Galway City Tribune – The cash-strapped Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT) is in talks with the Department of Education about buying Crowley Park from Galwegians RFC.
The college, which has implemented cutbacks recently to reign-in its budget, has suggested it will stump-up 50% of the acquisition cost for the Dublin Road site. GMIT previously attempted to buy the site in 2009.
The institute estimates that it would cost €112 million “to purchase this piece of land and develop it”, according to GMIT Governing Body meeting minutes seen by the Galway City Tribune.
“To purchase a similar piece of land but in another location would cost €140m,” the minutes said.
David Lee, Buildings and Estates manager at GMIT, told the Governing Body that he met with department officials last November to discuss the land acquisition.
The department, he said, asked GMIT “to make a business case as to why the Irish State should purchase this land for GMIT”.
“The institute has offered to part-fund this purchase by 50% for a period of time from our cash flow, which will not impact our reserves. The Department have asked the institute to provide a listing of our current land holdings and to rank them,” the meeting heard.
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