There was great excitement in Sáile, on Saturday 13th December, as local clubs and community groups along with County Mayor Cllr Alan Coleman turned the first sod on the long awaited Sports & Community Centre.
Gerry Wrixon, Chairman of Sáile, addressed those in attendance which included County Mayor Alan Coleman, Cllr. Kevin Murphy,  Jim Daly TD and Michael McCarthy TD, stating  “This is a momentous day for Kinsale and we are thrilled to, at long last, be breaking ground on the much needed centre. After more than 15 years of planning and fundraising, building will finally start on the Sáile Sports & Community Centre next week!  
Kinsale, he said,  is a vibrant growing town, +38% in the last 10 years and the benefits this centre will offer in terms of health, balanced lifestyle, social integration, and local economy will be significant. The centre will cater for sports that currently have no indoor space to train as well as the development of new sports.  It will give community groups adequate space to hold their clubs and meetings. It will also be a base for those interested in Art, Music, Dance, Drama, and Computing to develop their talents and will offer a safe place for teens and youth groups to ‘hang out’ and socialize with friends.  In addition, the facility could provide a venue for hosting trade shows, conferences and music events, all of which will provide opportunity for employment and benefit the local economy.
Mr. Wrixon and Tony Cierans thanked the last serving Kinsale Town Council for allocating €300,000 to the project before they dissolved,  which was the catalyst to getting the project off the ground. Coupled with €150,000 Government funding through the Sports Capital Programme, €30,000 from Cork County Council Community Fund, Community Fundraising and Donor pledges the committee has raised €700,000 to date.   Another €50,000 needs to be raised in order to open this phase of the centre.  County Mayor Cllr Alan Coleman and Cllr Kevin Murphy also paid tribute to the efforts by the KRD committee and the local community in moving the project to this stage.
This phase of the build will see the Main Hall and Reception area completed and open for use. The shell of the changing and community rooms will also be complete but will need to continue to raise funds for their fit out so will be looking toward the Sports Capital Programme again next year.

The centre will be built by KPH building contractors who have come through a competitive tender process undertaken by our professional team led by David Hegarty and Ciarán O’Sullivan. They have been involved in a number of leisure, educational and commercial projects and more recently they constructed the SuperValu and Primary Healthcare unit in Kinsale. 
Now that the centre will be up and running by the middle of 2015, the focus will begin to turn to the activities/groups that can use the centre.  When completed this facility will belong to the people of Kinsale and would encourage every local sports and community group and individual to use it to their advantage.