8th February 2019 Lee Hoos on QPR’s need to leave Loftus Road Paul Morrissey @PJMorrissey77 QPR CEO Lee Hoos has issued the following statement regarding the club’s need to move away from Loftus Road. Hoos said: “We love our home at Loftus Road, but it is unsustainable for a professional football club in the long term due to its size, age and lack of non-matchday use. “It is very obvious to thousands of fans who pile in to Loftus Road every fortnight, and it has been made clear to the current Council leadership since they took office in 2014. We love our home at Loftus Road, but it is unsustainable for a professional football club in the long term. “We hoped they would work with us to find a solution that keeps QPR in the borough for another 100 years, and we still do. “Everyone at our club still wants to remain in Hammersmith & Fulham if at all possible. However, we have been very open with our fans and the local community that, in the absence of any alternative, the Linford Christie Stadium is, as far as we can see, our last chance to stay in the borough. “The Council is shortly to launch a public consultation on the future of the Linford Christie site, which we will encourage our fanbase, local residents and stakeholders to take part in. “Ultimately, the Council owns the site and if they do not want QPR to be involved in its redevelopment then that is their choice. But we have to be honest with people about the likely consequence of that, which is that QPR’s medium to long-term future will be out of Hammersmith & Fulham. “We would like to invite the leader of the Council Stephen Cowan to Loftus Road to meet club representatives, with any fans' groups they wish to meet as well, to understand the severe limitations we face here, and see how we can work together to keep QPR in W12.”
It is hard to understand what the "real" problem is with the LC site. H&F see the site as a financial problem. Athletics is dead there. QPR own the Loftus Road site which could be swapped for the LC site, with some cash from QPR's rich owners to compensate for the size difference. Who loses out?
I don’t think Tony wants to swap LR. He wants to develop the space. And he wants the Christie stadium for a penny on the grounds that building there will be good for the borough and the council is losing cash for it now. Beneath the posturing I think this is the crux of the antagonism.
I cannot see QPR wanting to just swap the LR site, an acre+ of prime brown field site in West London. Just think of how many plush apartments could be built. More likely is that a certain number would be set aside as 'affordable' as part of the deal.
Spiritual home and all that but would it be that bad moving boroughs? Lot of tradition for qpr support in brent, ealing, harrow and hillingdon...as long as it wasn't out somewhere in Berkshire I wouldn't be that fussed...maybe one of those boroughs would love a club team?
"Totally" agree. As long as we have a London post code, it shouldn't be a problem. Certainly a "W" in it is important. West London is Rs!
Now that the Cargiant project has fallen through for Old Oak, I wonder if the QPR interest could be resurrected or was the acrimony too great?
It's what the statement doesn't say that's interesting. No rebuttal of claims we're trying to get land on the cheap.
There are enough athletic tracks in London and it doesn't need another. You'd get better attendance if you put a greyhound track there. The Linford project should be scrapped and QPR should have the site.
Yeah And give it to qprs owners for free And let them keep the loftus road space for housing And chuck in some council blocks as well Who do they think we are ****ing ealing council
That would be interesting if they went on - I listen in every week, don't know if the council would know how to handle them in that studio
Have to admit after what I've read I find myself agreeing more with the H&F Counsil than my own club. Will be very interesting to hear their views if they would agree to the podcast.
