Southend United chairman Ron Martin on his plans for a new stadium

[kentblues]

The trouble is, it will now be in a residential area so the neighbours will probably object about the noise nuisance!

The neighbours will have moved in knowing full well they are next to the stadium and its intended purpose. So doubt there will be any restrictions other than what would be normal for such a venue.

 

[Trucking shrimper]

The neighbours will have moved in knowing full well they are next to the stadium and its intended purpose. So doubt there will be any restrictions other than what would be normal for such a venue.

Doesn’t stop people who move next to an airport or motor racing circuit complaining about the noise. Brands hatch and many other circuits that have been there for decades has had limits imposed on them because of complaints.

 

[kentblues]

Doesn’t stop people who move next to an airport or motor racing circuit complaining about the noise. Brands hatch and many other circuits that have been there for decades has had limits imposed on them because of complaints.

Agree- its embarrassing how the Nimby types sometimes get pandered to. Nonetheless there are plenty of stadiums in residential and semi residential areas and hopefully the licensing approach will be agreed prior in line with these. Luckily the stadium will be there first otherwise you would get these people moving in first and trying to stop it being built...

 

[GBJ]

with regards to non-matchday funds I'm not sure much has changed, the retail units would still have been paying rent to the same group of companies as the housing will now. If anything the housing will have more likelyhood of being occupied than the retail units

I think you’ve missed my point. I don’t think - although happy to be corrected - that Southend United Football Club will own any of that. So, we’re not actually entitled to any revenue from those ventures.

The Football Club - from what I remember - will make some revenue from the hotel. That’s it.

Again, happy to be corrected, but as I see it - and as I’ve always seen it - there are several groups who stand to profit from this, and sadly, our sustainability is dependant on a hotel chain, successfully holding lots and lots of conferences.

That, as I’ve been saying for years, is slightly concerning - to me at least.

Sure, we’ll have a new stadium (hopefully a 4-sided one), but this dream was sold to us as an opportunity for this football club to be self sustainable. So far - and again, happy to be proven wrong or corrected - all I can see is that we’re relocating, whilst remaining dependant on our owner to subsidise the club.

 

[GBJ]

The trouble is, it will now be in a residential area so the neighbours will probably object about the noise nuisance!

Yes certainly. Council’s aren’t normally too keen on handing out entertainment licences to venues located amoung a housing estate.

I assume it would also be dependant on the road network & public transport. From what I remember of the initial plans, there would be a car park at the ground, but I think it was relatively small for the stadium’s capacity.

The housing estate is likely to be permit parking only, meaning a potential crowd of 20,000 for a concert could cause some headaches.

 

[GBJ]

The neighbours will have moved in knowing full well they are next to the stadium and its intended purpose. So doubt there will be any restrictions other than what would be normal for such a venue.

I don’t think the argument of ‘well, we were here first’, will wash with SBC, tbh.

 

[kentblues]

I think you’ve missed my point. I don’t think - although happy to be corrected - that Southend United Football Club will own any of that. So, we’re not actually entitled to any revenue from those ventures.

The Football Club - from what I remember - will make some revenue from the hotel. That’s it.

Again, happy to be corrected, but as I see it - and as I’ve always seen it - there are several groups who stand to profit from this, and sadly, our sustainability is dependant on a hotel chain, successfully holding lots and lots of conferences.

That, as I’ve been saying for years, is slightly concerning - to me at least.

Sure, we’ll have a new stadium (hopefully a 4-sided one), but this dream was sold to us as an opportunity for this football club to be self sustainable. So far - and again, happy to be proven wrong or corrected - all I can see is that we’re relocating, whilst remaining dependant on our owner to subsidise the club.

To coin a phrase once more "nothing has changed". We were never getting anything out of retail. The stadium development includes the hotel, the ability to use the stadium for events beyond football (which I think has provided healthy income streams at other such developments), and some of the housing (presumably in the area of the stadium) which will provide some further rental streams to the club.

So simply zero debt, we own the stadium, considerably more income streams than now, higher stadium capacity, more match day ancillary revenues, lower maintenance costs. As has been said previously a classic case of "what have the Romans ever done for us"?

 

[Ricey]

The neighbours will have moved in knowing full well they are next to the stadium and its intended purpose. So doubt there will be any restrictions other than what would be normal for such a venue.

Doesn’t stop those moaning who live next to an airport

 

[kentblues]

I don’t think the argument of ‘well, we were here first’, will wash with SBC, tbh.

I am sure all these matters will be part of the overall discussion and will be addressed accordingly. Once those agreements are in place the club are obliged to stick with them, but by the same token the council are likely to stick with them also- notwithstanding the extraordinarily low opinion some have of the Council. The intended uses of the stadium will be part of the planning hence so will access, parking etc. Of course the plans must already support 21k on match days.

We shall see- for now all speculation.

