General New Stadium Plans - Stratfield Brake

[bazzer9461]

That’s helpful Baz, I will spend the rest of the night trying to find it

Check Sometime after 3pm on this thread someone posted a list of county councillors I think @Manorlounger posted one

 

[ljs]

In the Masterplan there are two red-dotted lines surrounding the main stadium, and then the triangle, as presumably land to be leased. Between the two is a slither of the Woodland trust land (East of the stadium and West of the road) still inside the thick red line of Woodland Trust land in section 17,, but it has a big brown arrow for direction of flow of people going through it.
Are we going to be traipsing through a muddy footpath in the woods to get to the ground? (Aldershot away anyone?)

Surely will be the route of the footbridge over Frieze Way... and over the wood?

Actually, it also looks as if a new road entrance/exit goes through this slither of woodland.

 

[Marked Ox]

Check Sometime after 3pm on this thread someone posted a list of county councillors I think @Manorlounger posted one

That list will be available on the OCC website.

 

[NC2U]

Not sure if this has been mentioned but would it be possible for OxVox or somebody!!!
to give a list of people who we should be writing to, regarding our support for the new stadium

WriteToThem

WriteToThem is a website which provides an easy way to contact MPs, councillors and other elected representatives.

www.writetothem.com

Put your postcode in and it will tell you your councillors. It then will send the letter for you.

 

[Wallop]

Your Councillors

We're the local authority for Oxfordshire, committed to delivering top quality services and value for money on behalf of the county's 600,000+ residents.

mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk

 

[stokeu]

It's my colouring, but just colouring of the hatched area in the map in the proposal. Which OCC say is not the be part of the development.

I can see the thick line, which from the map posted later seems to be the Woodland Trust managed area, but the proposal document says no development on the hatched area.

Looks to me as if oufc have stayed off the Woodland Trust site, but OCC are adding in this other area as not to be developed.

so the green option is brown field and coloured red?


the thick line is presumably our outspoken friend and chums in the meeting?

 

[MarkG]

Surely will be the route of the footbridge over Frieze Way... and over the wood?

Actually, it also looks as if a new road entrance/exit goes through this slither of woodland.

So somebody might have a right of way over land on which we want to build / use ? What could possibly go wrong?

 

[MarkG]

It's my colouring, but just colouring of the hatched area in the map in the proposal. Which OCC say is not the be part of the development.

I can see the thick line, which from the map posted later seems to be the Woodland Trust managed area, but the proposal document says no development on the hatched area.

Looks to me as if oufc have stayed off the Woodland Trust site, but OCC are adding in this other area as not to be developed.

Or it could just be a junior getting carried away with hatching all of the “green” land that isn’t currently sports ground ?

 

[OUFCwaffle]

Just sent this to my local councillor.

I watched yesterdays cabinet meeting with great interest as both a local resident and an Oxford United fan. A consultation period is absolutely the correct decision and vital for a development of this size and I applaud the council for taking the time to give the matter the full consideration of the wider public.

It will come as no surprise that as a supporter of the club I am very much in favour of the development of Stratfield Brake. The club, as I’m sure you know, is very much constrained by the current arrangements at the Kassam Stadium. The current site suffers from poor access, no truly viable public transport links and is woefully unkempt and poorly maintained by the current landlord. The issue of access will only get worse once the new Grenoble Road residential developments are completed. Even on smaller match days with attendances of only 5000 or 6000 the traffic situation is unworkable. There are only a handful of public buses that serve the ground on a match day, offering a total capacity of probably in the region of 300 seats. Furthermore, the current stadium is home to one of the biggest car parks in the Football League, further encouraging private car use with a lack of any viable alternative.

The stadium itself is also not fit for purpose and has suffered from years of neglect from the landlord. A perfect example of this is the first game back at the Kassam Stadium post lockdown in December 2020. The stadium had not been cleaned in the 10 months since the last home game. Fans were asked by the club to attend with wet wipes to clean their own seats. The lavatories at the stadium haven’t had soap or hot water for several years now, and the Priory, the only local pub, has also remained closed despite Mr Kassam being told he must restore and reopen it as a condition of him being granted planning permission for a second hotel on the site. He has constantly neglected his duties as a responsible landlord. If this were a private residence he would have been held accountable by the courts by now.

I was taken aback by John Hill’s comments at yesterdays meeting. Unfortunately he demonstrated very little knowledge of the situation the club finds itself in, or the background of the clubs current owners. To say the club don’t have the financial clout to see this through reflects this. The Board of Directors have extensive experience in both football and commercial developments, having previously owned one of the biggest clubs in the world, Inter Milan and also having previously built a new stadium for DC United in Washington DC. The experience of the current board is vast, and if anyone can fund and see through a project of this magnitude, it is them. I would argue that there are very few people in the world who are more suited to the task.

Stratfield Brake offers a unique opportunity for both the club and the city. The public transport links are infinitely better than those on offer at the Kassam. The sites proximity to Oxford Parkway offers access that most major venues in the UK would be very enviable of. Bus routes are plentiful too, and for the few that do choose to drive to games (I believe there will be an active discouragement of private cars from the club, with very few car parking spaces available), access will be much better, with several trunk roads nearby.

