Falmer work 'will start this year' (From The Argus)
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Falmer work 'will start this year'
9:45am Tuesday 16th September 2008 in News By Simon Barrett
The latest plans for the stadium
Albion bosses have assured fans work on the Falmer stadium will start as planned this year.
The Argus revealed yesterday that the soaring price of steel and changes to stadium building regulations during years of delays to the project have made the approved plans unusable.
The club could build the stadium to the original design first lodged in 2001 but it would never open because it fails to comply with new legislation.
Bosses have, therefore, had to redraw proposals for the 22,500-seat arena and are preparing to submit the revised planning application to Brighton and Hove City Council.
But Albion chief executive Martin Perry moved to calm fears among supporters that the changes would delay the stadium and said he fully expected the council to approve the plans.
He said: “The location, height, size and seating capacity of the stadium has not changed. The increase in floor space is all internal and the stadium site is no bigger than at first planned.
“The key design principles established at the public inquiry have not changed.
“What has changed is the need to create greater circulation space, with wider concourses and staircases, and better disabled access.
“I can assure fans we are on schedule and do not foresee this application delaying us any further.”
The plans will be discussed at the council’s major projects meeting today.
Its architecture and design manager has reviewed the proposals and has no objections.
The application will eventually go before the planning committee.
Changes to the scheme include:
- An internal area increase from 18,189sqm to 27,796sqm to cater for wider staircases and concourses.
- Grass-topped chalk bunds, designed to allow the stadium to blend in with the surrounding environment, scrapped in favour of blockwork walls and a metal roof.
- The tubular steel arch replaced with a trussed design to cut costs.
- Plans for offices under the East Stand to be let to businesses replaced by more teaching space for City College.
- Chalk excavated from the Village Way site to be spread on a nearby field to save 22,000 lorry trips over four months.
Many of the changes have been imposed by revisions to building regulations and new guidance from football authorities.
City College Brighton and Hove will have 2,000sqm of teaching space under the revised plans.
Principal Phil Frier said: “We are confident that the college’s plans at the stadium will still happen to the timescale.
“We are working closely with the stadium company to make sure the plans happen and we are still going to the Learning and Skills Council for funding. Changes to the stadium have been discussed for quite a long time and our plans are being developed alongside that.”
However, opponents of the scheme have already voiced their concerns to the South Downs Society, dedicated to the protection and conservation of the Sussex Downs, and have vowed to oppose the planning application.
Steve Ankers, the planning officer for the society, said: “We are of course very concerned, though not totally surprised, that the club has come back with an even more damaging scheme.
“The grass-topped chalk bunds, designed to help the stadium to blend into the area of outstanding natural beauty, would be scrapped and tons of spoil instead of being removed from the site would be spread on nearby fields within the proposed National Park.
“We will be looking very closely at the new proposals and indeed any other schemes that might come forward in this area to ensure that damage to the Downs is minimised.”
Communities Secretary Hazel Blears approved plans for the Falmer stadium in July last year. She was the third minister to oversee the planning application, which became the longest endured by a British football club.
City councillor Ben Duncan, who is also the Green Party parliamentary candidate for Brighton Kemptown, said: “Personally I am in favour of approving this application.
“I’m sure there are going to be objections but now is not the time to drag up old arguments. The fact is the stadium is going to be built at Falmer and the fans have waited long enough.”
Comments(25)
Ronald
says...
11:49am Tue 16 Sep 08
whatithink
says...
12:21pm Tue 16 Sep 08
Scorpion
says...
1:05pm Tue 16 Sep 08
Gentleman Jim
says...
3:41pm Tue 16 Sep 08
If Mr Perry can supply this information i will accept the proposed starting date.
mark 62
says...
5:48pm Tue 16 Sep 08
william of orange
says...
8:43pm Tue 16 Sep 08
which overstretched, barely solvent, cash strapped, downsizing, rights issuing, risk averse, weak balance sheet, loss making, share price falling, mistake for a bank....is going to lend money to build this to a small group of "mates" who meet on a Saturday and have the gall to call themselves a football club?????
Any ideas???
This or anything like this is NOT going to be built this side of the recession/depression
.
You may get it afterwards (assuming BHA is still going and hasn't failed itself!) but this side of the recession...nah....n
ot a hope ...Labour have more chance of winning the next election than BHA have of getting a stadium!
How about putting your OWN hands in your OWN pockets and paying for it yourself rather than assume a fairy bankmother is going to give it to you...or worse still that the taxpayer is going to cough up to subsidise your hobby!
Everest
says...
10:38pm Tue 16 Sep 08
This has been answered many times before. If you can be bothered to search for it, you may find out.
