A PLAN to build 1,000 homes at Leopardstown Racecourse will have no impact on racing at the venue, says racecourse CEO Tim Husbands.

Horse Racing Ireland [HRI] and the Land Development Agency [LDA] have agreed preliminary terms on a deal which will see houses built on a site at the Carrickmines end of the racecourse, which is currently used for overflow parking and traveller accommodation.

HRI, effectively the owners of Leopardstown, did not want to concede any land to the LDA and fought to retain all 23 hectares in the disputed zone for use in Leopardstown’s long awaited “transformative masterplan” which could include the construction of a hotel.

Paul Dermody, CEO of HRI’s racecourse division, told the Sunday Times that HRI had been “actively engaged with the Department of Agriculture ... and stakeholders including the LDA and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown county council to ensure that Leopardstown plays its part in the delivery of the government’s Housing for All strategy while, at the same time, delivering on HRI’s legislative remit to develop and grow the racing and bloodstock industry in Ireland.”

Leopardstown boss Tim Husbands told The Irish Field: “It’s part of a long process, but I can reassure you that there will be no impact upon racing from any potential agreement with the LDA, forming as it will as part of the wider Leopardstown Racecourse site. I can’t give you a specific timeline unfortunately as any developments will be subject to the official planning processes.”