The very future of Oxford United, a club who do so much in our community in addition to just entertaining us on the pitch, is at stake. Make no mistake, if such a move is blocked the very future of the club could be put into doubt. The clubs current investors will not want to continue to fund the club at the Kassam as a loss making entity. If they leave, the club may no longer be viable.

Oxford lacks many world class facilities and has done for many years. I would hope that we could see the development of Stratfield Brake not just as an opportunity for the club, but also the city. Other initiatives such as the reopening of the Cowley Branch Line, the possible relocation of the Ice Rink to the new site and a significant investment in local community sport and leisure facilities can only be a good thing.

I urge you to back these developments. I truly believe that our area with thrive if you do.

Could not have said it better myself, spot on

 

[bazzer9461]

Just received this email from my county councillor

I don't know John Hill but any resident is entitled to register to speak at a Council meeting and have their say.

I can assure you that this does not mean that we believe everything everyone says!

We have had many representations on both sides of the debate, and we decided that the right thing to do was to allow a bit more time for people to give us their input before moving forward to the next stage.

Personally, I fully appreciate the position the club are in and I understand the history behind it. I very much hope that we will be able to find a positive way forward.

All the best,

 

[Jason N]

Sorry If I've missed it, is it possible to rewatch the meeting and skip to the key part? Any link would be appreciated.

 

[Sarge]

Sorry If I've missed it, is it possible to rewatch the meeting and skip to the key part? Any link would be appreciated.

minutes should be available to view/ read 'soon'

I don't know if a recording or footage of the meeting (live) stream exists? .... if it does, its item 11 on the agenda

 

[uptheus]

So with 3 years already passed in the planning and another 3/4+ years in the making, do we know if these financial backers will stick around to see this stadium built?

If the new stadium does not get the go ahead, and or, the financial backers don’t want to hang around, what does this mean ultimately mean for our club?

 

[Foley]

So with 3 years already passed in the planning and another 3/4+ years in the making, do we know if these financial backers will stick around to see this stadium built?

If the new stadium does not get the go ahead, and or, the financial backers don’t want to hang around, what does this mean ultimately mean for our club?

I would imagine that having put a huge amount of effort ( and money) in and as you suggest getting half way through, of course they will sticking around for the time being.
It would be an extraordinary time to pull out.
Of course if the stadium was ultimately blocked they in all likelihood pull out, but the key thing now surely is doing everything possible to get it approved/ built?

 

[OX14]

So with 3 years already passed in the planning and another 3/4+ years in the making, do we know if these financial backers will stick around to see this stadium built?

If the new stadium does not get the go ahead, and or, the financial backers don’t want to hang around, what does this mean ultimately mean for our club?

What do you mean already 3 year passed in planning? Its only been out in the public 10 days it was always going to face early backlash. A deferral isn't going to halt the planning that much at this stage and most likely the club anticipated such.

 

[yellowbow]

Taken from an OM article. From next Tuesday there will be an OCC engagement platform for people to make their views and feelings known:

The consultation runs from January 25 until February 21 on the council’s engagement platform letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk and Peros encouraged supporters to get involved.

He said: “Anybody who feels like engaging with the councillors and the consulation page, please make it about your own experience and make it polite and positive.

“We’re talking to the council directly and putting across the views of our members and fans.

“As a group, we’ll be putting out some headline points to include.”

 

[Orkney Islands Yellow]

Taken from an OM article. From next Tuesday there will be an OCC engagement platform for people to make their views and feelings known:

The consultation runs from January 25 until February 21 on the council’s engagement platform letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk and Peros encouraged supporters to get involved.

He said: “Anybody who feels like engaging with the councillors and the consulation page, please make it about your own experience and make it polite and positive.

“We’re talking to the council directly and putting across the views of our members and fans.

“As a group, we’ll be putting out some headline points to include.”

That said consultation page is here: https://letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk/

Hopefully everyone who has or will have signed the petition will add a comment supporting the stadium and ask OCC to open negotiations with OUFC.

 

[uptheus]

What do you mean already 3 year passed in planning? Its only been out in the public 10 days it was always going to face early backlash. A deferral isn't going to halt the planning that much at this stage and most likely the club anticipated such.

I mean internally. As Karl alluded to the other day, he knew (well I think we all knew) about the plans to move away from the Kassam/new stadium etc

 

[uptheus]

I would imagine that having put a huge amount of effort ( and money) in and as you suggest getting half way through, of course they will sticking around for the time being.
It would be an extraordinary time to pull out.
Of course if the stadium was ultimately blocked they in all likelihood pull out, but the key thing now surely is doing everything possible to get it approved/ built?

My thoughts too, but not saying they’re going to pull out now, but another 3/4+ years until completion is 7/8 years of commitment!

Just hope they’ve got the patience.

 

[Foley]

My thoughts too, but not saying they’re going to pull out now, but another 3/4+ years until completion is 7/8 years of commitment!

Just hope they’ve got the patience.

These guys have done it before. I would think that it is never straightforward .
One thing that they will know that they have to need in such a project is patience.