RESIDENTS living around Croke Park have warned that the five Garth Brooks concerts this summer could be in serious difficulty following a heated meeting with stadium officials and promoters last week.
Furious representatives from the Croke Park Streets Committees and the Irish Stadium Communities Association said significant members of the local community hadn’t been invited to the consultation meeting.
Chairman of Croke Park Streets Committees, Eamon O’Brien, who wasn’t invited to the meeting, said he was attending
“in protest
? and walked out after speaking briefly.
“It was agreed that no decisions would be taken at the meeting because it was unrepresentative of the community,
? he said.
“The Croke Park
‘divide and conquer’ selection process will not succeed.
?
O’Brien later went on to say residents would not
“lie down and roll over
? and called for those responsible in Croke Park for the concerts to step down from their positions.
“We now believe that it is time for the executives in Croke Park that are responsible for this fiasco to move on and we hereby call for their resignations,
? he said.
Last week local councillors representing the area surrounding Croke Park agreed to call on Dublin City Council to refuse concert licences for the proposed Garth Brooks concerts unless all stakeholders were consulted and agreement reached on contentious issues such as traffic, cleansing and access for residents.
Cllr Nial Ring (Ind), who proposed the motion, said it was essential that all groups representing local communities were involved in the consultation process.
“Local residents feel that the concert promoters and the GAA have pre-empted the decision of Dublin City Council with the announcement of three concerts initially before announcing additional concerts which was seen by the community as a mixture of arrogance and a taking for granted of the local communities,
? he said.
Cllr Ring described the invitation list for the first consultation meeting as
“limited
? because it excluded the Croke Park Streets Committee and warned that councillors would call on the council to refuse concert licences if agreement wasn’t reached with all parties.
He described last week’s meeting as
“heated and fractious
?.
“The level of anger, frustration and disgust with Croke Park/GAA at the way they went about announcing the Garth Brooks concerts was palpable,
? he continued.
“The lark of consultation was referred to again and again, and the fact that only seven of the 60 plus attendees at the meeting were actually invited was highlighted by Eamon O’Brien.
“There is a complete lack of trust in the GAA. Local residents will do all in their power to stop the concerts.
?
Following the meeting Cllr Ring said that
“as of now
? councillors would be calling on Dublin City Council to refuse the concert licences.
A Croke Park spokesperson confirmed that consultation with locals was underway without elaborating on how the process would develop.
“We had an initial meeting with some local community groups and residents last night,
? the spokesperson said.
“We will be making no further comment to the media while we continue our consultative process.
?