Loirston chosen for new stadium

Aberdeen FC set to move

EXCLUSIVE

By Charlie Allan

 

Published: 03/04/2009

 

THE Evening Express can today reveal the preferred location for Aberdeen’s new community stadium.

 

The £38 million community facility, which will become home to Aberdeen FC, will be at Loirston Loch in the south of the city.

 

It follows a year-long series of feasibility studies to decide if the site at Nigg would be the best location for the stadium.

 

The report on the recommendation of the Nigg site will now go out to consultation and will be referred to the council’s policy and strategy committee on April 28.

 

A number of other potential sites across the city, including one at King’s Links, were examined by Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeen FC and it was decided all of them were unsuitable.

 

Aberdeen FC managing director Duncan Fraser, who is also a member of the Arena Project Advisory and Monitoring Board created to advise of the best site and stadium design, said: “These recommendations have still to be approved and at the appropriate time, there will be a full consultation process with fans.

 

“Their feedback will be important.â€

 

For more on this story, and an exclusive image of the new arena, pick up today’s Evening Express or check back later

 

I dinna think anyone called William is likely to play for a women's team.

:rofl:

So Claudia is actually Willie the W.A.N.K?

Well "she" clearly isn't Italian, or has an incredibly good grasp of not just English, but colloquial Aberdonian judging by "her" first post 

I just associate it with turning up when you require and using whatever facilities are there! Whether that be a gym or computers or some empty room.

 

Shame it's in such an unrequired location if there are indeed community uses.

 

OK, so can I just turn up at your place of work, anytime, and use the facilities for, y'know (I'm channeling Dingus here, just for effect), any old thing I would like to do in "some empty room"?

Or if you dinna work (for whatever reason) can I just come and use your TV/computer/bathroom?

OK, so can I just turn up at your place of work, anytime, and use the facilities for, y'know (I'm channeling Dingus here, just for effect), any old thing I would like to do in "some empty room"?

Or if you dinna work (for whatever reason) can I just come and use your TV/computer/bathroom?

 

Did none of you have a local pitch/court and/or community centre? Is that after your time or something?

 

Where's this 10 hectare site? What businesses does it involve buying or relocating? Do you think it's possible to cram the same size stadium, the same size car park into a space that's quite a bit smaller? How does the AWPR aid the bottleneck from traffic leaving the site via king street? (I'm guessing it probably won't)

 

The 10 hectare site is the driving range and adjacent cricket pitch. Both are owned by the council. Craig Group Leisure have a long term lease on the driving range. It would involve compensating Craig Group Leisure to relocate the driving range. I don't know if the shop would have to go with it, but otherwise the construction cost of moving a few signs and a teeing off area to another location around the Links wouldn't be high I would think?

 

Stadium and car park would be more crammed in. Lot of filler space in stadium half of Kingsford due to car park limit, replaced with extensive concourse, trees and so on.

 

Isn't the AWPR specifically being built to relieve congestion on Union Street and King Street and the bridges into Aberdeen?

Did none of you have a local pitch/court and/or community centre? Is that after your time or something?

 

We did. They were owned by the council and paid for out of the Council Tax Budget, donations and local groups occasionally hiring them at an hourly or specified rate depending on the event you were hosting.

Tuesday night football cost us 50p- £1 each for 1hr back in the 80s.

They were not privately owned or located on a private company's land.

When the council could no longer afford them they were either sold off (if the land was valuable), or handed over to the local community who set them up as registered charities (which is what happened in my home village). These charities charge for people to use their facilities otherwise they have to close them down and leave them to rot.

 

Some of the faciltiies at Kingsford will apparently be available for local groups to use (pitches, sports pavilion etc) but this will be at the clubs discretion.

If the people of Westhill or Kingswells want similar facilities which are 'publicly' owned then they will have to Lobby Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire Council to extend or open up a new sports centre or two

 

The 10 hectare site is the driving range and adjacent cricket pitch. Both are owned by the council. Craig Group Leisure have a long term lease on the driving range. It would involve compensating Craig Group Leisure to relocate the driving range. I don't know if the shop would have to go with it, but otherwise the construction cost of moving a few signs and a teeing off area to another location around the Links wouldn't be high I would think?

 

Stadium and car park would be more crammed in. Lot of filler space in stadium half of Kingsford due to car park limit, replaced with extensive concourse, trees and so on.

 

The Cricket pitch plus the Driving range is not 10 Hectares. The Current Pittodrie site is 5.5 Hectares and that would only just fit into in that space.

I would say the 10 hectares is the the driving ranges plus the Kings Links Golf Course.

 

In terms of compensation I take it you mean the following

1) Pay out the remaining lease to the council. Current rate-able value for the Kings links golf centre is £108,000 per year. Exactly how long is this long Term lease?.

2) Find a replacement site and pay for the construction of a New Driving Range, and the relocation of the Business. This latter used to be the way Supermarkets got hold of old Stadium sites.

Finding and purchasing a site large enough for a new driving range with modernised facilities plus construction costs - £2.5Million?

 

Before all this of the Club has to convince the council to sell the oldest Municipal Golf Course in the city.

 

Now we move onto the stadium complex. Planning rules require a specific amount of car Parking for sports stadiums and just because a kings links stadium is closer the city centre does not mean this will be relaxed.

