Castlereagh council closes Maysfield leisure centre and then builds exclusive Golf course

antrim | rights, freedoms and repression | opinion/analysis Saturday July 02, 2005 00:01 by City of Exclusion

The 18-hole course at Castlereagh hills has been dubbed one of the most spectacular council-owned courses in Northern Ireland, and is exactly what deprived, international jet set , rich buisness executives and professionals need to unwind and relax in luxury after they attend their private 'Fitness first' gyms.

Nevermind the fact that Belfast has now no neutral, progressive public leisure center.

Integrated sport clubs formerly based at the neutral central Belfast Maysfield leisure centre are now having to train, in leisure centres in predominantly loyalist areas, because that is where the majority of leisure centres are located.

Valley, Ballysillan, Shankill, Avoniel, Olympia, Grove, Holywood and the Robinson leisure centres are all located in loyalist areas.

Andytown and Beechmount leisure centres are located in republican areas.

As a result the membership of clubs formerly based at Maysfield has fallen by 50-75%.