A long-running dispute between Halifax Rugby League Club and Calderdale Council is worsening.
The Board of Halifax Rugby League Football Club has instructed its solicitors, Chadwick Lawrence LLP, to apply to the president of the Law Society to appoint an arbitrator to resolve the dispute.
The problems include the club’s use of the pitch and other facilities at the Shay Stadium in Halifax which they share with FC Halifax Town.
The Shay Stadium is owned, managed and maintained by the council.
Club chairman Michael Steele said: “Matters came to a head in February of this year when in connection with a claim for allegedly outstanding rent which was disputed by the club the head of the council department with ultimate responsibility for the management of the Shay refused to enter into any negotiations with the club about the dispute.
“As the User Agreement which was drafted and issued by the same department contains a provision which requires all issues which cannot be resolved otherwise to be referred to arbitration, the club has, since February, made repeated requests to the council to meet their contractual obligations and to agree to the appointment of a fit and proper person to act as arbitrator. All such requests have been either refused or ignored.
“The situation we face is wholly untenable.”
The club claims the council has mismanaged the Shay facilities and believe these have cost the club many thousands of pounds in lost revenue.
The allegations range from cancelling home fixtures to failures to schedule the maintenance of the playing surface at times which minimise disruption to both clubs’ seasons, the imposition of costly match day obligations and the unreasonable refusal of sponsorship opportunities.
Director Ian Croad said: “The council cannot continue to deny us the revenue lost by its breaches of contract while forcing us, under repeated threat of lock-out from the Shay, to pay what they say we owe when they say we must pay it, without giving us a forum to air our legitimate grievances. We are contractually entitled to seek remedy by way of arbitration and are going to have to do so,” he said.
A Calderdale Council spokesman said: “On May 26 we contacted Halifax RLFC to arrange for senior council officers to meet the club directors to discuss the situation. The club has not yet responded to our request.
“We have not threatened to ‘lock out’ the club from the stadium and we would still like to meet the club directors to work together to find a suitable solution.”
