THREE trustees of a Wicklow golf club claimed in the High Court yesterday that members invested £250,000 in a clubhouse that was never built.
The court was told that members of Kilcoole Golf Club, Co Wicklow, formerly known as Glenroe Golf Club, had been banned from the club for refusing to pay their annual subscription of £300.
Mr Hugh O'Neill SC, for the trustees, said his clients were claiming they were entitled to a proprietary interest in the club and were seeking a High Court declaration that the club's owners and shareholders were obliged to build the clubhouse within a time set by the court.
The three trustees are Mr John McCarthy, Gosworth Park, Dalkey, Dublin; Mr Thomas O'Riordan, Eaton Wood Court, Shankill, Dublin; and Ms Niamh Laverty, Glenbourne Avenue, Leopardstown Valley, Sandyford, Dublin.
The defendants are Mr Michael Kunz, Ballyphilip Farm, Kilcoole; Mr Brian Williams, Dargle Road, Blackrock, Co Dublin; Ballyphilip Farms Ltd, Ballyphilip Nurseries, Kilcoole; and Ballyphilip Golf Ltd, Ballyphilip Farm, Newcastle Road, Kilcoole.
In an affidavit, the secretary of the golf club, Mr Thomas Deely, Meadowbrook, Kilcoole, claimed that members had been assured by the defendants that the clubhouse would be built in March/April 1993.
He believed that 250 members had joined the club when it was established in October 1991 and that £250,000 was initially collected in joining fees.
Mr O'Neill said his clients also represented the interests of 159 members.
Mr Patrick Geraghty SC, for the defendants, said the failure of the plaintiffs to make the payments resulted in the termination of the agreement. In a counter-claim, the defendants were seeking a declaration that the licence agreement was terminated, and damages for trespass.
Mr Geraghty said planning permission for a clubhouse had been applied for in March 1994 and was not granted until November 1994. The original clubhouses planned, using Scandinavian pine, was thought to be too expensive at £300,000 and an application for a cheaper clubhouse was re-submitted.
Before adjourning the hearings until today, Mr Justice Costello referred to the costs involved in the case. He said he would strongly urge the parties to see if there could be some way for them to find their way out of their difficulties.