Croke Park now debt free 20 years after commencing its redevelopment

For the first time since the project to redevelop the stadium began more than 20 years ago, Croke Park is debt free. Stadium director Peter McKenna announced the news in his media presentation of the stadium accounts yesterday.

He was uncertain if the old stadium had ever been debt free. “I’m not sure if it ever was. I think it always had debt associated with it, even prior to 1993. Maybe not, it’s a very hard comparison. The building is so much different than it was 15 to 20 years ago.”

The outstanding debt of €26.5 million has been cleared leaving one internal, inter-company loan of €14.5m from the GAA to the stadium holding company PACT, an amount more than covered by other properties owned in the area such as the Croke Park hotel.

He acknowledged, however, that the development was an historic breakthrough. “It certainly is. It’s huge.”

Croke Park received a series of government grants worth around €108m after proceeding with the rebuilding in 1993. Then Minister for Finance Bertie Ahern made an allocation of £5m (€6.3m) in the 1994 budget, followed in 1997 by his successor Charlie McCreevy's allocation of £20m (€25.4m).

Finally in 2001, Ahern’s government provided a grant partly in recognition of the stadium costs but also to fast-track development needed for the staging of the Special Olympics opening and closing ceremonies, hosted in 2003.

The final cost to the GAA of the project in McKenna’s words “wouldn’t have been too far off €285m” of which the association had to find the balancing €177m.

Speaking about the 2013 accounts, McKenna said that he had been particularly pleased again to remit a €4m dividend to the GAA’s Central Council.

This is the same sum as last year despite the stadium accounts covering just 10 months of the year – as the company is switching its accounts to a calendar-year basis just as the association at large did last year – and the absence of any concerts in the venue last year.

Christmas present
Speaking on the day that Garth Brooks announced a fourth concert at Croke Park this summer, he said that the stadium hadn't been aware until relatively recently that the singer was planning comeback dates there.

“We didn’t know this would be in the pipeline. This is new. This was a Christmas present really. That’s the truth of it. I think what was heartening about 2013 was that no, we didn’t have a concert but we hit our numbers and I think that was very important.”

He acknowledged that concerts were difficult for residents in the area.

“We shouldn’t underplay the impact it’s going to have on the local community. We’re very conscious that four concerts back to back like that is going to be very disruptive to the local area.

“So we talked to the artist and Aiken’s (promoters). We’re meeting with the local community next week and we want a meaningful legacy statement made from these concerts. So that when the artist goes home and everyone else packs up and leaves, that while there is a lot of disruption, something meaningful is left in the area.”

Asked what that might be, he replied: "That's something that needs to come from the community. So we're going to meet with the community leaders next week and see what level of suggestions they would come out with. It needs to be significant. It just can't be tokenism; it needs to be something substantial. The artist has been very supportive".

Playing surface
Asked about concerns for the playing surface in Croke Park just days before the All-Ireland football quarter-finals are due to be played, McKenna was confident. "We have been there before and we have done it but I don't want to underplay it as it's not without risk but it's a risk that we're well able to manage."

He explained that the Brooks set would be less “dramatic” than the U2 stage from five years ago after which the entire playing surface was re-laid with no major complaints in the matches that followed within a week.

According to McKenna the stadium won’t have to re-lay the whole pitch this time. “No we will not; some of it but because the delay (sound) towers aren’t there, the pitch covers on three-quarters of the pitch, we can take up so it’s not going to have the same impact.

“The delay towers, they take up a significant couple of days before the concert – so the pitch cover is longer. We can leave it until the very last minute to put it down.”

With each concert worth approximately €750,000 to Croke Park, the stadium will take in around €5m between Brooks’s four dates and the three being played by One Direction in May although McKenna pointed out that there will be no alcohol sales at the latter because of the audience age profile, which will impact on concession-based income.