Of course we could always have a complete blanket ban on enjoyment and events across Southend (particularly after 6pm). There will always be a proportion of the population that would support that unconditionally :-)

For now for me the glass is definitely on the side of half full.

 

[kentblues]

On the subject of revenue streams for stadium this is a good read

How Do Football Stadiums Make Money? - Football-Stadiums.co.uk

Football Stadiums can be iconic venues in certain cities. From the likes of St. James’ Park in Newcastle, which literally stands above the centre of the city thanks to its location on a hill, through to the proximity of Goodison Park and Anfield in Liverpool, grounds are often just as important...

www.football-stadiums.co.uk

 

[tallboyblue]

This nasty bug has created a very difficult situation for many clubs particularly for those at lower levels, and yet unless I am mistaken Ron seems fairly relaxed about the future. Maybe the recent development about the new ground and what goes with it had come about at just the right time.

 

[GBJ]

To coin a phrase once more "nothing has changed". We were never getting anything out of retail. The stadium development includes the hotel, the ability to use the stadium for events beyond football (which I think has provided healthy income streams at other such developments), and some of the housing (presumably in the area of the stadium) which will provide some further rental streams to the club.

Maybe I’ve missed it, but why do you think the club will receive any of those rental streams?

We won’t own them.

So simply zero debt, we own the stadium, considerably more income streams than now, higher stadium capacity, more match day ancillary revenues, lower maintenance costs. As has been said previously a classic case of "what have the Romans ever done for us"?

No, we won’t own the stadium. Ron has long talked about ‘giving’ it back to the Club, but that’s to be seen.

Will he? Only he knows. Anything else, is speculation.

The rest is not only arbitrary, but frankly, pretty fanciful mate. No offence.

Our revenue streams are limited to a hote chain - which incidentally won’t be built at the same time as the rest of the stadium. I’m not saying it won’t, I’m just saying let’s not start celebrating yet.

The ancillary revenues? Can you clarify what they may be please, as I’m still not sure.

I am sure all these matters will be part of the overall discussion and will be addressed accordingly. Once those agreements are in place the club are obliged to stick with them, but by the same token the council are likely to stick with them also- notwithstanding the extraordinarily low opinion some have of the Council. The intended uses of the stadium will be part of the planning hence so will access, parking etc. Of course the plans must already support 21k on match days.

We shall see- for now all speculation.

Of course we could always have a complete blanket ban on enjoyment and events across Southend (particularly after 6pm). There will always be a proportion of the population that would support that unconditionally :-)

For now for me the glass is definitely on the side of half full.

Firstly, in Grays the best fun doesn’t happen until the sun goes down. So you won’t see me opposing it ?

Maybe you’ve misread me, or maybe I’ve misrepresented myself. I’m certainly excited and envigoured by the latest news. I’m chuffed to bits tbh.

However, before we start getting carried away, there are niggling doubts/issues that will not go away.

Sadly, I can’t ignore them. And it’s not for the want of trying.

We have clear plot holes staring us in the face.

 

[GBJ]

This nasty bug has created a very difficult situation for many clubs particularly for those at lower levels, and yet unless I am mistaken Ron seems fairly relaxed about the future. Maybe the recent development about the new ground and what goes with it had come about at just the right time.

Yes, I think so.

We will now have more scope to attract investment; mainly small-term loans in order to keep us afloat.

 

[BriggBlue]

Maybe I’ve missed it, but why do you think the club will receive any of those rental streams?

We won’t own them.



No, we won’t own the stadium. Ron has long talked about ‘giving’ it back to the Club, but that’s to be seen.

Will he? Only he knows. Anything else, is speculation.

The rest is not only arbitrary, but frankly, pretty fanciful mate. No offence.

Our revenue streams are limited to a hote chain - which incidentally won’t be built at the same time as the rest of the stadium. I’m not saying it won’t, I’m just saying let’s not start celebrating yet.

The ancillary revenues? Can you clarify what they may be please, as I’m still not sure.



Firstly, in Grays the best fun doesn’t happen until the sun goes down. So you won’t see me opposing it ?

Maybe you’ve misread me, or maybe I’ve misrepresented myself. I’m certainly excited and envigoured by the latest news. I’m chuffed to bits tbh.

However, before we start getting carried away, there are niggling doubts/issues that will not go away.

Sadly, I can’t ignore them. And it’s not for the want of trying.

We have clear plot holes staring us in the face.

I think everyone is saying the same thing, we are in agreement that with regards to non-matchday revenue not much will change, hopefully the owner of the housing and the club are one and the same for some considerable time so that the owner has more money to invest in the club if they wish to.

even without any additional non-matchday income the move leaves us playing in a new stadium with much reduced running costs which is a step ahead from where we are now. If Ron honours his promise to hand the stadium to the club fantastic, (personally I think he will, he likes to be a hero), if not we are in the same postion as now but with a new stadium.