Ronald, lets hope it's the bank where you keep your pennies then.
william of orange
says...
11:52pm Tue 16 Sep 08
No bank named ...because there is no bank...its all in their heads...litle voices (chief executives) telling them..."it's allright...we've got the money...trust us"...you trusted those voices before didn't you and they sold the last stadium fom under you!!....
Made In Sussex
says...
7:59am Wed 17 Sep 08
jakiB
says...
9:47am Wed 17 Sep 08
Ronald wrote:Well said Ronald! Who needs football anyway - I say give them a ball each, then they won't have to fight over it!
Hope this desecration never happens. Any bank that lends to this bunch of no hopers deserves all it gets!
Cap'n Pugwash
says...
10:08am Wed 17 Sep 08
william of orange wrote:OK-I'll write this very slowly so you can keep up. The last stadium was sold by the PREVIOUS board of directors whose sole reason for buying the club was to sell the land to property developers. The CURRENT board gained control of the club from the previous bunch of crooks and are now preparing for the future of the club. Have you managed to keep up and understand so far?
No bank named ...because there is no bank...its all in their heads...litle voices (chief executives) telling them..."it's allright...we've got the money...trust us"...you trusted those voices before didn't you and they sold the last stadium fom under you!!....
Why don't you engage that dormant organ between your ears and go and read the information about the Community Stadium that is in the public domain? You never know-you might actually learn something although I'm not too optimistic about that.
Voices in heads? It would appear that the ones you are listening to have complete control. Not too difficult a task it would seem.
whatithink
says...
10:41am Wed 17 Sep 08
Everest
says...
6:10pm Wed 17 Sep 08
The bank (or banks) will only be named by the club after - and I'll repeat it, A F T E R - tenders have been received and chosen. On a project of this scale, it's always the same.
Which part of that do you not understand?
If ignorance were a disability, some of you would get the full pension.
william of orange
says...
7:55pm Wed 17 Sep 08
Everest wrote:
You lot just don't get it do you?The bank (or banks) will only be named by the club after - and I'll repeat it, A F T E R - tenders have been received and chosen. On a project of this scale, it's always the same.Which part of that do you not understand?If ignorance were a disability, some of you would get the full pension.
Everest...what an apt name ...because you have a mountain to climb to find the money for this...it may have escaped your attention but the banking system just imploded....they can barely balance their balance sheets let alone fund new loans! Unemployment is up, inflation is up, welcome to recession 2009 if we are lucky (or depression 2009 if we aren't!) the days of backing a truck up to the backdoor of a bank and saying:-
"fill er up"
are long gone.
Just to clarify Everest..(because you seem to know SOOOO much) are you saying that they have bankers already lined up with sanctioned loans and ready to go ...or are you saying that the banks are yet to be approached?
Still with only 10 weeks or so to go before the "December Promise" I guess we will all know one way or another soon!
Everest
says...
8:12pm Wed 17 Sep 08
william of orange wrote:As it seems that you don't know anything, you'd better trawl the web for the answers that you obviously don't want to hear. It's all out there waiting for you. All you have to do is look.
Everest wrote:You lot just don't get it do you?The bank (or banks) will only be named by the club after - and I'll repeat it, A F T E R - tenders have been received and chosen. On a project of this scale, it's always the same.Which part of that do you not understand?If ignorance were a disability, some of you would get the full pension.Everest...wh
at an apt name ...because you have a mountain to climb to find the money for this...it may have escaped your attention but the banking system just imploded....they can barely balance their balance sheets let alone fund new loans! Unemployment is up, inflation is up, welcome to recession 2009 if we are lucky (or depression 2009 if we aren't!) the days of backing a truck up to the backdoor of a bank and saying:-"fill er up" are long gone. Just to clarify Everest..(because you seem to know SOOOO much) are you saying that they have bankers already lined up with sanctioned loans and ready to go ...or are you saying that the banks are yet to be approached? Still with only 10 weeks or so to go before the "December Promise" I guess we will all know one way or another soon!
william of orange
says...
8:24pm Wed 17 Sep 08
Can't be bothered Everest...if it exists you shouldn't have a problem giving us a web link.. come on ..waiting...happy to hear what you all have to say its just that you aren't saying much...lol
Go on please tell us all that its HBOS!!!
william of orange
says...
8:31pm Wed 17 Sep 08
I love the way its called a "community stadium" in a vain attempt to attract some public money to the fans hobby.
My hobby is sex do I get a "community brothel"...nah didn't think so.
Shame it would probably have been used more and been easier to attract funding for! lol
whatithink
says...
