St James' Park

[Jackie Broon]

5 minutes ago, TomYam said:

I'm pretty sure Castle Leazes isn't large enough to build a 70,000 seat stadium on - especially when you consider parking, etc. It'd surely have to involve buying up the buildings between Castle Leazes and Barrack Road. Horribly complicated. However, it's under-utilised common moor land and a 'land swap' with St.James's could be a major improvement for both club and city. 

 

 

 

It is, we had a planning application in for a 55,000 seater that was expandable to 70,000 in the 90s and nothing has fundamentally changed about the site since then.

[ozzrahog]

TBF we are a regular relegation candidate, the business has so many more important issues to deal with. Hopefully in 5 or 10 years time this might be an issue. 

[TomYam]

16 minutes ago, Jackie Broon said:

 

It is, we had a planning application in for a 55,000 seater that was expandable to 70,000 in the 90s and nothing has fundamentally changed about the site since then.

You're right, but I think it encroached on to Leazes Park. Still feasible depending on design quality, infrastructure, etc.

[manorpark]

1 minute ago, ozzrahog said:

TBF we are a regular relegation candidate, the business has so many more important issues to deal with. Hopefully in 5 or 10 years time this might be an issue. 

 

Good grief, how wrong does that sound, using the 'present tense' in that way.

[ozzrahog]

7 minutes ago, manorpark said:

 

Good grief, how wrong does that sound, using the 'present tense' in that way.

It is good grammar, we are a regular candidate for relegation 

[manorpark]

16 minutes ago, ozzrahog said:

It is good grammar, we are a regular candidate for relegation 

 

It is bad grammar as written like that it does not reflect reality as we know it now to be.

 

If you wished to be accurate, rather than making 'a point' for some reason, instead of writing "TBF we are a regular relegation candidate" you would have automatically written "TBF we have been a regular relegation candidate".

 

That's all I'm saying - accuracy.

[Jackie Broon]

1 hour ago, TomYam said:

You're right, but I think it encroached on to Leazes Park. Still feasible depending on design quality, infrastructure, etc.

 

It did, I hadn't actually realised how much.

 

 

Although obviously there was the benefit of the improvements to the setting of Leazes Terrace. IIRC the planning department seem to have been supportive, at least initially, but English Heritage objected and it was withdrawn when John Prescot decided to call the decision in. 

 

In my experience Historic England are less likely to intervene nowadays, particularly on stuff involving Grade 2 listings. They don't even need to be consulted on applications affecting Grade 2 listed buildings / parks, although they would here because it would be a major development that impacts on a conservation area.

 

 

Edited February 18, 2022 by Jackie Broon

[TomYam]

Those stadium plans suggest the greater part was to be built on Leazes Park rather than Castle Leazes.

Crazy to think the council approved, but then it's not exactly renowned for civic pride and John Hall was well known for, ahem, convincing people to support him.

As I evinced in an earlier post, if a new stadium were built 100 metres further north-west along Barrack Road (from those earlier plans) then you could arrive at something really special that most NUFC fans would support. However, that would involve purchasing land housing student buildings and army reserves. Very complicated.

[macphisto]

12 hours ago, Kid Icarus said:

If you mean lost from SJP, then fair enough and I've misinterpreted what you were saying. I read it as you meaning we nearly lost them altogether

 

 

 

Without the match going experience at 14-17 years old with your mates then yes we would have lost  a lot of fans. In my experience, that time in a supporter's life is so crucial in developing life long bonds to a team. At best it turned a lot of who would have been serious fans in casual fans who probably completely lost interest during the Ashley years.

[macphisto]

6 hours ago, Yorkie said:

 

Well none of that chimes with your opening gambit of "Eighth biggest in the league!? Puh!"

 

What you've said there is a reasonable argument but I still don't totally buy it. It's not like 49-51,000 seats is horribly inaccessible. If we're targeting a fanbase of millions then what difference is another 10,000 really going to make, at the expense of everything associated with SJP? 

 

I went to SJP three times before I was 18. It didn't turn me off. 

It might not have turned you off but it did for plenty of others or rather the crucial bonds that last a life-time and are developed between 14-17 years old going to the match just didn't develop.

 

Also, I don't mean to be patronising here, but you missed out on so much as a young fan. Going to the match with with your mates in your mid to late teens is one of the best times, if not the best time to support a team. 

 

I would hate for future generations to be denied the opportunity to watch the match in-person like  what happened during the Hall years.

[macphisto]

6 hours ago, Kid Icarus said:

I'm going to be blunt, this whole 'giving everyone a chance' bollocks is just PR brainwashed mind feedback. Even a cursory glance at how these things go (higher ticket prices, lower attendances, more corporate seats) should tell you that there's a 0% chance the people you reckon you're helping would benefit at all.

 

 

 

 

Which PR? If we had a capacity of over 70,000+ then I'm confident there would be space for all groups of our supporters from corporate to local kids from the East and West ends of Newcastle. Some matches would be more difficult than others to obtain tickets for but most groups would be able to watch the team throughout the season.

 

I think this ownership is very switched on and I have no doubt they know the importance of not cutting off future generations.

[cosmic]

On 16/02/2022 at 21:46, Dr Jinx said:

Borussia Dortmund’s stadium sort of looks like if ours has been built properly.

 

 

[cosmic]

 

[nufcjb]

From the arricle abive:

 

Paul Reed, associate director and sport and leisure lead at GT3 Architects, was involved in the design of the Manchester City’s stadium and training ground as well as the Olympique Stadium in London, now used by West Ham United.

 

Good. Some experience will always help with mega projects like this.

 

 

[TheGuv]

 

[Kid Icarus]

That's actually ingenius if possible like. 

[Kid Icarus]

[TheGuv]

7 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

That's actually ingenius if possible like. 

Leazes Terrace surely would be a snag for lighting? Perhaps a smaller East Stand would work? 
 

Who knows?

 

If they did it, it’s fucking amazing.

[Kid Icarus]

Wonder how that design would deal with the missing lower seats as well, presumably it would just be a drop to pitch level.

EDIT: The pitch would be raised

 

 

Edited February 18, 2022 by Kid Icarus

[Jackie Broon]

9 minutes ago, TheGuv said:

Leazes Terrace surely would be a snag for lighting? Perhaps a smaller East Stand would work? 
 

Who knows?

 

If they did it, it’s fucking amazing.

 

Both lighting / overbearing impact and impact on the setting of the listed building probably.

 

But if not it does seem like an ingenious option.

 

 

[Yorkie]

Hideously symmetrical imo. 

[Guest HTT II]

1 hour ago, cosmic said:

 

Looks shit tbh, and no car park spaces?

[Guest HTT II]

26 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

Yes please!

[Kid Icarus]

Presumably it would look more like this but more compressed.

 

[Happinesstan]

For a lot of people, at the time, the only option was to watch us on Sky. They really couldn't have wished for a better fairy tale to sell their product, globally.