Second council vote sides with keeping hockey pitch in Brae
COUNCILLORS have again voted in favour of the idea of keeping Shetland’s hockey pitch in Brae rather than creating a new facility in Lerwick.
The vote at this morning’s (Wednesday) policy and resources committee went 6-5 in favour of the so-called ‘option one’.
This decision means the committee has recommended to the full council that option one should be included in an upcoming full business case for a new Brae school.
The final decision rests with the full council, which meets on Wednesday next week.
At Wednesday’s meeting Lerwick South member John Fraser pushed for ‘option two’, which would see a new hockey pitch constructed in the town, saying it provided the “best outcome”.
He also denied it was a “Lerwick versus country scenario, as some would like to make it”.
Lerwick North and Bressay member Gary Robinson pushed for option one, which would see Shetland’s hockey facilities remain in Brae.
He said he was acting with his head rather than heart, and said there was work still to be done on the case for a Lerwick facility – calling it a “rushed process”.
Earlier this year the SIC consulted on two prospective options regarding the hockey pitch, which relate to plans for a new school in Brae.
The current plan – option one – is to build a new synthetic football pitch on the current school site once the old buildings are demolished. This is because the new school is proposed to be built on the existing grass pitch nearby, which is used by Delting FC.
This would mean the existing Brae astroturf pitch, owned by Shetland Recreational Trust (SRT), would remain for hockey.
A second option is for the council to take on the Brae astroturf from the SRT – likely to be for a nominal fee – and resurface it for football, while creating a new 3G hockey pitch in Lerwick. Under this option the resurfaced astroturf pitch could be used for non-competitive hockey.
Councillors are being asked which option to include in a full business case for the new Brae school, which will come up for decision next year.
The topic got its first airing in the council chamber last week, where elected members sided with option one following a 7-3 vote – with local councillor Andrew Hall pressing for the hockey pitch to remain in Brae.
Following consultation with its members, Shetland Hockey Association voted 13-2 in favour of supporting option two, with the Delting and Whalsay clubs against the proposal.
It has since sought to clarify that the SIC approached the association about the Lerwick idea, and not the other way around.
At Wednesday’s meeting it was confirmed that the Lerwick option would not create any delays with the new Brae school project.
Project manager Andrew Lyall said under option one Brae could be left without a pitch for football for around four years, but the SIC has agreed with local club Delting that it would assist the team with travel to matches.
Estimates from the council show that it could cost £7.97 million to build a new 3G football pitch on the existing Brae school site but would cost £7.46 million to instead build a new 3G hockey pitch in Lerwick and play football on the former Brae hockey surface.
Over the course of 25 years, however, the SIC said it could cost around £1.3 million more resulting from the “need to maintain and replace both a synthetic football in Brae and hockey pitch in Lerwick”.
In debate, Robinson said he felt there were “inconsistencies and gaps” in the background work for option two – saying the appraisal does not provide a “sufficiently robust and evidence based foundation” consistent with the business case process model.
Although he said he has supported a central hockey facility in the past, Robinson said he was also concerned about the SIC’s “unsustainable” financial position.
Fraser, meanwhile, disputed a claim that the Lerwick idea was a “distraction” to the new Brae school process, and said that option one would result in the community losing access to a pitch for a number of years during the school construction.
He said option two would not only result in a new school and football/sports pitch in Brae but also a hockey facility that is “accessible the length and breadth of Shetland”.
Shetland Central member Davie Sandison sided with option one when he chaired the education and families committee last week.
However, he said he had since changed his mind given the further information provided.
Shetland South councillor Robbie McGregor also said he was persuaded by option two, saying Robinson’s concerns about the decision-making process could be “ironed out”.
Catherine Hughson, who represents Shetland Central, also sided with option two – saying Brae’s overall facilities would be enhanced while the construction of the Lerwick pitch would not affect the timeline of a new school.
Lerwick South member Dennis Leask also backed option two, saying “if we don’t take this chance, we will be looking back at another missed opportunity”.
On the other side, Shetland West member Liz Peterson said she was “annoyed” by claims Brae is “inaccessible” and added that the community had raised money for a hockey pitch in the village.
North Isles member Robert Thomson said there was not even a guarantee a new Brae school would be constructed, and added that the SIC needs to be financially responsible.
“I think this is a complete red herring in a way that we’re sitting here discussing this,” he said, adding that it should not be up to the SIC to build a new hockey pitch.
SIC leader and Shetland North councillor Emma Macdonald said her focus was on the new Brae school and said she shared concern about the risks of affordability.
She said as much she would like the SIC to support all services, the council is currently not in that position.
With councillors Moraig Lyall and Duncan Anderson also attending the meeting, the vote went 6-5 in favour of recommending option one.
The Shetland Hockey Association said this week that it felt option two would improve the SIC’s Brae school project first and foremost, and that benefits to the sport on a wider level would then follow.
It also said option two would create a “much simpler construction sequence”, releases outdoor land adjacent to the school and would provide Delting FC with a replacement pitch much earlier.
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