Field which once hosted Bono earmarked for new GAA pitch

A field which once hosted a U2 concert is at the centre of a debate over whether its future should be with or without a new sports pitch.

The land in the Botanic area of south Belfast has been earmarked by the city council for a new GAA pitch.

The site currently includes a community garden and an environmental research project. It is unclear whether they would need to move.

Back in the summer of 1997, more than 30,000 people watched Bono and his band perform at the field which is beside Queen's University's sport centre known as the PEC (Physical Education Centre).

There are mixed views about the future of the green space at Lower Botanic Gardens.

A local group, Friends of the Field, which established a community garden on the land in recent years is concerned about possible changes.

It has asked to address the next full meeting of Belfast City Council, which takes place on Monday evening.

The group says it is keen to be directly involved in any discussions about what happens next.

There is, as yet, no agreed timescale for the installation of the new GAA pitch.

Alicia Mulholland, a local resident and a member of the group, told BBC News NI: "I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried."

"Lots of volunteers have put hundreds and hundreds of hours of work into this place to improve the biodiversity, to protect the nature that we have on site, and to develop this community garden," she said.

The EU-funded Upsurge research project on the site is investigating how nature-based solutions can alleviate the effects of climate change.

Representatives from Sinn Féin, the largest party on Belfast City Council, recently visited the Botanic site and talked to Friends of the Field volunteers including Mulholland.

Belfast South MLA Deirdre Hargey believes a new GAA pitch on the site does not mean the end of the community garden and environmental work.

"I do believe within the wider footprint of the [Botanic] gardens and the park that we can facilitate both. I think they're both really valuable projects," she said.

"And I also believe actually that both projects can work and complement each other. "

"This site had always been earmarked for a Gaelic pitch. There was a temporary pitch that was there up until 2020, and then was removed partly because of the unevenness of the surface.

"We believe, now that the council have granted the permission, that they're going to move ahead in terms of developing this space."

Alliance Party councillor Tara Brooks also met Friends of the Field volunteers.

She said she recognised the need for GAA provision but was concerned about the possible impact on the community garden and the Upsurge project, which she feels should be retained.

"The thing that I really want to happen here is more clarity. I think there has been a real lack of information and clarity," she said.

Councillor Gary McKeown from the Social Democratic and Labour Party agreed.

"I think this has been handled really poorly," he said.

"It's been unfair on the people doing great work in the community garden. It's also unfair on the GAA.

"There needs to be proper engagement, consultation and conversations moving forward."

There is a shortage of sports pitches, especially for the GAA, in Belfast.

The council recently decided to return another south Belfast site, Boucher Road Playing Fields, to sport and community use.

In recent years the fields have been the city's largest outdoor concert venue, with room for up to 40,000 people.