New Stadium at Blundell Park ?

I was just wondering what people's opinions are on what i am about to write.
I clearly would love the new Stadium to be built asap, i would have preferred the A180 site at Great Coates, but alas that seems to be dead, or even the Europarc site, however Peaks Parkway would be fine with me.

Now lets just say that site fails for whatever reason, what is your view/opinion on rebuilding Blundell Park & making that into the new Stadium ?
I have been reading other football clubs fans forums & we seem to have gone through a time barrier whereby many new football Stadiums have been built but the existing Blundell Park seems to be coming back into fashion/vogue as one of the very few old fashioned style football ground left & it seems that away fans are starting to like Blundell Park.
I want to be clear that i would like a new Stadium, but this is a just in case scenario question !

I think the problems with BP being the new stadium is that there's good chance you'd lose the character that people like if it was redeveloped. Assuming you could get round the problem of where we'd play whilst it was being redeveloped.

It's probably not viable either. The structures under the Main Stand would need to be replaced to bring them up to modern standards - and there probably isn't enough space (though moving the boardroom and bars to somewhere else would help - but you'd want some refreshment facilities on that side, but where would they go?

The other option would be if we could turn the ground 90 degrees and make the Findus one end (though even that has some sightline issues in the Upper). Obviously there'd be the cost of buying and demolishing the houses behind the Main Stand, there still might not be enough room with the railway, and you'd lose the wooden parts of the ground that is art of the charm anyway. You'd lose the wood from the Osmond too.

No parking.

No land receipts to contribute to the new ground (admittedly not that much).

Wonder whether there's much scope in filling in the 3 open corners? Could they accommodate the through traffic to the Ponny? It could help with the atmosphere in the Pontoon by closing in the open sides.

Who knew? 20+ years since the new stadium idea was first mooted and the solution is right there on our doorstep  

It'll never happen. Not enough room for a start and no obvious enabling project. As i said in another thread, building from new is way easier and cheaper than altering something that's already there.

The romantic in many of us would love to see Town playing at a remodelled, 11-12,000 capacity BP with safe standing and better bars and lavatories.

It's physically possible on the site, and would if done properly, retain the charm that fans love in a football experience.

That, however, is about all it has going for it, and once you run into the realities of real estate and football-nomics, is a complete non-starter.

The options have been examined, and, eschewing the 90s fad for out-of-town stadia (imported from the US who tried them in the 70s and are now demolishing them all), the only viable option is a brand new stadium at the heart of the town with an enabling development to help pay for it.  That means PP, and it means investment in the town and a whole host of other benefits for the area and the club too.  The project is moving along and I think has a great chance of happening.  I hope that all fans, no matter what their misgivings, will in the end recognise the reality biting, and get behind the plan.

Are we going to play at King George whilst it's being done?

Just bulldoze the main and whack a cheap terrace up in its place job done . Plenty of room underneath for bars , bogs , chippies and whatever else is required.

Quoted from ginnywings

It'll never happen. Not enough room for a start and no obvious enabling project. As i said in another thread, building from new is way easier and cheaper than altering something that's already there.

We could do a Spurs and rebuild the Park,

While this is going on we could play our home games at Wembley  

Quoted from KingstonMariner

I think the problems with BP being the new stadium is that there's good chance you'd lose the character that people like if it was redeveloped. Assuming you could get round the problem of where we'd play whilst it was being redeveloped.

It's probably not viable either. The structures under the Main Stand would need to be replaced to bring them up to modern standards - and there probably isn't enough space (though moving the boardroom and bars to somewhere else would help - but you'd want some refreshment facilities on that side, but where would they go?

The other option would be if we could turn the ground 90 degrees and make the Findus one end (though even that has some sightline issues in the Upper). Obviously there'd be the cost of buying and demolishing the houses behind the Main Stand, there still might not be enough room with the railway, and you'd lose the wooden parts of the ground that is art of the charm anyway. You'd lose the wood from the Osmond too.

No parking.

No land receipts to contribute to the new ground (admittedly not that much).

Wonder whether there's much scope in filling in the 3 open corners? Could they accommodate the through traffic to the Ponny? It could help with the atmosphere in the Pontoon by closing in the open sides.

