LIONEL ROAD LIAISON GROUP
1st October 2012 @ 7pm
Venue: Griffin Park (Main entrance in Braemar Road, see attached map)
AGENDA
1. Welcome and apologies
2. Terms of reference: see attached paper. Discussion on proposed membership
3. Appointment of chair
4. Project update: Brian Burgess to introduce attached paper
5. Any other business
6. Date of next meeting
Introduction
Brentford Football Club (BFC) is planning to move from its existing stadium at Griffin Park to a new purpose built community stadium at a site in Lionel Road South, Brentford.
After many years of effort this project took a step forward on 28th June 2012, when the Club bought a 7.6 acre site in Lionel Road from Barratt Homes who had originally acquired the site in January 2008, for a development in partnership with the Club.
The Club is now planning to build a stadium on the land with a capacity between 15,000 and 20,000 seats.
The stadium will also provide a new home for the award winning charity the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust, which works with over 27,000 young people and also runs the Griffin Park Learning Zone and the Brentford Boating Arch at nearby Kew Bridge.
In addition there will be some residential property built on the site and on Brentford’s existing ground at Griffin Park which will be used for family housing once the new stadium is completed.
The site, which is currently occupied by industrial tenants, is located between Kew Bridge station and the elevated M4 motorway close to Chiswick roundabout.
Vision
The Brentford Community Stadium will be much more than just a 15 – 20,000 seat venue for professional football and rugby.
The project vision is to:
provide a modern high quality 15 – 20,000-seat stadium for first class professional football and rugby with income growth potential in order to secure the long term sustainability of Brentford Football Club.
provide a social focal point with a buzz of activity
enable the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust to provide a range of activities that will:
attract all age groups from all sections of the local communities;
promote sport, health, education, employment and training, social enterprise and social inclusion;
construct a sustainable, low carbon design.
Strategy
The project for a new stadium, which has been under discussion for over 10 years, has always been driven by the need to achieve a sustainable operating business plan for Brentford FC. The limitations of the aging facilities at Griffin Park and the lack of space for potential re-development on that site make it unrealistic for BFC to break-even in the current stadium with a competitive playing budget. The move to a new stadium is aligned with the aspirations of Brentford’s new owner, Matthew Benham, and the board to achieve promotion to the Football League Championship within the next 3 years.
The project to develop a new Brentford Community Stadium at Lionel Road is based on delivering improved capacity and facilities to achieve a profitable operating business plan for a stadium management company which would generate income from non-football activities and increase revenue for the football club. This will incorporate the existing educational and charitable activities of the Club, the Griffin Park Learning Zone and the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust (BFCCST).
In June 2012 BFC purchased the 7.6 acre site at Lionel Road South from Barratt Homes Ltd and is now assessing options to develop a viable scheme that can deliver a completed stadium by July 2016.
The Club’s existing stadium site at Griffin Park has outline planning consent for the demolition of the stadium and its replacement by residential development.
The construction of the stadium will have to be funded by the proceeds of selling Griffin Park and using the surplus land on the Lionel Road site for an enabling development.
Project Programme
The Club has a target of completing the new stadium by July 2016 in time for the 2016-17 season.
The Club has appointed a professional team of advisors including planning consultants (Planning Perspectives) master-planners (Faulkner Browns), stadium architects (AFL), transport consultants (WSP), and public affairs advisors (Four Communications).
This team is taking a fresh look at the project to assess the feasibility of various options for delivering a financially viable scheme.
The team has been asked to complete the initial feasibility study by the end of October and to recommend a scheme for which a planning application could be submitted by May 2013.
Public Consultation
The Club has two initiatives to enable it to keep local residents and other stakeholders informed of progress:
a) Website: http://www.archive.brentfordcommunitystadium.com
The existing project website has not been updated since the project was put on hold in 2010.
This website is now being refreshed and will be updated as the project progresses.
b) The Lionel Road Liaison Group (LRLG)
From April 2008 until September 2010 Barratt Homes arranged regular meetings of a local stakeholder group, known as the Lionel Road Liaison Group (LRLG). These ceased when Barratt put the project on hold and then withdrew completely.
Brentford FC has asked Four Communications to reconvene the LRLG to include representatives from as many relevant local groups as possible.
The first meeting of the LRLG has been set for 7.00pm on Monday 1st October in the Sponsors Lounge at Griffin Park. Those involved in the previous Group were informed of this date over a month ago.
The notice for the meeting on 1 October 2012 includes a proposed agenda and draft terms of reference for the Group.
Comment
Any members of the public who would like to make a comment or just give us feedback is welcome to do so via Four Communications by sending an email to Nicholas.vose@fourcomunications.com