Samuel Riggs, Jack Leahy and Edmund Heaphy
Students have voted narrowly for the Sports Centre charge to increase to €120 in the preferendum held alongside class rep elections. The €120 option will now proceed to a referendum to be held alongside sabbatical officer elections in February.
With a lead of just 78 votes on the second most popular option, €90, students have opted to support the decision of the Sports Centre to raise its charges by €30.
A total of 1918 students voted in the preferendum. During the count, the option to pay €160 was eliminated on the first count, gaining only 142 votes, with votes being redistributed on the second count resulting in the €120 win. The €90 option received 853 votes, whilst €120 received 931 votes.
This preferendum came as a result of a motion passed by the Students’ Union Council in March, which mandated a preferendum on the Sports Centre charge, as well as the follow-up referendum to be held in February, when students will be offered the opportunity to formally vote for the union to lobby the college for the charge to increase to €120.
In 2007, students assented to a compulsory annual Sports Centre subscription of €70, with any rises linked to inflation only. The charge has increased in burst over the last number of years and reached €90 in September 2014, a €13 increase on 2013.
A potential increase to the charge was proposed at the November 2013 meeting of the college’s Capitations Committee, but was withdrawn upon reflection and permission for the increase was sought elsewhere.
The Sports Centre had warned before the vote that if the charge was to remain at €90, students could face a ‘peak-time’ charge for visits between 4pm and 9pm.
In an information leaflet released this week, TCDSU suggested that an increase to €120 per student would be necessary to maintain or improve current service levels. A €160 charge, it was suggested, would offer the potential for improved sports facilities in the centre, development of a rifle range, improvements to the facilities at Islandbridge and at the Santry Sports Grounds.
Students currently account for 80 per cent of the Sports Centre’s membership and 72 per cent of gym usage. Other members include staff and external members.
