Harps revise stadium plan as costs and seating reduced

Finn Harps have set a target of the 2024 to move into their new stadium, with plans revised to reduce costs which sees the number of seats in the venue cut to 3,300.

In a statement on their website, Harps cited rising construction costs as another hurdle for the build which has been hit by considerable delays.

€1m has already been spent on the venue in Stranorlar. The government last year announced a provisional allocation of €3.991m for the stadium's construction.

Just 15 months ago the entire project was costed at €11.5m and that was set to jump considerably due to the change in pricings in the construction industry.

As such, it has been reduced to €8m with alterations made to the plans.

At one time, 6,600 seats were planned, now reduced by 50%.

A club statement read: "Supporters will have seen last week that the Dalymount Park project in Dublin had to be revisited as prices for building works have rapidly risen with regard to their original plans.

"Finn Harps also faced this dilemma as we noted last year that inflation in the construction industry was going to be a major issue for us. As a result, our stadium sub group looked at other options for construction with bottom line budget and the desire to deliver a complete modern stadium being the determining factors.

"We looked at stadia in Ireland, Europe and the UK which used steel structures as the main component of the build. We opened discussions with the Department of Sport, Donegal County Council and the FAI and because of this proactive approach we are now at a very advanced stage with regard to receiving approval for an alternative build.

"The stadium we propose will have a capacity of 6,130 totally covered. There will be 3,300 seated along both sidelines, comprised of