Imagination the key to ending the recession
MINISTER AHERN WELCOMES ALTITUDE PROJECT
An artists impression of the ambitious Altitude project.
JUSTICE Minister Dermot Ahern TD has welcomed the ambitious plans for Altitude, a € 430m leisure development in Dundalk that is set to create almost 1,200 full-time and more than 380 part-time jobs over a seven year completion period to 2016.
A planning application and environmental and economic impact studies will be lodged with Louth Local Authorities before Christmas for the project on a site just off the M1 DublinBelfast motorway at Dowdallshill.
Speaking as more details were outlined of the massive economic impact Altitude will have, Minister Ahern said: 'This is the type of imaginative project that we need to see advanced as the country works towards economic recovery. The ambition that underpins it is matched by sound judgment and a considerable body of research around the business case for an attraction that can capture year-round visitors.
'Dundalk enjoys a tremendous competitive advantage with the gateway town's location. For that advantage to be capitalised on, it is vital that we create 'magnets' that draw in visitors and generate the employment opportunities that we will need as the population increases.
'In the case of the Altitude project, I am particularly pleased to learn that considerable effort is going into ensuring that it is sustainable – not only economically but also in terms of the environment.
' There are also opportunities for tie-ins between this major all-weather development and the great natural amenities we enjoy in the Cooley Peninsula and Dundalk Bay. It will also provide employment opportunities for the graduates who complete relevant higher education programmes at DkIT.'
With projected day and overnight visitor numbers of over 6.1m per annum, Altitude includes an all-weather ski slope and nursery slopes; 100-plus bed
family hostel; 110,000-sq ft indoor concert arenas; 80,000-sq ft leisure zone to include a cinema, 10-pin bowling and children's zone; 40,000 sq ft surf and water leisure dome and 80,000 sq ft of specialist sports-and leisurerelated retail, restaurants and bars. Later phases will include additional hotel accommodation and, once relevant legislation is in place, an international casino.
