Torquay United Association Football Club - Sole Director Clarke Osborne

[Jeff]

Any planning put forward to the council for a new stadium, I expect, would be very similar to Scarborough Athletic Football Clubs £15 million, 2,000 seat stadium & leisure development. The clients there are Scarborough Council although some of the funding was raised with a bit of land swapping with the council and the developers. For Scarborough it is great as it means that after ten years, the town can get its club back again! However, given that Scarbroughs 2,000 seat stadium tallied up to £15 million and Forest Green Rover have unveiled plans for 5,000 seat sports stadium at a cost of £100m just how much will a 6,000 stadium at Nightingale Park cost with a train station, acres of car parking space for a lower support base and leisure facilities for the whole of the Torbay Community . It beggers belief to think CO is actually going to fund any proposal put forward to the council. From my perspective I can now see why Osborne is seen as a wrecking ball with a history of razing stadiums on the promise of building replacements that never materialise.

Scarborough Athletic Ground (Grandstand)

Minor pedantry alert, but the proposed railway station isn’t technically part of any proposed development at Nightingale Park. it’s a project that (to some levels) stands on its own two feet, but the business case for both developments improves if the other comes to fruition.

The railway station fell short of winning a chunk of Network Rails new station fund - probably not helped as its business case being compromised by the NIMBY-ism of the local residents refusing the plans for car parking on what is effectively currently a grass verge on the old Newton Road. A slightly short-sighted blockade, as surely house prices in that area would have been boosted by having that direct transport link to Exeter etc.

So as it stands the station is on the back-burner as the funding isn’t in place for it. Whether CO as a private investor would stump up the shortfall to improve his own development projects is another matter

[Soupdragon]

... and talking of 'nimbys', the Shiphay & The Willows residents have already said that they don't want TUFC at Nightingale Park (consultation carried out by the ward community partnership, published June 2016). We all know, though, what weight is given to residents' views where money is concerned ...

[chunkygull]

Typical Torbay, full of nimbys. Should be renamed nimbyville.

[greb46]

Maybe naivety but assuming the worst scenario and the council granted the free hold to CO of Plainmoor to do whatever ,then could they not add a clause whereby he couldn't construct anything there until he had built a new football stadium first for TUFC..

[MellowYellow]

... and talking of 'nimbys', the Shiphay & The Willows residents have already said that they don't want TUFC at Nightingale Park (consultation carried out by the ward community partnership, published June 2016). We all know, though, what weight is given to residents' views where money is concerned ...

I think Shiphay & The Willows residents objection comes in the form of Torquay Neighbourhood Plan Local Green Space Designation. One of the objections was the possible future development of all or part of Nightingale Park as a park & ride site, employment land and Leisure. (so we can now understand CO interpretation of a 'acres of land for car parking' - not stadium parking - but a park and ride scheme.)

It appears, it is not appropriate for the council to identify Nightingale Park as Local Green Space as Central Government through its One Public Estate programme continues to direct local authorities to generate efficiencies, through capital receipts and reduced running costs from land holdings.

In addition, the Local Government Association has specifically identified the use and income from Council assets to support core services. For this reason and also taking into account the Council’s Corporate Asset Management Plan, a key policy framework document which states the Council should not restrict or reduce the current or future value of its assets through the use of covenants ( does this mean Plainmoor covenants are not safe?) and other restrictions the Council continues to strongly object to the proposed Nightingale Park as a Local Green Space designation as set out in Torquay’s Neighbourhood Plan.

It appears there are a number of specific proposals for Nightingale Park and any such Green Space designation would prevent the Council in bringing forward these proposals. (so what are these proposal and do they have anything to do with GI?)

[MellowYellow]

For anyone needing some bedtime reading then below is the link to the Council’s Corporate Asset Management Plan
It will send you to sleep that's for sure. Pick what you will out of it, for example:

To release value and minimise cost:

Due to the financial challenges facing the Authority and the possible future reductions in Revenue Support Grants (RSG), unless there is specific approval at Full Council to the contrary, the Council will:

Not restrict or reduce the current or future value of its assets through the use of contractual restrictions, covenants, peppercorn rents

http://www.torbay.gov.uk/media/9871/cor ... t-plan.pdf

[westyorkshiregull]

Well something is getting through.
Woke up my Radio Devon fix this morning as per usual with the presenter Laura . On the news reel is about torquay fans getting annoyed as the chairman Clark osborne has had club for 13 months without a meeting fans or a broadcastable interview. As they say " just some press releases about a new stadium "

[westyorkshiregull]

Now on the BBC sport website

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/amp/football/42958113

[Yorkieandy]

Well something is getting through.
Woke up my Radio Devon fix this morning as per usual with the presenter Laura . On the news reel is about torquay fans getting annoyed as the chairman Clark osborne has had club for 13 months without a meeting fans or a broadcastable interview. As they say " just some press releases about a new stadium "

Social anxiety can be a crippler.