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INPHO/James Crombie
Rebel Yell

New Páirc will be second only to Croker, says Cork GAA chairman

The process of rebuilding Páirc Uí Chaoimh is underway after the appointment of a design team to the project this week.

THE ARCHITECTS RESPONSIBLE for the Aviva Stadium have been charged with transforming Cork’s Páirc Uí Chaoimh into the second best GAA ground in Ireland.

Scott Tallon Walker – also responsible for the city’s recently-approved Brewery Quarter plans – has offices in Dublin, Cork, Galway and London and was announced on Friday as one of a number of firms that will drive the redevelopment of the Rebel County’s main ground into a 45,000-capacity over the coming two years.

Speaking to TheScore.ie, county board chairman Bob Ryan said that work on the project would begin immediately, adding that officials were working hard to ensure that fixtures in Cork will go ahead as planned throughout construction.

“Over the next few months, the team that we have put in place will get about their work of designing the stadium. They have been briefed about our requirements and it’s their job now to get that ready for planning stage.

“There was huge interest (in getting involved). We had a tender process, followed by an interview process and we were delighted that so many leading companies sought to get involved.”

Malachy Walsh and Partners, based in Cork, has been appointed as both engineering consultants and project manager, while Cunnane Stratton Reynolds and Michael Barrett Partnership will assist with planning and the quantity surveying respectively.

“There is a huge share of work involved alright – there’s no doubt about that – but this is what we’ve taken on. Matches won’t be affected in any way by the development and depending on how the planning goes, we would be hoping that construction could start before the end of the year.”

“This development will put us back on top,” Mr. Ryan concluded. “It will make sure the stadium is back to being the second stadium in the country.”

The County Board purchased nearly seven acres of land from Cork City Council last year and will re-build the main stadium as well as establishing a Centre of Excellence and floodlit facilities on the Docklands site.

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