THREE trustees of Kilcoole Golf Club in Co Wicklow claimed in the High Court yesterday that members have invested £250,000 in a clubhouse which was never built, and have been banned from the grounds.
Mr Colm Allen SC, for the trustees, had applied to the court for an injunction restraining the director and shareholders of the golf club from preventing or excluding the membership of the club from entering the grounds and taking part in the club's normal day to day activities.
Mr Allen said he would not have proceeded with his application for an injunction if he had an early date for the hearing of the action.
The President of the High Court, Mr Justice Costello, said he would fix January 14th, 1997, for the case to be heard.
The trustees, who are claiming they are entitled to a proprietary interest in Kilcoole Golf Club are: Mr John McCarthy, Gosworth Park, Dalkey, Dublin; Mr Thomas O'Riordan, Eaton Wood Court, Shankill, Dublin; and Ms Niamh Laverty, Glenbourne Avenue, Leopardstown Valley, Sandyford, Dublin.
They are also seeking a declaration that the directors and shareholders of the club, formerly known as Glenroe Golf Club, are obliged to construct a clubhouse within a period set by the High Court.
In an affidavit, the secretary of the golf club, Mr Thomas Deely, Meadowbrook, Kilcoole, claimed members had been assured by the defendants that the clubhouse would be built in March/April, 1993. He believed 250 members had joined the club, when it was established in October, 1991, and that about £250,000 was initially collected as joining fees.
Mr Deely said members refused to pay their annual subscription of £300 for 1996 because they believed it was not now or ever the intention of the defendants to erect the clubhouse.
The defendants are Mr Michael Kunz, Ballyphilip Farm, Kilcoole, Mr Brian Williams, Dargle Road, Blackrock, Co Dublin; Ballyphlip Farms Ltd, Ballyphilip Nurseries, Kilcoole, and Ballyphilip Golf Ltd, Ballyphilip Farm, Newcastle Road, Kilcoole.
The defendants have claimed that all the money paid by members was accounted for and it had always been their intention to build a clubhouse, which would be subject to planning permission and a bank loan. They also claim, there is no evidence to suggest that the defendants intended to permanently deprive the plaintiffs and other members of Kilcoole Golf Club of the use of the golf course.