Windsor Park Project Approved

The redevelopment of Windsor Park has been approved by Environment Minister Alex Attwood.

The Irish Football Association will now be able to build an 18,000 capacity stadium and two new stands to the south and east of the Northern Ireland team's home ground.

The north and west stands will also be extended and refurbished.

Planning permission was granted within 11 weeks, making it the fastest ever turnaround of a major planning application.

Sports Minister Carál Ní Chuilín said the announcement was a key milestone in the development of her regional sports stadiums programme.

It follows an Executive pledge of up to £110m of government funding for the redevelopment of three sports stadiums at Ravenhill, Windsor Park and Casement Park.

Alex Attwood said: "This ambitious, exciting project is important in sporting terms to everyone in Northern Ireland and will also create employment opportunities for local people, particularly during the construction process. This is why I made sure that we were in a position to turn it around quickly. My officials worked with the project team and key consultees for months before the application was submitted, clearing any hurdles. This ensured a quality application and therefore a speedy process.

"The local community were also very much involved before I made my decision. I asked the Irish FA to extensively engage with the local community before they submitted their planning application. This they did meaning that local people had a say in the design of the stadium."

Minister Ní Chuilín said: "While the modernisation of Windsor Park represents a huge boost for football fans, this project and the others at Ravenhill and Casement are also about building community foundations and providing a catalyst for the regeneration of the areas around the stadiums. All of the stadium projects will bring benefits to local communities in terms of job opportunities during and post construction as well as providing wider social benefits in areas such as health and well-being.

"The granting of planning permission today highlights the excellent progress being made by the Irish FA but also with the Stadium Development programme in general, but more importantly shows how government working across Departments with a common objective can deliver for the people here."

(IT/GK)