I wouldn't be suprised if the hotel is actually finished before the rest of the ground, Hilton will want to maximise their income from it and the first match at the new stadium will see them fully booked.

The bit that's keep getting missed is the massive improvements in our training facilities, this will attract better players and help improve our academy which makes me nearly as happy as the new ground.

 

[MilkeySUFC]

Saw this on BBC this morning.

Southend winding-up petition adjourned

A winding-up petition against Southend United over an unpaid tax bill is adjourned for a second time.

www.bbc.co.uk

SUFC have got the petition delayed because of coronavirus and delays caused by the shut-down. Dare I say, we're not out of the woods yet.

 

[Smiffy]

I think you’ve missed my point. I don’t think - although happy to be corrected - that Southend United Football Club will own any of that. So, we’re not actually entitled to any revenue from those ventures.

The Football Club - from what I remember - will make some revenue from the hotel. That’s it.

Again, happy to be corrected, but as I see it - and as I’ve always seen it - there are several groups who stand to profit from this, and sadly, our sustainability is dependant on a hotel chain, successfully holding lots and lots of conferences.

That, as I’ve been saying for years, is slightly concerning - to me at least.

Sure, we’ll have a new stadium (hopefully a 4-sided one), but this dream was sold to us as an opportunity for this football club to be self sustainable. So far - and again, happy to be proven wrong or corrected - all I can see is that we’re relocating, whilst remaining dependant on our owner to subsidise the club.

Absolutely my concerns.

We have gone from an all singing and dancing stadium, hotel, conference facilities and retail park, all of which we were going to apparently benefit from financially in some way. To a basic out of town 3 sided bowl, with no firm indication of where non-matchday income will be coming from. Seems to me Ron is now ticking the boxes of the bare minimum to provide us with to satisfy planning/covenant and in turn he and the Martin family will benefit to the tune of many millions in property deals. Not the financial security we were promised as a club. Ron now needs to explain the plans in detail and the income streams (for the club) relating to it, to put us all at ease.

 

[kentblues]

Saw this on BBC this morning.

Southend winding-up petition adjourned

A winding-up petition against Southend United over an unpaid tax bill is adjourned for a second time.

www.bbc.co.uk

SUFC have got the petition delayed because of coronavirus and delays caused by the shut-down. Dare I say, we're not out of the woods yet.

Basically HMRC have seen evidence of the plan to recapitalise the club based on the new project (a project actively supported by a Government body and SBC). Given the bodies involved and the size of the project they were never going to do anything else.

And given the size of the project and the billionaire partners in it the chances of that money not being made available is very small. Happily what a July adjournment does do is keep Ron's partners to a deadline (I do wonder if it suits Ron this way as paying now might take some of the urgency away).

 

[kentblues]

Absolutely my concerns.

We have gone from an all singing and dancing stadium, hotel, conference facilities and retail park, all of which we were going to apparently benefit from financially in some way. To a basic out of town 3 sided bowl, with no firm indication of where non-matchday income will be coming from. Seems to me Ron is now ticking the boxes of the bare minimum to provide us with to satisfy planning/covenant and in turn he and the Martin family will benefit to the tune of many millions in property deals. Not the financial security we were promised as a club. Ron now needs to explain the plans in detail and the income streams (for the club) relating to it, to put us all at ease.

You say "we have gone" but more correctly you are concerned that we "may have gone. You also mention a basic out town 3-sided bowl even though the stadium plans have not changed (i.e. the plan remains 4 sides including hotel as per the current plans). The only changes to be housing substituted for retail- no new plans but current plans revised.

It is clear some people will assume the worst outcome and have zero trust in Ron or what they are told. This is entirely fine and makes for good debate. In the end its all speculation, however, and we will have to wait and see the revised proposals in detail.

I am sure we all agree at least on the outcome we hope for, even if there are varying degrees of belief it will happen..

 

[GBJ]

I think everyone is saying the same thing, we are in agreement that with regards to non-matchday revenue not much will change, hopefully the owner of the housing and the club are one and the same for some considerable time so that the owner has more money to invest in the club if they wish to.

That last sentence is absolutely the crux of my concerns.

This move wasn’t sold to us as an opportunity for the current owner to earn more money to subsidise us. It was so that we could support ourselves in the future, and be self reliant.

That was the sole reason why we were leaving Roots Hall.

If we’re not going to be able to do that, then the whole thing becomes redundant. We’ll likely end up with the same old problems, but in a new stadium, even more so if Ron decides to sell at some point in the near future, which I believe is very likely.

Shiny new stadiums are all well and good, but our long-term survival is more important than all of that.

 

[Strykr]

Is the hotel a definite goer then? Find it hard to imagine a hilton in the middle of a mid to low tier housing estate.