PLANNING permission will be required for all concert events lasting more than one day at Pairc Ui Chaoimh in Cork following a decision by An Bord Pleanala.
A senior executive officer with An Bord Pleanala, Ms Liz Dolan, said the board concluded that no planning permission would be needed for one day concert events at Pairc Ui Chaoimh but would be required for all concerts lasting more than one day in future.
However, one senior outdoor concert promoter, who did not wish to be named, said the decision could have ramifications in terms of planning permission for outdoor concert events at other venues. He said there was no uniformity in the way planning permission for outdoor concerts was handled.
A spokesman for An Bord Pleanala said the board only made a determination when there was a particular question before it and could not comment on any possible ramifications the decision might have for any other outdoor concert venue.
In effect, the decision means that concert events like last year's sell out Oasis concert at Pairc Ui Chaoimh and Feile, which was held there for the first and only time in 1995, would need planning permission.
A spokesman for MCD promoters, who organise Feile, said they were looking at the decision. "Basically it means that superstars like Garth Brooks and Oasis who do back to back concerts will not be playing at Pairc Ui Chaoimh. It's a huge loss," the spokesman said.
Ms Liz Dolan said the issue was referred to An Bord Pleanala last September after a question arose between Cork Corporation and the GAA in Pairc Ui Chaoimh.
"The corporation felt the whole issue needed to be sorted out," said Ms Dolan. She added that there had been some complaints from residents in the vicinity of Pairc Ui Chaoimh.