Parent’s appeal for Gaelscoil site

ON Monday next, Cork City Council will vote on whether to rezone a portion of the ‘Tank Field’ in Montenotte to facilitate construction of a permanent building for Gaelscoil an Ghoirt Álainn, Cork’s only multidenominational and co-educational Gaelscoil.

I am a parent of children attending the school which for the past eight years has been housed in prefabs. Since my children were toddlers we as a family have used the Tank Field for recreation and I would not in good conscience recommend any development that would mean the loss of this vital amenity.

However, I see no reason why this would be the case. The Tank Field will not be lost. The site consists of an area of 11 acres, 2.5 of which have been earmarked for the school development. It is my understanding that the remaining area will still be available to the community. At present the area comprises of two pitches, Brian Dillon’s GAA club, a prefabricated school and one area between the pitches which is littered with broken glass and deemed by the city’s parks department as too small for regular maintenance.