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Abbotstown
Project Background
The National Sports Campus
project began life in 2004
when the Government
announced that it planned to
develop a major sports Campus
on the state-owned lands at
Abbotstown.
The first task was to prepare a Development Control Plan
which looked at what might be provided on the site. That
Development Control Plan envisaged a mix of outdoor and
indoor facilities along with Athlete Accommodation, Sports
Science and Medical facilities. It also took on board the
need for facilities for both team sports and individual sports.
Finally it also looked at the provision of an administration
area for the various National Governing Bodies of the many
sports which operate in Ireland.*
* In keeping with its remit, the NSCDA is encouraging the
National Governing Bodies of various sports to relocate
their headquarters to Abbotstown. The first such move
was completed by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI),
which came on site in December 2007.
The National Sports Campus Development Authority (NSCDA)
was established on a statutory basis on 1 January 2007 in order
to deliver the project for which the Government had already
allocated funding under the National Development Plan.
The principal functions of NSCDA are set out as being the
development, furnishing and equipping of the sports Campus
and then the management and operation of all the facilities
therein. The new Authority was also given responsibility for
the operation of the National Aquatic Centre.
The next task of the NSCDA was to hold a competition to
appoint a project management team and a design team. Given
the scale of the project, a competition was held throughout
Europe to attract the two best teams.
In April 2008, The Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism
announced the appointment of Davis Langdon PKS as project
managers and Faulknerbrowns as lead architects. Both
companies have outstanding track records for delivery
in their respective fields.
Since their appointment the two companies, along with other
specialist advisors who are part of their overall Project Design
team, have been preparing a detailed Planning Application for
submission to Fingal County Council. The Planning Application
is now ready to be lodged.
Dan Flinter
chairman,
national sports campus
development authority
Competing
at the
highest level
In order to compete at the
highest possible level, Irish
sportsmen and sportswomen
need and deserve world-class
facilities.
In the past, we have seen Ireland’s most
talented athletes having to locate overseas
in order to realise their full potential.
It is against this background that the Government decided
a number of years ago to develop a National Sports Campus
in Ireland which would ensure that our top athletes would
no longer have to go abroad for training purposes.
The first step was the creation of the National Aquatic
Centre which opened in 2003 for the Special Olympics
Summer Games. The next step is the creation of a
National Campus which will ensure that our top
performers, whether in team or individual sports, have
state-of-the-art training facilities and scientific support
to help them prepare for world-class competition.
The National Sports Campus Development Authority
is very conscious that the planned Campus is located
in a large, vibrant residential community. As has been
the case with the National Aquatic Centre from the
outset, the Authority has deliberately planned to include
facilities which can be enjoyed by members of the
local Community.
The lands at Abbotstown were all rezoned in 2007
by Fingal County Council from “agricultural usage” to
“open space and recreational usage”. The application
for Planning Permission to develop the National Sports
Campus is in full compliance with the approved zoning
and the existing Development Control Plan. It is hoped
that planning permission will be forthcoming which will
enable the Authority to fulfil the dreams and ambitions
of all concerned.
Barry O’Brien
chief executive,
national sports campus
development authority
Facilities for
Our Athletes
The National Sports Campus is
planned to provide a wide range of
sports facilities which can be used
by Ireland’s top athletes from a wide
variety of different sports.
The Campus is being built around a central
core which will consist of:
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National Indoor Training Centre
National Indoor Athletics Training Centre
National Gymnastics Training Centre
Sports Science and Medicine Facilities
Athletes Accommodation
Elite Athletes Fitness and Conditioning Centre
Boxing Training Centre
National Field Sports
Training Centre
These core facilities will include:
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A multi-purpose
indoor hall with up to
12 courts for indoor
sports.
A 6-lane 200 metre
running track.
A 60 metre sprint
track.
A 110 metre sprint
track and jumps pit.
Throwing and vaulting areas.
Accommodation for approx. 200 athletes.
Medical facilities including consultation rooms,
hydrotherapy, a physiology lab, biochemical
analysis and physiotherapy rooms
A fitness and conditioning area to include
equipment for cardiovascular work, resistance,
free weights and exercise.
Radiating out from this central core will be a wide range
of facilities for our National Field Sports of Rugby, Soccer,
Hockey, Gaelic Football, Hurling and Camogie.
The sports of Rugby and Soccer will also have access to
dedicated covered training areas to ensure our international
teams have facilities which are second to none.
In total, there will be 22 pitches for training and playing
on a variety of all-weather and replica international surfaces.
More specifically:
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Rugby - 3 outdoor, 1 indoor
Soccer - 6 outdoor, 1 indoor
Hockey - 2 all-weather
Gaelic Games - 4 outdoor
NSCDA - 5 Multi-Sport pitches.
All the outdoor facilities – including those for local
community usage – will be to the highest standards and
most will be floodlit.
All sports will have excellent changing facilities; meeting
rooms; access to the indoor training facilities; and access
to the Sports Science and Medicine area.
There is also a location reserved on the Masterplan
for a Cycling Velodrome which has been a key training
requirement of Cycling Ireland for many years. Similarly,
there is also a site reserved for a National Handball
Centre which the GAA would like to see developed
in the coming years.
Facilities for
the Community
In creating the National Aquatic Centre,
the Government was always conscious
that there should be a benefit to the local
community in which the facility is located.
This policy will continue with the various
sporting facilities planned for the National
Sports Campus.
Included in the plan are a series of dedicated outdoor
all–weather facilities at Abbotstown which will be available
for use by local teams and individuals on commercial terms.
These include:
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Up to 15 synthetic pitches, all of which will be floodlit
A rebound wall for skills training
One major multisport playing area
3 Pitches for Outdoor Field Sports
Similarly, members of the local
community will also have access to:
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The National Athletics
Training Centre
The National Gymnastics
Training Centre
The National Indoor
Training Centre.
Perhaps the most exciting news of all for the local
community is the future development of a Parkland Area
on the site which can be enjoyed by everyone.
The intention is to develop this Parkland Area in conjunction
with Fingal County Council. A draft Memorandum of
Understanding has been developed by both bodies for
this purpose. The area is to the South West of the site
and covers 58 HAs/143 acres which would approximate
to the size of two full sized 18-hole golf courses.
The intention is that this area will be developed in such
a way as to provide both casual and passive recreational
facilities, including:
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Children’s play areas
Walking, jogging and cycling trails
Picnic, barbeque and coffee shop facilities
Areas for teamwork, light exercise and stretching
The National
Sports Campus at
Abbotstown
Masterplan
Artists impression - for illustrative purposes only.
Authority Members
Dan Flinter Chairman
William Attley
Tom Kiernan
Seán Benton
Caroline Murphy
Bernadette Cronin
Arthur O’Brien
Mary Davis
Miriam O’Callaghan
Seán Donnelly
Christy O’Connell
Pat Hickey
John Treacy
Authority Staff
Barry O’Brien Chief Executive Officer
David Conway
Stephen Ryan
Kitty Maloney
Rosabelle Welsh
Bernadette O’Shea
Further Information
If you have any queries in relation
to the National Sports Campus
please do not hesitate to contact us.
You can write to us at:
Information
National Sports Campus Development Authority
Top Floor, Block A
West End Office Park
Blanchardstown
Dublin 15
or email:
info@nscda.ie
Further information on the entire
project can be found on our website:
www.nscda.ie