Is this going to be Garth Brooks all over again?
A Fianna Fáil council member has warned that Ed Sheeran’s shows at Páirc Uí Chaoimh could be in jeopardy if lighting upgrades are not made in the areas around the newly revamped stadium.
A stand-off is currently taking place between the GAA and City Hall over public lighting upgrades around Páirc Uí Chaoimh and Terry Shannon says a resolution must come soon if the concerts are to go ahead.
“They haven’t paid up. It’s as simple as that, and it was one of the conditions of their planning,” he told the Examiner.
“They need to get the finger out and get on with it, especially with the Ed Sheeran concerts coming down the tracks.”
When asked to contribute €700,000 to fix public lighting on Monahan Rd, Centre Park Rd, and the Old Railway Line, the GAA only put forward €60,000 as they argued it was not reasonable to expect them to pay for works outside the stadium itself.
City Hall, however, argued that a revamp of the area would bring sizable numbers into the stadium, swelling the GAA’s coffers, and the current lighting was “inadequate to ensure public lighting to the standard required to protect public safety.”
With the first show on Sheeran’s European Tour to take place on 4 May, the issue must be resolved soon or else the city could risk losing one of the biggest shows ever to take place in Cork.
Stadium manager Bob Ryan said: “We hired 13 mobile lighting towers for the various approach roads at the weekend. We did the best we could. I would hope that we can resolve the issue in the coming weeks.”
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