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Liverpool unveil new stadium plans
Liverpool unveil new stadium plans
Design include new single-tier 18,000-capacity Kop
Staff and agencies
Wednesday July 25, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
A computer-generated artist's impression of the outside of the new Liverpool Stadium in Stanley Park. Photograph: Handout/PA
Liverpool today unveiled plans for their new 60,000-seat stadium in Stanley Park after submitting an official planning application to Liverpool city council. The new ground is scheduled to open in 2010.The club's American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, in conjunction with the architects HKS, have radically redesigned the original plans for the stadium. Central to the new plans is the potential to further expand the ground to more than 70,000 seats in the future and, as expected, the plans include a new 18,000-capacity, single-tier Kop.
"It has always been the aim of the club, with the backing of Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to be world class both on and off the pitch," said the Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry. "When they took over, the first thing Tom and George wanted to do was review the stadium both in terms of the design and the capacity. This is the immensely impressive result of their deliberations."We're creating a stadium that not only the club and supporters can be proud of, but something the whole city can be proud of. Liverpool as a city is on the move and deserves world-class developments like this. Our architects HKS have a wealth of experience and have fused a very contemporary and unique vision together with the values that are crucial to Liverpool.
"A critical design consideration was to ensure the stadium sat naturally within its park environment, complementing its surroundings and a huge amount of work has been done to ensure this happens. The stadium is a massive investment in North Liverpool and a key driver in the regeneration of the whole area.
"We've also recognised the central importance of the Kop. It will have a significantly increased capacity of 18,000 seats in a single-tier structure that will be the heartbeat of the new stadium. The rake of the stand will be steeper and the seats tighter together, with the acoustics of the roof designed to accentuate the atmosphere during games."
Parry explained the reasoning behind a new planning application. "Having thoroughly addressed the environmental and transportation issues, we already have consent for a 60,000-seat stadium, which is why we have submitted the new design with that capacity," he said. "This is the most straightforward way of delivering what are radical new designs as our aspiration has always been to have the stadium ready for 2010, which means beginning work on the site as soon as possible."
The possibility of increasing the capacity of the stadium in the future was dependent on improvements to the local transport infrastructure, according to Parry. "We make no secret of the fact that we want a greater capacity and will consider putting in a second planning application when appropriate," he added. "However, we fully recognise for this to happen all the associated transport requirements need to be in place.
"To increase the capacity above 60,000, we need a further step change in our approach which is why we, together with Liverpool city council and Merseytravel, are investigating the possibility of reopening the Bootle Branch railway line for passenger use. That would be a fantastic solution, not just for the club, but for all the people of north Liverpool."
Design include new single-tier 18,000-capacity Kop
Staff and agencies
Wednesday July 25, 2007
Guardian Unlimited
A computer-generated artist's impression of the outside of the new Liverpool Stadium in Stanley Park. Photograph: Handout/PA
Liverpool today unveiled plans for their new 60,000-seat stadium in Stanley Park after submitting an official planning application to Liverpool city council. The new ground is scheduled to open in 2010.The club's American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, in conjunction with the architects HKS, have radically redesigned the original plans for the stadium. Central to the new plans is the potential to further expand the ground to more than 70,000 seats in the future and, as expected, the plans include a new 18,000-capacity, single-tier Kop.
"It has always been the aim of the club, with the backing of Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to be world class both on and off the pitch," said the Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry. "When they took over, the first thing Tom and George wanted to do was review the stadium both in terms of the design and the capacity. This is the immensely impressive result of their deliberations."We're creating a stadium that not only the club and supporters can be proud of, but something the whole city can be proud of. Liverpool as a city is on the move and deserves world-class developments like this. Our architects HKS have a wealth of experience and have fused a very contemporary and unique vision together with the values that are crucial to Liverpool.
"A critical design consideration was to ensure the stadium sat naturally within its park environment, complementing its surroundings and a huge amount of work has been done to ensure this happens. The stadium is a massive investment in North Liverpool and a key driver in the regeneration of the whole area.
"We've also recognised the central importance of the Kop. It will have a significantly increased capacity of 18,000 seats in a single-tier structure that will be the heartbeat of the new stadium. The rake of the stand will be steeper and the seats tighter together, with the acoustics of the roof designed to accentuate the atmosphere during games."
Parry explained the reasoning behind a new planning application. "Having thoroughly addressed the environmental and transportation issues, we already have consent for a 60,000-seat stadium, which is why we have submitted the new design with that capacity," he said. "This is the most straightforward way of delivering what are radical new designs as our aspiration has always been to have the stadium ready for 2010, which means beginning work on the site as soon as possible."
The possibility of increasing the capacity of the stadium in the future was dependent on improvements to the local transport infrastructure, according to Parry. "We make no secret of the fact that we want a greater capacity and will consider putting in a second planning application when appropriate," he added. "However, we fully recognise for this to happen all the associated transport requirements need to be in place.
"To increase the capacity above 60,000, we need a further step change in our approach which is why we, together with Liverpool city council and Merseytravel, are investigating the possibility of reopening the Bootle Branch railway line for passenger use. That would be a fantastic solution, not just for the club, but for all the people of north Liverpool."
