Dundee’s plans to bring a multi-million pound centre for sporting excellence to the city are set to take a significant step forward today.
Members of Dundee City Council’s policy and resources committee are expected to make funding available for consultancy fees that could play a major role in bringing the National Performance Centre for Sport to Tayside.
Up to £30,000 will be made available in fees for outside consultants, who will be tasked with identifying suitable funding options, developing a sustainable business model and providing financial projections for the £25 million centre.
Initially touted as a training facility for Scotland’s elite footballers, the academy, scheduled to open by 2016, will now include provision for other sports.
Ahead of tonight’s meeting, the chair of the policy and resources committee, council leader Ken Guild, said Dundee’s bid for the centre is gathering momentum.
”At our last meeting we had heard that there were nine notices of interest but that does not necessarily mean that these will translate into nine bids,” he said.
”One integral part of the centre is accommodation and looking at the St George’s Centre, which the FA is building at Burton Upon Trent, they have the site anchored by hotels.
”We are certainly confident that we could provide everything required for the centre. We don’t know the exact criteria for it yet but we are determined that we will hit the ground running when it is announced.”
Dundee has long stated its intention to bid for the centre after plans were unveiled by the Scottish Government last year.
A local steering group has been created to develop the application and is understood to have sought potential partners, including hotel chains.
Originally proposed under the guise of a National Football Academy, the project has been given the title of National Performance Centre for Sport by the Scottish Government.
A steering group has already been established, chaired by the Scottish Football Association chief executive Stewart Regan.
The creation of a dedicated training environment for Scottish footballers was one of the main recommendations of former First Minister Henry McLeish’s review into the grassroots of the sport.