A SPORTS FACILITY at Dublin Airport has narrowly avoided closure after airport authorities had ordered it to vacate the premises by the end of the month.

ALSAA, a sports centre at Dublin Airport used by airport staff members and clubs in the community, has reached an agreement with the Dublin Airport Authority to continue operating for at least another year despite a previous direction to leave by 30 June.

A club that uses the site told The Journal that it raised concerns for teams who rely on its facilities.

ALSAA’s license agreement ended in December 2021 and an extension was granted until April 2021, with ALSAA ultimately told it must to vacate the complex.

In the wake of the license expiry, Dublin Airport has sought submissions from ALSAA and “other potential providers” to manage the site.

Both ALSAA and the DAA confirmed they have agreed on an extension to allow ALSAA to continue in its role until 30 June 2023.

Speaking to The Journal, chairperson of Swords Basketball Club Stephen Hynes welcomed the “security” secured for the next 12 months after the initial fear of ALSAA being made to vacate.

“It all came as a bit of a shock,” he said.

“I’m 20 years in the club because I started playing a young age and I’m there since, and as far as I remember, we’ve always been in ALSAA.”

He said the basketball club uses the facility for training nearly every day and for long hours on weekends during competitive seasons, as well as function rooms for meetings like AGMs.

The club has looked into expanding to other venues in Swords but “nowhere has the availability” accessible in ALSAA.

“If we had lost ALSAA this month, we really don’t know what we would do,” Hynes said.

We could survive it, but it wouldn’t be easy. It would be a big, big challenge because it’s such a good facility. It has everything.

“Even the size of the hall is brilliant. We have the Swords Thunder Ladies who play internationally and the rules say you need space for spectators because of the level they’re at, and ALSAA has that.”

He said the club is thankful the extension was agreed upon but will “have it in the back of our head that this time next year, is it going to be the same situation? Hopefully not.” 

A spokesperson for the DAA said it had requested proposals of interest for the operation of the fitness facilities “to ensure they are fit for purpose to meet the needs of over 20,000 staff working at Dublin Airport and also the evolving needs of the surrounding community.”

The DAA said it invited ALSAA to participate in the process, which includes submitting a plan to provide capital improvements to the facilities and providing a “sustainable proposition” to members and the community.

“As the most recent five-year licensing term ended in December 2021, DAA has invited submissions from a range of parties, including the current tenant, ALSAA, to outline their operating and investment plans for the future,” the spokesperson said in a statement to The Journal.

“This standard process is neither sudden nor unexpected and has been the subject of considerable engagement with ALSAA since summer 2021.”

The spokesperson said DAA is “committed” to the continued use of the sporting and recreation facilities.

However, “as owners of the complex, DAA needs to take account of all stakeholders and cannot put the interests of a current tenant operator above those of existing and new users of its sporting and recreational facilities”, they said.

The ALSAA complex has facilities for sports ranging from rugby and soccer to snooker and chess and amenities such as a swimming pool, sauna and bowling alley.

It’s an important resource for clubs in the area that rent spaces to use for training, matches and administration.

ALSAA CEO Jim McEvoy said that during its 50 years, ALSAA and its members have built and paid for a 70,000 square foot building, a 10-pin bowling centre, running track, pitches, tennis courts, and bowling green.

He said ALSAA has “had fantastic, cooperative and productive relationships with sports clubs, schools, special needs groups, colleges and community groups throughout the county for over half a century”.

“At this point in time, our focus is on ensuring that we may continue to provide the sports and social facilities and services that we have invested ourselves in since the 1950s, on a not-for-profit basis,” McEvoy said.

“Level heads will be required to achieve this outcome. We are interested in having a mature and collaborative conversation with DAA,” he said.

“We believe the Board of Directors and Chief Executive of DAA can play a significant role in bringing about a result which will satisfy our mutual goal of the provision of top quality sports and social facilities.

“I am aware that success in achieving our objectives will require diplomatic negotiations. While a tight timeframe has been mentioned, I believe dialogue aimed at achieving the optimal outcome may take some time.

“Achieving the best results must surely outweigh any proposed solution which is rushed or ill-judged.”

He called on politicians, including Minister of State for Sport Jack Chambers, who is based in Fingal, to engage with the issue.

Speaking to The Journal, Local Fingal County Councillor Dean Mulligan said that some of the sports ground’s facilities “need attention and would need significant upgrades”.

But “that’s not to say that they’re not utilised or not loved by a huge amount of people”, he said.

There’s over 40 different sports or teams that utilise ALSAA, everything from hockey to squash, to running, to bowling; tennis, rugby, soccer, swimming, diving, gymnastics; there’s Taekwondo, there’s a whole host of groups that use the area.

“It’s an asset that is used by so many local groups and they’re all paying members. They rent rooms and their areas and provide rent for the upkeep of the areas that they use,” the councillor said.

“DAA have had a really tough time of it and I think it’s very unfortunate because there’s a lot of really good staff that work on the ground of DAA who are no reflection of the decisions by senior management in this regard.”