gym and swimming pool access, free parking and usage of 10 multi-purpose astro-turf pitches among other things. The velodrome will take up 80-90% of the astro-turf pitches and therefore impedes what we were promised.

“However there would be space for 2 pitches as well as some space in the centre of the velodrome itself.

“The Students’ Union has gathered initial feedback from some students in the last two days. It’s granted that students do not feel that there would be need for 10 astro-turf pitches, but there is a strong feeling that they wish to have an input in what would be placed there, and a track cycling velodrome was not mentioned among a lot of the excellent suggestions,” he said.

Fitzpatrick said he wanted to gather as much feedback as possible from students on the matter to “come up with an official student stance either in favour or against the velodrome proposal.”

He concluded: “The topic will be high on the agenda of Monday’s Class Rep Council Meeting, so we ask you to please let your opinion be known to your class rep. Myself and Paddy (O’Rourke) in the Students’ Union promise that your voice will be heard so please speak up.”

The plans for the velodrome will take up “80-90%” of the part of the JJB building that previously housed 12 astro-turf pitches