Ground move

[Joelinho]

I recently dipped into my collection of Morecambe programmes and found the 1988/89 yearbook I bought on eBay a couple of years ago. I finally got around to reading it and came across a short section regarding the proposed ground move in 1989, with a lovely mock-up picture of the "£2million stadium" in Westgate, in the exact same place we are moving to at the end of this season!

The blurb about the move says the current ground is "providing extremely costly to maintain." It felt for a second that I was reading something published recently!

This publication was just before my time, and I was just curious as to why these plans never materialised?

[shrimper]

There were plans for a retail park to be built on the Christie Park site. There were a lot of objections for different reasons, various meetings were held and while all that was being discussed the company that was proposing the retail park went bust.

[Joelinho]

Thank you. Did we lower the attendance somehow as well? It says we were unable to comply with the "stringent regulations" being a ground capable of holding 10,000 supporters. Is this perhaps how we made the ground maintainable for so many years?

[Christies Child]

I recently dipped into my collection of Morecambe programmes and found the 1988/89 yearbook I bought on eBay a couple of years ago. I finally got around to reading it and came across a short section regarding the proposed ground move in 1989, with a lovely mock-up picture of the "£2million stadium" in Westgate, in the exact same place we are moving to at the end of this season!

The blurb about the move says the current ground is "providing extremely costly to maintain." It felt for a second that I was reading something published recently!

This publication was just before my time, and I was just curious as to why these plans never materialised?

As I recall a group of local NIMBYs got together and the council listend to them and rejected the development of Christie Park into a Retail Park.

How times change. Now nearly everybody is welcoming Sainsbury and our move to pastures new.

Incredibly had we moved at the time, it's doubtful if the stadium proposed would have been able to accomodate self funding League football without millions being spent on it.

Maybe we have a lot to thank those NIMBYs for after all....

[alwaysright]

I drove past the new place today and its looking well, but there's a lot of work still to be done, is the construction on time ?????

[Christies Child]

I drove past the new place today and its looking well, but there's a lot of work still to be done, is the construction on time ?????

Let's just say that the Project Management Company have put their name and reputation on the line with the sponsorship of the Arena. Somehow I can't see them allowing anything to detract from the official hand over date.

It could well be that the site will be a mass of last minute activity with many 10s of workers putting the finishing touches to the Arena, but that's nothing unusual with projects such as this.

Whether the entire complex is completed on time ie Training area etc is not a fundamental as the Arena itself.

[durhamshrimp]

Can you put a scan up of this mock-up? Interested to see it.

[Joelinho]

Can you put a scan up of this mock-up? Interested to see it.

I don't have access to a scanner at the moment unfortunately. I'll try and get it copied by the end of the week. Unless there's another kind soul who has the same yearbook as me?

[Christies Child]

Can you put a scan up of this mock-up? Interested to see it.

I don't have access to a scanner at the moment unfortunately. I'll try and get it copied by the end of the week. Unless there's another kind soul who has the same yearbook as me?

Am sure that this will be of interest to a number of fellow SVs especially decrepit old farts like me who like myself remember the presentation of the scheme at the Town Hall!

[Heysham_Shrimp]

Can you put a scan up of this mock-up? Interested to see it.

I don't have access to a scanner at the moment unfortunately. I'll try and get it copied by the end of the week. Unless there's another kind soul who has the same yearbook as me?

Am sure that this will be of interest to a number of fellow SVs especially decrepit old farts like me who like myself remember the presentation of the scheme at the Town Hall!

I seem to remember a replica model of the proposed stadium being on show in what was "The World Cup Bar" at the time.

The director in charge I think was called Tony Rodrigez who I believe passed away at quite a young age a few years after this scheme was aborted.

[ezz]

I was thinking the same about the time scale of the stadium, but I went past last week and the main stand was much further along. I never see the rest of the stadium just the main stand. I assume that if things go behind schedule then the training facilities will be sacrificed till after the season starts, focussing on the main stadium requirements?

[Keith]

As I recall a group of local NIMBYs got together and the council listend to them and rejected the development of Christie Park into a Retail Park.

How times change. Now nearly everybody is welcoming Sainsbury and our move to pastures new.

Incredibly had we moved at the time, it's doubtful if the stadium proposed would have been able to accomodate self funding League football without millions being spent on it.

Maybe we have a lot to thank those NIMBYs for after all....

Not just NIMBY's, quite a few fans as well (and we didn't have many!)

