Evening Echo : Three Tower Blocks and bigger retail park to Fund 21,000 seat Stadiium

[Jam_Man]

Front page news on the Echo.
Three tower blocks to fund the stadium and stadium to be smaller at 21,000.

As planning permission expired and plans are different with a much bigger retail park it is likely to have to go to the government again.

However the most interesting thing in the article says the council are getting fed up and are threatening to withdraw an offer of a CPO on Roots Hall, so were they planning to buy the site since Sainsbury dropped out? Sounds like it.

Now Im not going to get carried away as we all know what normally happens, and even if this does happen with the government needing to rubber stamp it we are probably a year or two away from getting approval.

However with my optimist hat on there is positive to be taken from this, the project is still on and there must be some belief by Ron that this can be done and it does demonstrate he is still working on getting us there. From the article it would also appear there is a plan in place to get it built without Sainsbury.

Whether the new plans get agreed is something else.

 

[OldBlueLady]

Sainsbury are still involved at some level.

 

[Pubey]

Front page news on the Echo.
Three tower blocks to fund the stadium and stadium to be smaller at 21,000.

As planning permission expired and plans are different with a much bigger retail park it is likely to have to go to the government again.

However the most interesting thing in the article says the council are getting fed up and are threatening to withdraw an offer of a CPO on Roots Hall, so were they planning to buy the site since Sainsbury dropped out? Sounds like it.

Now Im not going to get carried away as we all know what normally happens, and even if this does happen with the government needing to rubber stamp it we are probably a year or two away from getting approval.

However with my optimist hat on there is positive to be taken from this, the project is still on and there must be some belief by Ron that this can be done and it does demonstrate he is still working on getting us there. From the article it would also appear there is a plan in place to get it built without Sainsbury.

Whether the new plans get agreed is something else.

Yeah it's good to know that during this long period of silence that he's not just been sitting around, and he's clearly been working hard to substantially change the plans to get this through. However, as you say, it's a long way from being approved.

 

[Jam_Man]

Sainsbury are still involved at some level.

Underground car park level?:smile:

Any indication of when the club may actually provide an update?

If the Echo are getting the story surely its not hush hush.

Yeah it's good to know that during this long period of silence that he's not just been sitting around, and he's clearly been working hard to substantially change the plans to get this through. However, as you say, it's a long way from being approved.

Indeed.

If he has gone through all this and we still are looking at 3 stands that would be worrying.

 

[Pubey]

Underground car park level?:smile:

Any indication of when the club may actually provide an update?

If the Echo are getting the story surely its not hush hush.



Indeed.

If he has gone through all this and we still are looking at 3 stands that would be worrying.

I guess there's a difference between drip-feeding info to the echo as and when it can be revealed, and doing some full press conference which only serves for RM to make plans that don't get stuck to and leaves him hung out to dry.

RM has (often rightly) been lambasted for some of his statements/blogs/comments and I'd guess that's hugely affected him. While it's frustrating we've not really had a peep from him, it's understandable - especially if Sainos and CPOs are still in the mix because those issues will be commercially confidential.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

Southend Council not happy. Fossetts to get bigger and taller.

Ron Martin etc etc, want to now build 3 Tower Blocks at Fossetts Farm. So plans from 2008 to now have big changes. 67 Flats then, 245 Flats now. Retail floor space 16,400 sq m then, 25,000 sq m now. Restaurant area 279 sq m then, a whopping 4,000 sq m now. No cinema then, 12 screen Cineworld multiplex now. Parking spaces 2,074 then, 2,420 now. Extras none then, Soccer Dome, training facilities, 350 sq m player hostel now.
The Council don't sound to happy about this as it could have traffic chaos around that area. Also 3 Tower Blocks with 2 of them being 13-storey is not what I think the council bought into. Council leader Ron Woodley also said SUFC is in the last chance saloon in terms of giving the council information they require and a guarantee against financial losses to the council. He said, ''Unless they come forward, we will no longer support a CPO on Roots Hall.''

 

[londonblue]

Ron Martin etc etc, want to now build 3 Tower Blocks at Fossetts Farm. So plans from 2008 to now have big changes. 67 Flats then, 245 Flats now. Retail floor space 16,400 sq m then, 25,000 sq m now. Restaurant area 279 sq m then, a whopping 4,000 sq m now. No cinema then, 12 screen Cineworld multiplex now. Parking spaces 2,074 then, 2,420 now. Extras none then, Soccer Dome, training facilities, 350 sq m player hostel now.
The Council don't sound to happy about this as it could have traffic chaos around that area. Also 3 Tower Blocks with 2 of them being 13-storey is not what I think the council bought into. Council leader Ron Woodley also said SUFC is in the last chance saloon in terms of giving the council information they require and a guarantee against financial losses to the council. He said, ''Unless they come forward, we will no longer support a CPO on Roots Hall.''

There were always training facilities in the form of three training pitches. Other than the dome, what else has been added?

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

There were always training facilities in the form of three training pitches. Other than the dome, what else has been added?

The three training pitches don't count. Extras means added. Training facilities could be inside or outside.

 

[onceknownasrab]

I dislike tower blocks intensely but I guess, with the ever increasing population and the demand for homes, the need to build upwards is only going to grow.
If this project is viable then it will be the biggest in Southend in many a long year and likely to be regenerative to the town. It would appear that within the project the new ground and facilities are little more than a sideshow. If that is what it takes to create the revenues then lead on Macduff.

