COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF RATHFARNHAM/TEMPLEOGUE-TERENURE AREA COMMITTEE

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

MOTION NO. 1

MOTION: Councillor S. Holland

"That the Chief Executive provide a plan of action for Whitechurch Boxing Club to secure a premises in and around the Whitechurch area for their training and competitions, including a small kitchen and changing areas with showers.  The club are eager to secure a facility which can be used by any sports club in the area, including Whitechurch FC and local athletics clubs etc.  This boxing club is run entirely by volunteers and has several all-Ireland champions amoung the club and several of the coaches have trained and qualified as referees.  They provide a fantastic facility for the community and deserve our support."

REPORT:

The Council has already provided and is committed to further supporting as diverse a range of community and sporting activities as possible in the Whitechurch area. The Council also continues to actively support the Whitechurch Community & Youth Centre, which was funded and constructed by the Council in 2008/09. The Community and Youth Centre which contains specially designed changing rooms currently provides a home for Whitechurch FC and while it may be an option for the Whitechurch Boxing Club to explore, unfortunately it is often difficult for a boxing club to share a premises with another club or activity group because their equipment, which is substantial, does not lend itself easily to being assembled, dismantled and stored on a daily basis. Whitechurch Boxing Club is at present operating and utilising the sports hall in the Scoil Mhuire National School.

Any plan to provide an additional community facility to address the needs of the Boxing Club would represent a significant challenge in the absence of a source of capital funding to finance these new facilities. The construction cost alone of such a facility could be in excess of €2m and currently there is no source for such funding from central government. In the current climate it would not be possible for the Council to provide the necessary finance for such a project from its own resources.

The Community Services Department however remains committed to support the Boxing Club in whatever way it can through its Community Grants Programme and the South Dublin Local Sports Partnership have provided the club with both practical advice and funding assistance in relation to promoting the club and the purchase of some sporting/boxing equipment.