In particular, the money didn't add up, the income from the sale of the ground was going to be more than the building of the new ground. Some of the 'extra' was going to be spent on the team. In my opinion at the time, that meant either the money would be wasted and we'd end up with an asset that had been devalued or, more worrying, 'someone' would make a lot of money out of the sale of a ground that didn't belong to them. That is the key difference between the project this time around and that proposal, this one is an investment that will mark the future of Morecambe FC, the previous one would, in my opinion, have led to our demise.

[P/T Indie]

I bought this book not long ago and the layout of the plans is nearly identical to what the new site is going to be like with the training pitches etc. It's like someone put the plans in a draw for 20 years and then revisited them.
I didn't know much about the original move to westgate just it was once talked about and couldn't believe my luck when I got the book and these plans were in it.

I agree with Joelinho the statement on why they wanted to move about CP been to costly and making extra non matchday revenue is virtually word for word like the recent press releases.

[shrimper]

As I recall a group of local NIMBYs got together and the council listend to them and rejected the development of Christie Park into a Retail Park.

How times change. Now nearly everybody is welcoming Sainsbury and our move to pastures new.

Incredibly had we moved at the time, it's doubtful if the stadium proposed would have been able to accomodate self funding League football without millions being spent on it.

Maybe we have a lot to thank those NIMBYs for after all....

Not just NIMBY's, quite a few fans as well (and we didn't have many!)

In particular, the money didn't add up, the income from the sale of the ground was going to be more than the building of the new ground. Some of the 'extra' was going to be spent on the team. In my opinion at the time, that meant either the money would be wasted and we'd end up with an asset that had been devalued or, more worrying, 'someone' would make a lot of money out of the sale of a ground that didn't belong to them. That is the key difference between the project this time around and that proposal, this one is an investment that will mark the future of Morecambe FC, the previous one would, in my opinion, have led to our demise.

But that wasn't the crux of the objections cited at the time.

The vast majority were auxiliary club members wanting to retain their darts, doms, snooker and cheap booze venue (that was providing nothing at all to the club) and there were a few more (mainly older residents dragged along by the auxiliary club posse) who objected on the spurious old Christie trust 'must revert to public leisure use' argument.

Others were genuinely worried about the impact the retail park would have on town centre shops.

Funny that the council listened to objectors on this one but then approved Netto, 100 yards up the road, a few months later.

[Keith]

No, but it was my objection.

I think getting the Auxiliary Club closed and demolished was key to the move being able to go ahead. Due to the complexities of the arrangement, ie the football club owning the land, the Aux club owning the building, it wasn't hard to block that previous move. Closing the drinking establishment and flattening it suggests to me that the move was in the planning stage even back then.

[paulshrimp]

I have no doubt that the builders, bearing in mind that they have put their name to it, will finish the stadium on time but what concerns me is Mother Nature. If they are going to seed the pitch in April what happens if we have cold/wet Spring and the grass does not grow and establish itself in time? Have we any contingency plans in this case? I presume that turfing will be much more expensive.

[Christies Child]

I have no doubt that the builders, bearing in mind that they have put their name to it, will finish the stadium on time but what concerns me is Mother Nature. If they are going to seed the pitch in April what happens if we have cold/wet Spring and the grass does not grow and establish itself in time? Have we any contingency plans in this case? I presume that turfing will be much more expensive.

This is something that I suspect concerns quite a few people. However the club have been taking the advice of the experts in this area so I suggest we let them get on with it and trust in their expertize.

The club will be only too aware of the implications if the pitch isn't ready for the pre-season friendlies and beyond.

Without seeing an update selection of Mike W's excellent photos it's difficult to know how far advanced the contractors are with the playing area. However if you take a look at the Chesterfield stadium (see topic in SVs) then you will see how far they have progressed. The very latest photo taken this morning appears as though they are laying turf but that could just because of the camera angle at which the shot was taken.

[Philja]

Morecambe -Vs- Mossley 26/08/89

A few choce words from our then Chairman Eddie Weldrake regarding the rejection of planning permission for the new Westgate stadium and the planned transfer of Cainey for 7.5k from our fishy chums down the coast.

Click 'ere

[John L]

Click 'ere

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[BLS BOY]

Yeh ive found that too! Help us out here Philja!!!!?

[Keith]

Yeh ive found that too! Help us out here Philja!!!!?

He's such a tease!

[Philja]

Try giving the 'F5' key a bit of welly if you're still having trouble chaps.

If not, give this link a go..

[Wild Bill]

Bit before my time this ground move but I remember my Dad telling me something about the proposed move involving a merger with Lancaster City

[John L]

Try giving the 'F5' key a bit of welly if you're still having trouble chaps.

If not, give this link a go..

That's done the trick! Cheers!

[heysham_mfc]

'the developers have not met a council like Morecambe before'
some things never change