Agreement on the Maze site is timely
A welcome break-through has at last been reached on finding political agreement in developing the former Maze prison and an announcement on details of the proposals is expected next week.
A joint statement from the First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness indicated that they will seek Assembly approval for a development corporation to be established to begin planning and construction work on the vast 360-acre site which is envisaged to create 6,000 jobs.
Interest in developing the Maze land was first mooted in 2000 by the first Assembly, but in the past decade there has been much disagreement over what in future should occupy land, which, during the Troubles, housed hundreds of ruthless terrorists.
The proposal to develop a multi-million sports stadium at the Maze which would accommodate major soccer, rugby and gaelic games ran into the sand due to sharp political differences between unionists and republicans and a lack of enthusiasm, particularly, from within the soccer and rugby fraternity.
A proposed "conflict resolution centre" raised deep-seated unionist concerns that this would effectively become an "IRA shrine" and the idea remains controversial and will be opposed if developed in its original flawed concept.
Acquisition of a 20m Euro grant is an incentive, but the economic climate is not now as buoyant as it was when proposals were first made and public money not be as plentiful in maximising the site's full potential.
A meaningful start should come, however, with the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society signing up as a stakeholder.
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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