Making the case for GAA

Ireland’s sports minister Carál Ní Chuilín has reached an agreement with the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) on a funding agreement of more than £62m for the £76m redevelopment of Casement
Park in West Belfast.

Work on the 38,000 all-seater stadium is due to start in early 2014 with a view to hosting GAA Games in 2016.

Heron Buckingham’s JV – a consortium led by County Derry-based developer’s Heron Bros and supported by stadium development specialist the Buckingham Group – has been appointed as contractor for the development which will comprise replace the existing Casement stadium.

Additional facilities will include a new playing surface to established GAA standards, creation of conference/corporate and community facilities, player facilities, press centre and upgrading of the stadium lighting.

The project was green-lighted by environment minister Mark H Durkan in December 2013 and is part of the government's policy to upgrade the three major sports grounds in Belfast – association football's Windsor Park (see p. 46) and Ulster's rugby ground at Ravenhill.

Sports minister Ní Chuilín described the planning approval as a key milestone for the city of Belfast.
“Stadium and major venue development is not just about sport and the benefits associated with sport," she said. "It is also about maximising social opportunities around major capital investments.
"This is a hugely important development for the people of West Belfast."

The new Casement Park stadium in Belfast will be home to Antrim GAA – the only Ulster county to appear in an All-Ireland hurling final

Tottenham plans 20-acre stadium project

Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur has received planning permission for a 56,250 capacity, all-seater stadium in north London. Designed by the KSS Group, the venue will form part of the larger Northumberland Development Project – comprising 275 homes, a primary school, a university technical college specialising in sports, a supermarket and a public square for community events.

The entire project will cover 20 acres (80,000sq m) and the design will feature flowing lines of external cladding, an undulating roof and the club colours to create a visually striking building.

Spurs has not announced the projected cost of the stadium, although it is estimated at around £400m.

Harringey Council has granted planning permission for the project and also pledged to invest £9m towards improvements of the area, while London mayor Boris Johnson has also pledged £18m of public money towards the scheme.

Tottenham chair Daniel Levy sees the new stadium as a crucial factor in its plans to become a regular Champions League team

Talks for Aberdeen's Loirston stadium back on

Scottish Premier League side Aberdeen FC has re-entered talks to build a new £50m stadium to replace its Pittodrie stadium.

The new venue is to be located near the city's Cover Bay and Loirston Loch. Plans originally put forward by the club to build a 21,000-seat stadium at Loirston were put on hold in August 2012 when Aberdeen City Council rejected the plans.

However, Aberdeen FC's chair Stewart Milne has said that talks are now back on
and advancing well.

"We still see Loirston as the best location for the stadium and in recent months have reopened discussions with the Council," he said. "We've invested a lot of money into the Loirston site and believe it is the best option."

The club intends to fund the venture partly by selling its current Pittodrie Stadium for a housing development. The housing project received outline planning approval from the council in April 2011.
Barr Construction has been named the preferred contractor for the proposed stadium. It is expected that training facilities for the club will be in place before the stadium relocation.

Aberdeen FC remains confident of securing the Loirston site

Brentford looks to break into the big time

League One football club Brentford has moved forward plans to build a new 20,000-seat stadium in west London.

The club has named Willmott Dixon as its preferred development partner for the project, which also includes 910 new homes. The plans will see Brentford move from Griffin Park stadium, its home since 1904 – and move to the new location on Lionel Road South.

The new homes will be built adjacent to the new stadium – on the site of the club’s Griffin stadium following its demolition. The surrounding area will also be regenerated with improvements to the environment and infrastructure.

The stadium is expected to be completed in time for the 2016-17 football season, while the homes will be built over a six-year period.

The project was master planned by FaulknerBrowns architects, while AFLS+P designed the stadium. Planning consent was given in December 2013.

The ambitious plans include the construction of 910 new homes adjacent to the stadium

Wait is over for Belfast's Windsor Park

The Northern Ireland Executive has allocated £28m towards the redevelopment of Windsor Park stadium in Belfast. The works will see Windsor Park become an 18,000 all-seater stadium with a series of phased works.

Plans include the demolition of both the Railway and South Stand structures to be replaced by new stands that will partially enclose the stadium, the complete renovation of the existing North and West Stands, and construction of both new conferencing facilities and a new headquarters facility for the Irish FA. Field dimensions will remain at 110 x 75 yards and the stadium will be used as the home for Northern Ireland’s national team and the home ground of Linfield FC. Planning permission for the redevelopment has already been granted, with the estimated cost of the project around £29.2m.

The redevelopment was finally given the green light In December 2013, three months after the work was originally scheduled to begin. Ireland's sports minister Carál Ní Chuilín has signed off on £31m of funding to complete the project. Work is scheduled to begin during 2014 and be completed in 2016.

The revamp will be part of the executive's £138m programme of stadium redevelopment throughout the region (see page 44).