 

[londonblue]

The three training pitches don't count. Extras means added. Training facilities could be inside or outside.

So what has been added?

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

So what has been added?

Don't shoot the messenger. I told you all the things submitted in 2008, and then all these new things changed or added. Just read the first post again.

 

[Jam_Man]

The biggest increase is in the retail space and the extra flats.

 

[Suffolk Blue]

Ron Martin etc etc, want to now build 3 Tower Blocks at Fossetts Farm. So plans from 2008 to now have big changes. 67 Flats then, 245 Flats now. Retail floor space 16,400 sq m then, 25,000 sq m now. Restaurant area 279 sq m then, a whopping 4,000 sq m now. No cinema then, 12 screen Cineworld multiplex now. Parking spaces 2,074 then, 2,420 now. Extras none then, Soccer Dome, training facilities, 350 sq m player hostel now.
The Council don't sound to happy about this as it could have traffic chaos around that area. Also 3 Tower Blocks with 2 of them being 13-storey is not what I think the council bought into. Council leader Ron Woodley also said SUFC is in the last chance saloon in terms of giving the council information they require and a guarantee against financial losses to the council. He said, ''Unless they come forward, we will no longer support a CPO on Roots Hall.''

Councillor Woodley does talk cobblers doesn't he. Why on earth would the council need to support a CPO on Roots Hall? It's all posturing by the councillor. The facts are that Ron will submit changed plans for planning permission and the council will respond with counter-proposals including financial guarantees, and details of things they are unhappy with.

While we might doubt Ron's ability to deliver on the stadium build; he's previously managed to negotiate the planning stages very well.

Do the new plans include the cinema and increased leisure and retail capacity at the expense of the hotel, or is the hotel still in the plans?

 

[OldBlueLady]

Sounds to me as if the retail space has been reduced significantly and replaced with "leisure" (restaurant) space. The casino has seemingly been replaced with the cinema. The only big change is with the tower blocks. I'm not sure 13 storey blocks are the way forward with Fossetts, and not at all in keeping with the area - can imagine loads of objections. from people living locally.

 

[Smiffy]

The whole project is now approx 50% bigger than it was proposed previously, with even more focus on the retail/leisure side (shock)....I can see the Council dragging their heels on this now and even if they give it the green light, it will certainly go to Government level. Expect this to take a long time to get agreed (if it even does)

I think the whole thing is now far too big and out of keeping with the area, bearing in mind this is green belt land that is meant to be for sporting use. Plus the impacts on the immediate area/high street are now just too large for it to be given backing by SBC/Government in my opinion. The road infastructure cannot cope as it is in this area. The objections from local residents/businesses on Sutton Road/Eastern Ave/High Street will be huge and I don't blame them to be fair. I certainly wouldn't want a Bas Vegas 2.0 on my door step. I would expect house prices to drop a fair bit in the immediate vicinity if it gets approved.

 

[Prawn]

Ron Martin etc etc, want to now build 3 Tower Blocks at Fossetts Farm. So plans from 2008 to now have big changes. 67 Flats then, 245 Flats now. Retail floor space 16,400 sq m then, 25,000 sq m now. Restaurant area 279 sq m then, a whopping 4,000 sq m now. No cinema then, 12 screen Cineworld multiplex now. Parking spaces 2,074 then, 2,420 now. Extras none then, Soccer Dome, training facilities, 350 sq m player hostel now.
The Council don't sound to happy about this as it could have traffic chaos around that area. Also 3 Tower Blocks with 2 of them being 13-storey is not what I think the council bought into. Council leader Ron Woodley also said SUFC is in the last chance saloon in terms of giving the council information they require and a guarantee against financial losses to the council. He said, ''Unless they come forward, we will no longer support a CPO on Roots Hall.''

I think there will be toing and froing over the height of the tower blocks. Probably Ron only wants two,10 story tower blocks so overstates the height he wants so he has some wiggle room over the height of the blocks.

 

[Jam_Man]

Councillor Woodley does talk cobblers doesn't he. Why on earth would the council need to support a CPO on Roots Hall? It's all posturing by the councillor. The facts are that Ron will submit changed plans for planning permission and the council will respond with counter-proposals including financial guarantees, and details of things they are unhappy with.

While we might doubt Ron's ability to deliver on the stadium build; he's previously managed to negotiate the planning stages very well.

Do the new plans include the cinema and increased leisure and retail capacity at the expense of the hotel, or is the hotel still in the plans?

Sounds to me from the article that the council were going to buy the land?

 

[ryansm05]

Yeah it's good to know that during this long period of silence that he's not just been sitting around, and he's clearly been working hard to substantially change the plans to get this through. However, as you say, it's a long way from being approved.

We all owe him a drink for his endeavours ....


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[Ozzer]

If it needs to go back to the Gov't, by the time approval is given it would be our luck that it coincides with the next downturn in the economic cycle. I don't think I'll live to see a new stadium.

 

[Smiffy]

If it needs to go back to the Gov't, by the time approval is given it would be our luck that it coincides with the next downturn in the economic cycle. I don't think I'll live to see a new stadium.

I cant see how it won't. The original plans were much smaller and they got "called in"...it is inevitable they will this time, if SBC even rubber stamp it, which isn't a given judging by their comments.