9:22pm Wed 17 Sep 08
william of orange wrote:Love your point of view! I'm sure there would be more takers for a community sex funfair than the few thousand that turn out to watch the football.
I love the way its called a "community stadium" in a vain attempt to attract some public money to the fans hobby.My hobby is sex do I get a "community brothel"...nah didn't think so.Shame it would probably have been used more and been easier to attract funding for! lol
Anyway, Falmer is never going to happen, so we can all sleep easy.
william of orange
says...
9:26pm Wed 17 Sep 08
Update....
re my earlier post
well its not HBOS...they just ceased to exist as at 9pm tonight!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!
Everest
says...
9:46pm Wed 17 Sep 08
You really are clueless, aren't you? There's no way that the club would announce the banks name until everything else is in order, so WHY do you keep thinking that the public know? Why don't you try reading?
Just face facts, the stadium WILL go ahead. You can come back and say "I told you so" if it doesn't.
william of orange
says...
10:00pm Wed 17 Sep 08
Reading WHAT Everest...give us some links with info in them that's relevant to the discussion about the clubs inability to raise the finance or shut up.
You seem to think its still 2007 and that there is a queue of banks a mile long waiting to hand out money like sweets...I've news for you...THEY ARE GOING BUST!!!! OPEN YOUR EYES THE PARTY IS OVER!!
The money is gone...they are like the proverbial parrot a dead bank...they have ceased to be..they have shuffled off this mortal coil ...these banks couldn't lend to fund this if you stuffed the entire Guatemalan National Debt up them...they are EX banks who as this disaster slowly unfolds will have better things to think about (like their own survival) than whether to fund the building of a concrete and steel shed that only a handful of people are going to use (or be able to AFFORD to use when unemployment reaches 5-6 million in 2010-11!)
The delaying tactics used by the anti Falmer brigade were very successful - that's all they had to do delay it until the credit crunch meant that it was finished. You've been led around by the nose but just don't yet know it!!
The Real Phil
says...
10:02pm Wed 17 Sep 08
Everest
says...
10:37am Thu 18 Sep 08
As the construction company hasn't yet been decided (very nearly though), loans cannot be finalised. The club are not going to disclose any sensitive matters to anyone, least of all you.
Just face facts, you're clutching at straws. You know it will be built. And if, against the odds, it isn't, then something else will be. Would you fancy an incinerator or a hypermarket built instead? That area is earmarked for development anyway.
AONB? You're having a laugh.
whatithink
says...
12:59pm Thu 18 Sep 08
Whoooooooosh! - there goes another flying pig.....!!
22,000 people to watch football? Do me a favour..
william of orange
says...
7:31pm Thu 18 Sep 08
Everest...how strange..what you are saying is that I have to find the proof to back up YOUR argument.
Sorry mate thats not how it works...YOU find the proof and show ME...I'm happy to consider the truth (and I think you've been watching too many films!) I can certainly "handle the truth" and the truth is you are living in a dreamworld if you think ANY bank is going to fund this.
I can provide you with enough evidence to fill your mythical stadium showing that banks are in trouble...just turn on the news ...its wall to wall special reports...its like the Gulf war all over again...cash is sloshing about all right but its in the form of handouts to keep the banks alive and balance their one sided debt ridden balance sheets - they don't want to make any more loans to minnow football clubs at present to make it even worse do they??!!!
You are also living in a dreamworld if you think that by calling it a community stadium and adding a few more bits of "educational" rooms to it that you can dress it up as something it isn't and tap into the only bit of public funding left alive - that being the education budget.
Is it a stadium with a college attached or college with a stadium attached? If the council get suckered into funding the majority of this on that basis then shame on them...if so it has all the makings of another Brighton Marina farce from the 70'/80's and the electorate will not easily forgive them.
To those opposing this I say don't give up even a days delay could prove crucial...we've witnessed this week Britains largest mortgage lender saying on Monday they are strong and solvent and by Thursday night they have gone...ceased to exist.
If you think the issues in banking are rough this week...you ain't seen nothing yet! Wait until the interest rates rise...and they will!
You know Everest the ironic thing is I actually support the idea of a stadium for BHA...just not where it is planned..I however unlike you can see what is going on outside the tight little insular world of football that you live in.
Whats happening outside Everest isn't pretty in fact its quite ugly and likely to get worse a lot worse. Unemployed people usually can't afford match tickets.
When the dust has settled from the financial mess that Bush,Bliar and Brown have left us by not controlling the banks then the world will look a very different place....and I'm not sure we are going to like it! Going to enjoy a game of football will be the last thing on all of our minds.
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