The stadium is scheduled to open in 2016

Rangers looking to write new chapter at Old Oak

Queens Park Rangers Football Club is planning a new 40,000-seat stadium as part of a major regeneration project of the Old Oak area in west London.

Provisionally called New Queens Park, the scheme will see the stadium built alongside a new residential area with 24,000 homes and commercial space to include a 350-bedroom luxury hotel, studios, offices, cinemas and restaurants. London mayor Boris Johnson recently announced that turning Old Oak into a new world-class city quarter is to be one of his main regeneration priorities for the city and that a Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC) – only the second after the Olympic Park development – is to be set up to promote it.

“Not only will this give us a top quality stadium to cater for QPR's needs as the club progresses and grows over the years ahead, but we're very excited about being the driving force behind creating one of the best new urban places in the world,” said QPR chair Tony Fernandes. “It will create a vibrant new destination, boosting local businesses, attracting visitors and creating a thriving community.”
The club is working with Stadium Capital Developments on the project.

The plans were unveiled by QPR in December 2013

Iron Arena for Scunthorpe

Scunthorpe United Football Club (SUFC) has revealed ambitious plans for a new 12,000-capacity stadium.

SUFC chair, millionaire businessman Peter Swann, has been keen to provide the club with a new home and move from the 9,000-capacity Glanford Park to increase the club's commercial opportunities. To be located close to the club's current Glanford Park ground, the ‘Iron Arena’ is set to be developed as part of a mixed-use project including a 120-bedroom hotel, a multi-use indoor arena, community sports pitches and a new transport hub.

The initial designs and master plan have been created by the Frank Whittle Partnership and include a sweeping curve on the main stand and a striking truss which pays homage to Scunthorpe’s steelwork history.

The masterplan was created by the Frank Whittle Partnership

Bristol Rovers to move north of the city

Bristol Rovers FC’s plans for a new stadium have been given the green light after a legal challenge against the club and supermarket chain Sainsbury's was thrown out by the High Court.

The club needs funding from selling its existing ground to Sainsbury’s to help pay for the new £40m stadium on the northern edge of the city. Rovers have already been given planning permission by South Gloucestershire Council to proceed with its new stadium development on land next to the University of the West of England's Frenchay campus. The Arturus Architects-designed project will centre on the 21,700-seat stadium to provide a new home for the club. Gleeds, Pegasus Planning Consultants and TPA have also been involved with the plans.

The new venue will feature a bowl design and will meet all FIFA and International Rugby Union standards. Facilities will include a 1,280sq m gym, a 784sq m premium bar and conferencing space.

Rovers' new 21,000-capacity home will meet all FIFA and IRU standards

Concrete plans tabled for Cornwall's rugby stadium

Development company Inox has tabled proposals for the long awaited Stadium of Cornwall to be built at Threemilestone near Truro. Inox, which has already gained outline planning permission to build the stadium, has now secured an option on an additional 35 acres of land adjoining Langarth Farm.

The additional space would be used for a commercial development which, in turn, would fund the £15m, 10,000-seat stadium project.

Included within its structure, full training facilities for able-bodied and disabled athletes, and both professional and amateur athletes will be included. It will also include physiotherapy suites.
Though no team has as yet been confirmed to be moving into the stadium, a trio of clubs – Cornish Pirates rugby team, Truro City Football Club and Truro Fencing Club – have all expressed their interest in relocating to the planned stadium.

The stadium would be the first-ever professional-standard sports venue to be built in Cornwall

Grimsby Town FC

Officials from Grimsby Town Football Club are currently conducting a search for a location to house a new 14,000-capacity stadium and retail facility for the non-league side.

North East Lincolnshire Council approved a 12-month period of exclusivity in November 2013 which the club will look at how land between Peaks Parkway and Weelsby Avenue could be redeveloped.

The club has sought a new stadium site for some time and, after losing a bid to use land in Great Coates, is focusing on the Peaks Parkway site, currently home to allotments and a former council depot.

Don Valley, Sheffield

Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield has been demolished to make way for a new £40m sports and wellbeing park – described as the most comprehensive Olympic legacy project outside London.

The plans include a complete redevelopment of the site with a new stadium at the heart if the development – providing a new home for the Sheffield Eagles (Rugby League) and Titans (Rugby Union) teams – as well as new venues for basketball, gymnastics and snooker. A high performance centre linked to Sheffield Hallam University and a National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine will also be created.

Basingstoke Town FC

Basingstoke Town FC has set its sights on a 5,000-seat football ground which would meet League One standards.

The scheme would be funded by replacing the existing Camrose stadium with a 90,000 sq ft (27,432 sq m) retail development. The £10m stadium development has received the backing of Basingstoke and Deane Council (BDC) and is to be located west of the Hilton Basingstoke hotel.

BTFC hope to begin the 2014-15 season in the new development.

Alongside the stadium, the club is also planning to establish a £500,000 all-weather training pitch.