I might be wrong but I'm sure Notts County are as locked in as us with no room for expansion.
I seem to remember they turned their excrement tip of a ground into something like and doing a very large part of the work during the close season leaving the home fans actually quite gob smacked .
It shows what can be done with a bit of thought.

Quoted from grimsby pete

We could do a Spurs and rebuild the Park,

While this is going on we could play our home games at Wembley  

It feels like a 2nd home doesn`t it Pete?

Just got to enjoy BP whilst weve still got it.

Whatever we spent on updating BP would have to be paid for-who is the secret benefactor-there isn't one. One of the benefits of moving is that it would be paid for by someone or something else without the club getting into further debt. It would be more comfortable for the fans and the players. Hopefully a lot of the missing fans would return when they had somewhere to park. We could perhaps generate enough profit to repay the benign loans which saved us from extinction but are obviously a mill stone around our necks .

Quoted from MuddyWaters

Are we going to play at King George whilst it's being done?

Not a chance.

More likely to be ploggers for dog sh1t authenticity

Quoted from 1mickylyons

It feels like a 2nd home doesn`t it Pete?

Well given the distance we always get a great following when we play there .  

Quoted from GYinScuntland

I might be wrong but I'm sure Notts County are as locked in as us with no room for expansion.
I seem to remember they turned their excrement tip of a ground into something like and doing a very large part of the work during the close season leaving the home fans actually quite gob smacked .
It shows what can be done with a bit of thought.

Notts County are pretty much hemmed in but much of the land around there is/was brownfield land as opposed to B.P. which is surrounded on three sides by houses. Had the club been serious about redeveloping B.P. they might have started to buy up houses on Harrington St as they became available forty or so years ago.

Dare I say "enabling development"...

Quoted from Codswede

Dare I say "enabling development"...

Exactly, I was going to type the same thing.

There  is no way you would get planning permission. The objections from residents in the surrounding streets would be immense and of course there is no way any car parking could be included in sufficient numbers to satisfy such a re-development.

Fun sponge

Mainly with the fact half the stadium is a listed building, there will be no re-development...

If this project really wanted to add value use it as a way to breathe life into the Freemo area. Think what difference it could make as not just a football hub or multi sports facility, but as a commercial enterprise, health centre, kids crèche for working mums, youth centre etc.. etc... the football club could be the catalyst for change in one of the most challenging areas of the Town, a legacy like that would trump anything the Scunts could do for starters!

Quoted from SteffiMariner

Mainly with the fact half the stadium is a listed building, there will be no re-development...

It probably should be, but I don't think it is - https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/map-search

Quoted from HertsGTFC

If this project really wanted to add value use it as a way to breathe life into the Freemo area. Think what difference it could make as not just a football hub or multi sports facility, but as a commercial enterprise, health centre, kids crèche for working mums, youth centre etc.. etc... the football club could be the catalyst for change in one of the most challenging areas of the Town, a legacy like that would trump anything the Scunts could do for starters!

Scunny new ground has fallen through and they now plan to redevelope Glanford Pk. Swann not happy and is suing NLincs council!!

Ahh... did that come out on RH, thought something was brewing but not close enough to local media to know what/when.

Swann’s probably p1ssed off as it will cost him more personally now.  

Imagine pumping £4.9M of your wife’s money into Scunthorpe flipping United’s new stadium project on top of the rumoured £350k per month for the wage bill.

So the main stand is a listed building - really ? - it’s a fooking eyesore ! If we ever move from BP then I give it a life expectancy of about a week before someone calls 999 . I’m pretty sure any developer would quite happily accidentally leave a gate unlocked to see it gone and turned into a pile of ashes

If it was listed then it couldnt be knocked down could it?

Quoted from monkeyboy

If it was listed then it couldnt be knocked down could it?

So if houses were to be built on the site,

The kids would have a big play area at the bottom of their gardens.

Quoted from bedders78

It probably should be, but I don't think it is - https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/map-search

Why? What historical value does a football ground have? Except to club supporters of which there is a minority even in the local area it doesn't seem to have any historic reason to remain untouched. Should have knocked it down years ago and built a better stand.

I heard today that Scunny's plans to move to their new home have now been shelved and they are redeveloping Glumford Park instead. Also they are fighting to have all their associated costs with the project to date re-imbursed.