Cambridge United ‘flabbergasted’ by opposition to new community stadium
An impression of the inside of Cambridge United proposed new stadium .
Cambridge United and developers Grosvenor have vowed to fight on with plans for a new community stadium after being “flabbergasted” at their rejection by local authorities.
Cambridge United chairman Dave Doggett has said failure to receive council backing for a proposed stadium is “not the end of the road”.
South Cambridgeshire District Council and Cambridge City Council planners have recommended all nine sites consulted on for a proposed sporting village, which would also feature an indoor sports hall, hockey and five-a-side football pitches as well as an 8,000-capacity ground for United, be ruled out.
Campaigners are battling plans for a new community stadium south of Cambridge with united opposition amid fears about the impact on Grantchester Meadows. Four residents’ associations and two parish councils have signed a letter which warns construction of an 8,000-seater ground for Cambridge United plus 400 homes near Trumpington would be a disaster. They are concerned about the loss of green belt land and the merging of the city with nearby villages, plus traffic and parking.
Signatories include the chairmen of Grantchester and Haslingfield parish councils, alongside Trumpington Residents’ Association, Southacre, Latham and Chaucer Residents’ Association, Bentley and Newtown Roads Residents’ Association, and Newtown Residents’ Association.
The Abbey Stadium, on Newmarket Road, is owned by the international property developer Grosvenor Homes, which wishes to redevelop it for houses. They will still push ahead with a planning application for the stadium at Trumpington. Ed Skeates, Grosvenor projects director, said: “We were going to put an application in some time ago, but were asked to hold back and follow the due process and this is where we’ve got to. This is just a recommendation, so we’ll go along to the next couple of meetings and hopefully, we’ll get to a slightly wider view once we’ve heard the debate. We need to unpick this because the position they’ve taken doesn’t feel quite right, so we’ll see what happens, but we’re ready to go with an application, that’s for sure.”
Sources:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/22540875
http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Sport/Sport-headlines/Us-ready-to-battle-for-new-stadium-20130515090200.htm
http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/News/Campaigners-battle-plans-for-Cambridges-new-community-stadium-20130320100006.htm
Tags: Sport
Richard Carling
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The concern for Granchester Meadows seems a bit spurious given that the site is ploughed field next to the M11 with no aspect onto the meadows. Indeed the significant disruption to rural life in the area is the motorway. These sporting facilities on/over the edge of Cambridge are a realistic easing of the broadest green belt in the country. Wildlife corridors will remain intact and the grass pitches and water balance will support more wildlife than the previous farmland. The exterior of the stadium has a muted natural wood theme and every effort has been made to enhance this exit of the motorway and serve the local community with sports amenities and leisure opportunities. As for extra housing on the site, I have no axe to grind.
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