Falkirk's new stadium has a capacity half of Pittodrie and is 15mins walk from the Train station but still required more than 600 Parking spaces.

Then there is the road infrastructure - Improvements to the Golf Road, The esplanade etc which will be made all the more complicated by the prospect of 350 new residential units being built on the Doorstep.

But the biggest headaches are the sandy soil conditions, the drainage/ flood prevention infrastructure (Kings Links is only approx 7ft above sea level). These alone could potentially double or even triple the cost of construction.

 

It could be done but it is by no means a cheaper alternative.

 

Isn't the AWPR specifically being built to relieve congestion on Union Street and King Street and the bridges into Aberdeen?

 

My understanding it is being built to relieve congestion throughout the city but in particular the A90 route (Anderson Drive, The Parkway and the bottle necks at the brig o dee, Haudigan and Bridge of Don rounabouts}

All trucks heading to or coming from Peterhead, Fraserburgh etc have to take this route with the Brig O'Dee being especially bad as large trucks cannot use the existing bridge.

They were not privately owned or located on a private company's land.

 

This is basically what I was getting at.

 

 

The Cricket pitch plus the Driving range is not 10 Hectares. The Current Pittodrie site is 5.5 Hectares and that would only just fit into in that space.

I would say the 10 hectares is the the driving ranges plus the Kings Links Golf Course.

 

Plus the course? Right, I've copied the whole Pittodrie site and cut it up to check this.

 

 

 

In terms of compensation I take it you mean the following

1) Pay out the remaining lease to the council. Current rate-able value for the Kings links golf centre is £108,000 per year. Exactly how long is this long Term lease?.

2) Find a replacement site and pay for the construction of a New Driving Range, and the relocation of the Business. This latter used to be the way Supermarkets got hold of old Stadium sites.

Finding and purchasing a site large enough for a new driving range with modernised facilities plus construction costs - £2.5Million?

 

Only said long term in one of the docs.

 

2003 planning study

 

 

There are possibilities if people are willing and all parties involved.

 

 

Now we move onto the stadium complex. Planning rules require a specific amount of car Parking for sports stadiums and just because a kings links stadium is closer the city centre does not mean this will be relaxed.

Falkirk's new stadium has a capacity half of Pittodrie and is 15mins walk from the Train station but still required more than 600 Parking spaces.

Then there is the road infrastructure - Improvements to the Golf Road, The esplanade etc which will be made all the more complicated by the prospect of 350 new residential units being built on the Doorstep.

But the biggest headaches are the sandy soil conditions, the drainage/ flood prevention infrastructure (Kings Links is only approx 7ft above sea level). These alone could potentially double or even triple the cost of construction.

 

It could be done but it is by no means a cheaper alternative.

 

Loads of things like this needing to be done for Kingsford.

 

Development opportunity..... 

 

Development opportunity..... 

 

 

I reckon we'll need to buy the mosque and flatten it.

 

At the pre-determination meeting today. Well done folks!

 

 

Live stream of meeting

 

https://aberdeen.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/304957

Marie Boulton showing a bit of cleavage  :o

What a load of arseholes.

 

Thank fuck I don't have to deal with this lot to get anything done.

What the fuck is any of this got to do with a Geordie?

 

Fuck off home you English immigrant bastard.

What a simply superb presentation by Elaine F-B to kick off the club's case.

 

 

 

 

What a simply superb presentation by Elaine F-B to kick off the club's case.

 

 

Derek spoke really well too. Just lost the stream though. 

 

Derek spoke really well too. Just lost the stream though. 

I imagine it's been overloaded

 

And yes he did. Hearts & minds speech after her facts and figures one 

Awesome from what I saw before it crashed

 

Excellent speeches gutted we have lost the stream to hear their replies to questions

 

And the cleavage was affa fine ana

A stuttering mess of a response from Milne 

However more than counter-acted by the waffling nonsense from Audrey Findlay of the WECC. She's terrible 

A stuttering mess of a response from Milne 

 

Aye he didn't come across too well, the other 3 all spoke very well though.

 

Had to nip out but assuming the westhill council wifey is talking shire going on twitter. Has she really claimed the community use the existing empty fields? 

Aye he didn't come across too well, the other 3 all spoke very well though.

 

Had to nip out but assuming the westhill council wifey is talking shire going on twitter. Has she really claimed the community use the existing empty fields? 

Councillor pulled her up on that, she's been a disaster. Asked why transport works well at other stadiums, and fans get to and from without injury...."you're comparing apples & pears"   

The KCC blokes been just as bad, scaremongering about the dangers involved with a large number of people using stairs or being able to walk along a footpath without spilling on to a road.

 

If that's the arguments then we've reached new levels of madness, if folk cant be trusted to walk along a footpath or use a footbridge then there's no hope.

I'm not sure how these things normally work (and I'm surprised and impressed its being live streamed) but dear god it doesnt half come across as being run by amateurs. Hardly surprised given its ACC but still.

I'm not sure how these things normally work (and I'm surprised and impressed its being live streamed) but dear god it doesnt half come across as being run by amateurs. Hardly surprised given its ACC but still.

I actually think Marie Boulton is running this pretty well. So far the amateur hour is on display from the WECC & KCC (thankfully)