GAA’s €67m plan for Páirc faces delays

GAA plans for a €67m regeneration of Páirc Uí Chaoimh could be delayed by months after concerns about the lack of detail in some of its key planning documents.

Planners have asked the Cork County Board for a revised environmental impact assessment in relation to the stadium revamp after determining that the original document failed to deal adequately with key areas, including several flood-related issues as well as crowd control and traffic management.

A planning decision was due at the weekend but this request for further information could push a decision date back several months.

In a letter to the board’s planning consultants, Malachy Walsh and Partners, city planners said the original assessment submitted with the application late last year did not comply with a relevant section of the planning and development regulations due to a “lack of details of material significance and substance”.

They said the revised assessment should include a revised flood risk assessment report. The original document, the planners said, describes the ground level of the proposed development as being “water compatible” — in that it is classed as “amenity open space, outdoor sports and recreation, and essential facilities such as changing rooms”.

However, the proposed ground flood contains kiosks, a bar, a premium meeting room, gym, merchandising shop, waste rooms, and press area, the planners said.

The revised flood risk assessment should address in detail the reasons for the vulnerability classification of the ground floor and detail measures to address the risk of flooding within the property, they said.

The original assessment, the planners added, was described as inadequate because it did not fully address the issue of flooding from the River Lee.

The revised report should address the likely rate at which flooding might occur, the order in which various parts of the stadium site might flood, likely duration of flood events, and the economic, social, and environmental consequences of the flooding, the planners said.

The revised report should also set out how safe, routine, and emergency access and egress can be provided for both frequent and extreme flood conditions, and the impact on third parties of displaced flood water caused by alterations to ground levels, and the reduction of flood plains.

The planners said the original assessment does not factor in flood mitigation measures in the event that the council’s proposed Marina Park does not proceed.

The GAA has now been asked to ensure that the revised report deals with the issue of flooding from overland flow, assuming the revamped stadium is developed as a standalone project, and not as an integral part of the proposed Marina Park.

The planners have also asked the GAA to explain why they plan to raise the level of their proposed all-weather pitch above flood plain level.

A range of match-day crowd modelling, crowd control, traffic management, and parking issues also need to be addressed, the planners said. And existing green areas must be discounted in any assessment of available parking, the planners said.

The revamp will see the stadium capacity increase to 45,000.

It will include the redevelopment and roofing of both stands, the development of new dressing rooms, restaurants, meeting and conference rooms, media facilities, a museum, and more

The GAA said the construction project alone will create more than 300 jobs.