Feature | Private Recreational Leases (PRLs) and the New Requirements – a Summary
Private Recreational Leases (PRLs) and the New Requirements – a Summary W O RD S: LU CY SU T RO, VI CE C O MM O D O RE
View of marina which is part of the lot
A. BACKGROUND In March 2018 the government published a report ‘Review on Policy of Private Recreational Leases’ and in February 2019 the Home Affairs Bureau (HAB) issued their report and findings which made a number of recommendations; in the main concentrating on the PRLs’ need to open up their facilities to the public. This opening up will come into effect for most PRLs from 2027 although there are a small number of sites where new leases are being issued where the opening up requirements take place now. We occupy two of those sites. The new criteria Towards the end of 2019 HAB gave the Club a draft of the new criteria which all PRLs will need to fulfil. Each RHKYC site is regarded by HAB as a stand-alone site and so these criteria will apply to each of them. In summary the new criteria are: 1. Whether the facilities provided at the PRL help alleviate pressure on public sports facilities in the district concerned. 2. Whether the site provides sports facilities that are not widely available in public venues.
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| APRIL 2022 AHOY!
3. The extent to which the facilities are opened up to outside bodies and members of the public. 4. Utilisation of the facilities by outside bodies and members of the public. 5. Providing facilities to National Sporting Associations (NSAs) to promote sports in the community 6. Whether the site hosts leagues competitions organised by NSAs. 7. Whether the site hosts or supports the hosting of local/international sports competitions 8. Other contributions towards sports development. Within each of these sections there are points awarded for the level of success the PRL has achieved. The implication is that if a PRL does not meet all the criteria or does not achieve a satisfactory score, then the lease will not be renewed. This article will not go into the detail of the proposed scoring system; there are still ongoing conversations with HAB about many of these details.
