The Stadium of Light is closer to the City Centre than the KC is. Its also closer to the City Centre than Roker Park was.
At present the SMC pays no rent for the KC. The money City pay for its use is spent on maintaining and improving the facilities. An extension to the KC will alter the terms of the lease making it more than likely that the City Council will charge an economic rent to the SMC. So from paying nothing the SMC may have to pay a couple of million a year in rent. The income from the extension would have to pay the building costs, the increased match day staff costs plus the increased rent. His business rates may also increase. Omega Man has convinced me over the past year that both Melton and developing the land around the KC are not economically feasible. So we remain as we.
I've seen that before and challenged the official making it for more information, but they had none. Did they offer, or does anyone know which regulations they're referring to with this claim? I can't think of many grounds that could be evacuated as quickly as the KC could, especially via the corners. An additional safety staircase and door isn't all that expensive. It's a similar argument to one of the excuses offered against moving away fans to the upper west, and according to builders and engineers, a stair well matching the existing towers is relatively cheap. We'd get out quicker if they didn't block the exits with Police.
The law is, that you have to be able to evacuate a stand within fifteen minutes and there's a formula they use to calculate this, based on the width of corridors, number of exits etc I also challenged this, on the basis that there's no way you could get 3,000 fans down fourteen flights of stairs at Newcastle, quicker than you could get 5,000 fans out of our North Stand. There's plenty of older grounds that can't empty the place anywhere near as quickly as we could empty the KC, which is why I suggested that once other clubs installed it, we'd probably do the same.
I've seen the formula, but unless it's changed, it has options, and the selection of those options is open to interpretation. It's an excuse rather than a reason.
Every team needs new fans that is how they grow. Although with a stadium extension I can only see prices going up not down as someone has to pay for it. Think 25,000 is ok for now with an extension in few years hopefully of premier league football
Looking at our team that we have assembled if not now then when? This is probably the safest we will ever be looking at the team.
Which was part of the argument for why the recent evictions were ill-considered, especially the argument offered on the alleged cost/practicalities of building stairs.
Being honest it is easy to say that with hind sight. There is now way of knowing in early summer that the like of Ben Arfa and Remirez would become available and actually sign on loan. Everyone thought it was going to be another scrap to stay up, but in the here and now we should get to go around again next season. So on that score alone I would be moving heaven and hell to get on with it.
Can I ask a direct question? Is my memory correct with the fact that it cost's around £1M per 1,000 seats?
When/if City are taken over the first the new owners should do is talk to HCC. Then set wheels in motion for a development around the stadium and extending the capacity.
That figure, which equates to £1,000 per seat, was used as a rough guide to a new stadium build cost, I'm not sure it's accurate anymore(I think it's nearer to £2,000 per seat now), though I have no idea how much an extension costs(in comparison to a new build cost).
